The 2011 legislative session was supposed to be strictly about the budget. Republicans did nearly anything but work on the budget. As the last day of the session ground to a halt and GOP legislators sat idly by, I reflected upon what they tried to pass this session instead of the budget.
Obviously, the marriage discrimination constitutional amendment comes to mind. So does the Voter ID constitutional amendment as well as the new stadium for billionaire MN Vikings owner Zygi Wilf.
But that barely scratches the surface and much of it was totally insane:
-- cross-posted from MN Progressive Project, home of the Michele Bachmann Bizarro World --
- Repeal the smoking ban
- Eliminate background checks for gun purchases
- Designate English as the official language
- Bike tax
- remove the ban on increasing carbon dioxide emissions by utilities
- Ban state funding of abortions
- Eliminate 8 state agencies including Depts of Employment & Econ Dev, Health, Human Rights, Labor & Industry, Revenue, MNDOT, Vet Affairs and the Office of Mgmt & Budget
- Further weaken a woman's right to choose with yet another abortion bill
- Repeal the Next Generation Energy Act which was signed by Pawlenty
- Prevent welfare recipients from having more than $20 cash in their pockets
- Prohibit anyone from suing a company if you get fat from their food
- Drug testing for welfare recipients
- Racist immigration laws
- End pay equity for women
- A second bill to end pay equity for women
- Bail-outs for schools in Republican areas as well as small budget increases yet they dramatically slash budgets for the large cities
- Yet another abortion bill, require parental consent for teens to get healthcare
- Logging in our state parks
- Ban federal funding of family planning
- Eliminate Meals on Wheels
- Ban human cloning and end life-saving and job creating research in MN
- An amendment to Health & Human Services bill to exempt MN from health care reform
- Prevent animal welfare activists from filming animal cruelty at factory farms
- Ban state payments to nonprofits
- Amendment to the HHS bill to use baby monitors instead of nurses
- Another abortion bill, this one a gag rule which prevents any organization that receive state funds to council about abortion services
- Shoot first, show Get-Out-Of-Jail-Free card later bill
- MN should print its own money
- Make it easier to violate licensing laws
Did I miss anything?