The folks over at MN Progressive Project have a piece up about four MN state senators’ attempt to force a complete and total state government shut down even if that means risking the release of convicted felons or dooming people in state run hospitals to the streets (unless they have families to care for them—some do not).
The senators in question include Warren Limmer, R-Maple Grove, Sean Nienow, R-Cambridge, and first termers Sens. Scott Newman, R-Hutchinson and Roger C. Chamberlain R-Lino Lakes.
But!! Not extreme right position would be complete without a little non-profit messaging machine to along for the ride. In this case, the above senators’ bedfellow is a group known as the Minnesota Voters Alliance, a non-profit group promoting extreme right-wing agenda items.
It is interesting to note that MVA has been very active in attempts to get a photo ID voting requirement passed. They are also pushing forsales tax repeals (ostensibly because of how the tax bill is named) and appear to have some beef with the League of Women Voters.
The president and cofounder Andy Cilek has (as far as I can tell) been involved in some court battle over wearing “ID Me Please” buttons or shirts to, or near, polling places. The MN Progressive Project also has a piece about Cilek from last fall in which they offer an email from Cilek concerning a voter ID amendment.
While I am not sure which came first, the GOPers’, in this case, desire to shut down all state government services, at least temporarily, or MVA planting the idea in their minds, it really doesn’t matter.
The mere idea of complete state shutdown is a recipe for disaster. Road construction sites go unattended, unemployment/health care coverage goes dark, prisons/state hospitals go unstaffed, and on and on. None of which will, it appears, be among these senators’ concerns when they petition the court to dis-allow state funds to continue to flow to services deemed “essential” during a partial state shutdown.
This is who the GOP has become—a group of gov’t hating, rule fearing, money-grubbing, power grabbers.
Let’s stick this message to them and make it stick—let this be their tar and feathering, their Scarlet Letter, only this time the “A” stands from something synonymous with a certain orifice on their backsides.
Update: The Wisconsin angle--
I posted earlier today about a group Minnesota senators willing to force a complete shut down of the state government--at least they were open about it. Across the great St. Croix river the citizens of the wonderful state of Wisconsin aren't so lucky--as they should all know by now. Unfortunately, even with full knowledge of their states' republican representatives tactics, public knowledge means nothing.
According to Think Progress, the Walker Administration is quietly putting the Paul Ryan plan together at the state level all in the name of the 'budget'.
And so, I will close this piece as I did the Minnesota piece and this a message we need to keep repeating until it sticks:
This is who the GOP has become—a group of gov’t hating, rule fearing, money-grubbing, power grabbers.
Let’s stick this message to them and make it stick—let this be their tar and feathering, their Scarlet Letter, only this time the “A” stands from something synonymous with a certain orifice on their backsides.