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Hello from the State Capitol,
On Tuesday, Governor Walz unveiled the Democrat framework for a possible special session, in which they want to focus on guns. What he has not done is secured Republican support for a pre-determined special session agenda. On Monday, House Republicans sent Governor Walz some proposed parameters for a special session if he felt compelled to call one, which included improving student safety, mental health access, and public safety. He rejected this proposal.
Only Governor Walz can decide to call a special session. He has no control over which bills the legislature prioritizes once he calls it, unless there is a prior agreement. To date, there is none. That means all bills that the Legislature deems fit to debate will go through the committee process before reaching the floor, just as it would during a regular session. With a House that is in a statistical tie with Republican and Democrat members, anything that moves forward will need to have bipartisan support.
The governor knows this. Yet, he continues to play this “will he or won’t he” game regarding a special session. It’s bizarre and unprecedented.
I fear this is yet another political stunt orchestrated by Governor Walz. Somehow, he wants to blame Republicans if he doesn’t call a special session, and he’ll clearly blame us if he calls one and we don’t do exactly what he wants.
If called, House Republicans will show up ready to work to protect students and improve public safety. I also think the rampant fraud taking place under Walz’s administration – nearly $2 billion by some estimates and growing – would also be a topic worthy of consideration.
But lawmakers are not just going to follow the governor’s marching orders.
To me, this is another Walz attempt to try and control what the legislature does and thwart the democratic process. That’s a king’s mentality, and there’s no place for kings in Minnesota.
Talk to you soon,
Steve
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