Day Six of the partial shutdown and finally the public pressure may lead to some action. When most lawmakers went home Saturday afternoon, the shutdown was two days old. Legislative leaders were still pushing for partisan advantage. Well, when the rank and file came back from the Forth of July break yesterday, they had learned the public wasn't paying any attention to which party was doing what. It was a plague on all their houses. Here's what MPR's Laura McCallum reported:

Republican Sen. Paul Koering says he's embarrassed to be a legislator right now. The freshman senator from Fort Ripley says the partial government shutdown reflects badly on all state leaders. Koering was in four parades over the weekend, and says people in his district don't understand the stalemate.

"They're just mad at all 201 legislators; they're mad at the governor, they're just wondering why we can't, as adults, get along and just get the work done. That's all they want. Just get it done," he said Tuesday.

Koering says because of the shutdown, one of the largest construction companies in his district can't get permits to move their heavy equipment. When he called MnDOT to check on the problem, he got a recorded message that no one was available to return his call.

The main impact on the public over the weekend was thought to be closed down highway rest stops. Not anymore. The Star Tribune notes that while the impact is still limited, it is being felt by more people:

If your new factory-built home was slated for delivery to your lakefront lot this week, you're out of luck. The state worker who processes transportation permits is on furlough.

If you're a mom heading back to work after having a baby, don't expect any help finding child care. State child-care referral agencies are mostly closed.

And if you're an immigrant taking English classes, cram it in this week. Many of the classes will stop if the partial government shutdown isn't resolved soon.

Of course the biggest impact of the shutdown is on the more than 9,000 state employees who aren't working. Their unions asked the special master yesterday to put them back to work. The Pioneer Press includes it in their Day Five wrap up:

The state's two biggest public employee unions also tried Tuesday to persuade a judicial referee to recommend that all the workers temporarily out of work be declared essential to the state's health and safety and ordered back to their jobs.

"There is a scam going on," said Jim Monroe, executive director of the Minnesota Association of Professional Employees. He argued to the referee, former Supreme Court Justice Edward Stringer, that many important state services are not being performed.

Milk produced near nuclear plants is not being checked for safety, bridges are not being inspected and fixed, and regular screenings for West Nile virus are not being performed, union officials and state employees told Stringer.

Of course the biggest "scam" that's going on is that the state is still collecting taxes that pay for the services that aren't being performed.

Both House Speaker Steve Sviggum and Senate Majority Leader Dean Johnson say they hope they can reach a deal by Midnight tonight. Why tonight, and not May 23 or June 30 I don't know, but that's what they
say. Given what they've done so far, I'm skeptical, but you never know what may happen when enough pressure is applied.