The gulf of St. Paul

Posted at 3:43 PM on January 26, 2011 by Bob Collins (3 Comments)
Filed under: Politics

Three or so weeks into the legislative session and the hallmark of the session so far has not so much been job creation, but the vast gulf that exists between Republicans and the few DFLers who remain.

Today, for example, the Public Safety and Crime Prevention Policy and Finance Committee passed a bill that would repeal the gun permit laws in Minnesota. That's not exactly an issue that was much of a hot topic in the campaign, but it's also one that's not surprising, either.

Here's the breakdown of today's vote:

Legislator	Party	District	Vote
Kerry Gauthier	DFL	07B	AGAINST
Bill Hilty	DFL	08A	AGAINST
Sheldon Johnson	DFL	67B	AGAINST
Carlos Mariani	DFL	65B	AGAINST
Rene Moran	DFL	65A	AGAINST
Joe Mullery	DFL	58A	AGAINST
Linda Slocum	DFL	63B	AGAINST
Tony Cornish	Republican	24B	FOR
Glenn Gruenhagen	Republican	25A	FOR
Tim Kelly	Republican	28A	FOR
Andrea Kieffer	Republican	56B	FOR
John Kriesel	Republican	57A	FOR
Ernie Leidiger	Republican	34A	FOR
Joe McDonald	Republican	19B	FOR
Bud Nornes	Republican	10A	FOR
Steve Smith	Republican	33A	FOR
Kelby Woodard	Republican	25B	FOR

You probably notice something in that vote; it was along party lines. There have been nine committee votes at the Legislature so far this year on significant pieces of legislation. In those votes that were roll-call votes, no one DFLer has strayed from his/her party, and one Republican strayed from his/her party (David Dill, a DFLer, voted to repeal the moratorium on nuclear power. GOPer Steve Smith voted against budget cuts)

Gov. Mark Dayton may set a record for vetoes.

You can find bill status and votes on MPR's Votetracker.

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Comments (3)

Under the current "let's all work together and get important things done for the people of Minnesota" atmosphere, this comes as a GREAT surprise to me.

Posted by Jack /Boardman | January 26, 2011 3:52 PM

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At least they are sticking to their pledges to make this session all about jobs and the budget first and putting other issues aside until later.

Posted by Alison | January 26, 2011 4:54 PM

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Perhaps you've missed the fact that HF 1 and 2 are swiftly moving through committees and we'll be voting on the first round of budget bills tonight.

Posted by kwatt | January 27, 2011 8:40 AM

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