Offers, counter offers, still no deal

Posted at 9:11 PM on May 16, 2010 by Tim Pugmire (1 Comments)
Filed under: MN Legislature, Tim Pawlenty

Gov. Pawlenty is expected to soon counter the latest DFL counter offer in a back and forth negotiation that will soon run out of time.

Lawmakers have until midnight to pass a budget-balancing bill and erase a nearly $3 billion deficit. Despite the Republican governor's earlier attempt to take the contentious health care issue off the table, it's still there, and it's still contentious.

Pawlenty's spokesman Brian McClung said DFL leaders are still insisting of surcharges to health care providers as part of a proposed expansion of federal Medicaid.

"The governor's opposition to surcharges is well established," McClung said.

Still McClung said there's a lot of agreement between the two sides.

Earlier, House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher and other DFL leaders had little to say as they left the governor's office.

"We are available, and we'll continue to work," Kelliher said.

Comments (1)

Does the governor realize that the path ro national office does not lead through a forrest of vetos, that centrist voters like me prefer the upbeat and positive, especially in their president?

Posted by Jesse Watkins | May 16, 2010 10:04 PM

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