In At the end of Special session and long-term reforms needed in Minnesota government, Morris Sun Tribune editor Kim Ukura writes:
When House Speaker Kurt Daudt visited Morris this week, he urged Minnesotans to ignore the "ugly" process for coming to an agreement on a bill, and instead look at the product of the bonding and transportation proposal that had been put together.
I have to disagree. While the outcome is certainly important, the way government comes to agreement is important too. We shouldn't be willing to ignore bad process in the long-term, even if in the short-term we're content with what has been developed.
As Minnesotans, we shouldn't accept the idea that last-minute maneuvering and votes with just minutes before a deadline represent good government. We should demand that agreements negotiated in private be given time for public scrutiny before they're voted on, and we should expect that the legislators who represent us will take the time to understand bills before they vote on them.
Once the dust settles on this session, I hope our elected leaders will do the work to make sure that government in Minnesota works well and continues to serve the citizens of the state.
Daudt may prefer one-liner wisdom drawn from quotations about sausage-making, but Ukura has a point. Her commentary joins a signed editorial at the Crookston Times that we posted about in Crookston Times: Speaker Kurt Daudt's like "a college kid partying like rock star all night long" (while still hoping for a make-up test in that 8 a.m. class he asked the prof to cancel).
Morris is waiting for news of a special session, Ukura reported in Water treatment plant on hold while questions remain with state funding.
Photo: It's the classic Kurt Daudt pout. Photo AP via St. Cloud Times.
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