Date of this headline? Sept. 7th.
Votes could come today. Or not.
Reports of progress being made; I tend to believe that is true because Bishop threw another one of his patented fits yesterday. He only does that when something happens that he doesn't like.
But now the conventional wisdom being floated around the media is that they are all cowards. Nobody will use that word, but I will, because it's true.
From retired Republican Senator Harry Gast, who headed the Senate Appropriations Committee for 19 years -
"There's a structural problem with the budget that they're not even addressing," Gast told The Associated Press in a telephone interview, faulting lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. "They just don't want to make a tough decision because ... it will offend some of their constituents ... or it will have a negative effect on their campaign contributions.
"It's a lack of guts," he said.
To Jack Lessenberry-
What the legislature needs more than anything is backbone. Last night a woman told me she worked for a representative who knew taxes were needed but was scared to vote for them.
He fears the little man with the pink plastic pig will try to recall him. I said if he thought our future was worth sacrificing in order to cling to a job that can last only four more years, he should be impeached. There are a lot of people in Lansing worried about their profiles. We desperately need a few with a little courage.
To a scathing editorial in the LSJ-
Fear of being recalled for approving a tax increase should not have been the issue. What should these folks fear? Being held accountable by voters for their inaction on a fiscal crisis that has waited for attention all year long.
Indeed. For the "I didn't know it was this bad" crowd, here is the Governor, Dec. 22, 2006-
At the same time, she avoided answering questions about whether she is prepared to call for a tax increase to address the state's budget deficit, which she said could be in the range of $3 billion.
"I'm not giving you a headline to write," she said. "I'm preparing people for the fact that this is going to be significantly challenging."
"Significantly challenging". Pretty much describes this whole year; pretty much describes how hard it is to have faith that these guys will come to their senses anytime soon.
But keep your fingers crossed anyway.
(Decided to start cross posting again. Just for fun.)