Senate Democrats threaten to hold transportation funding hostage
In a stunning reversal, Democrat Majority Leader Tom Bakk told the Pioneer Press that Senate Democrats may not be willing to pass transportation funding and tax cuts this year. Bakk’s comments could be taken as a threat to hold popular bills hostage this session in order to gain leverage over House Republicans in negotiations.
“Transportation probably doesn’t have to happen,” Bakk said Wednesday.
In an April 23rd Transportation committee meeting, Sen. John Pederson asked Sen. Scott Dibble to explain the transportation funding comments.
Senator Dibble struggled with a response:
“Um, no, Senator Bakk articulated it is pretty important to do a transportation bill, but that the world wouldn’t come to an end if we didn’t do a transportation bill. I think what he was pointing out was that the same is true of a tax bill that the other body seems to want a lot as well…
Likewise, on the tax bill, that the House seems to want a lot, we can just do our current taxes, and no big changes, current law holds, and just kind of hold with current law, and the world won’t come to an end, but a lot of important things won’t happen that people want to have happen.
In a stunning reversal, Democrat Majority Leader Tom Bakk told the Pioneer Press that Senate Democrats may not be willing to pass transportation funding and tax cuts this year. Bakk’s comments could be taken as a threat to hold popular bills hostage this session in order to gain leverage over House Republicans in negotiations.