Today, the Minnesota Senate adjourned sine die after an extended special session where Senate Republicans decided to take up a handful of commissioner confirmations.
After adjournment, Senate DFL Leader Susan Kent (DFL-Woodbury) released the following statement:
“The Senate adjourned sine die today after a special session was unnecessarily extended by Senate Republicans for the sole purpose of furthering their own political agenda. The move by Senate Republicans to bring up commissioners they had issues with during budget negotiations feels vengeful, politically motivated, and counter to the values Minnesotans hold dear: honesty and transparency. As a result, we lost a great public servant in Commissioner Laura Bishop yesterday, who was committed to addressing the urgency of climate change and providing a clean future for all Minnesotans, which is something we should all care about.”
“While the Senate does have a constitutional responsibility to offer advice and consent in confirming commissioners, the possibility of not confirming a commissioner should not be used as a threat if the Senate majority does not get their way. This is a dangerous path to go down as it could make it harder to find qualified candidates to run our state agencies in the future if they think they will get caught up in political infighting. Senate Republicans seem to be using our government to benefit their own political agenda, which is wrong. Minnesotans deserve serious and dedicated leadership – not the political games being played by Senate Republicans.”
“In spite of the games that the Senate Republicans are playing with the time and resources of the Minnesota Senate, the Senate DFL remains committed to supporting our working families, investing in our students and schools, providing a clean environment, addressing climate change, and protecting our democracy. We will also continue to fight for access to affordable housing and healthcare and equity for all because we know that these are the issues that Minnesotans care about. Minnesotans deserve true leaders who will work to improve their future and the Senate DFL will continue to model what real leadership looks like.”
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