Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

I saw Mary Hinnenkamp recently on TV telling the interviewer that omnibus bills help politicians compromise. What? The biggest reason politicians can’t compromise or work together is because of omnibus bills. Mary and her DFL love omnibus bills because that’s how they hide things like teaching sex to kindergartners and excessive spending. It’s just a select few leaders who choose what goes in these big bills. All those bad bills stuck inside these big omnibus bills would never make it on their own merit. These omnibus bills are also a way to hide votes. They allow controversial legislation to get passed without anyone knowing if their legislator voted for or against it. The legislator can tell everyone back home that they really didn’t want to vote for that bad stuff in the omnibus bill but had to vote for it because of the good stuff. Omnibus bills are the main cause of all the gridlock at the end of session. These bills are not about compromise — they are legislative blackmail. “If you don’t vote for this, we will tell everyone you were against all the good stuff in this bill.” If Mary doesn’t understand that omnibus bills are the biggest reason no one can work together, then vote for Peggy Bennett, who does understand.

Katie Jacobsen

Albert Lea