On June 20th, the Minnesota Senate adjourned after passing bills for Covid-19 funding and police reform.
Many bills were passed by the Senate with bipartisan ideas such as federal COVID-19 funding and barring chokeholds from police use. Republicans did this while opposing the Democrats’ goals such as felon voting. Senate Leader Paul Gazelka cited a lack of Democrat cooperation as the reason for adjourning the session.
“I’m frustrated this morning because I thought we were actually going to do some things together. We had the opportunity to do good things for the state with the federal COVID funds, pass a bonding bill, and reform police accountability. I actually thought we could get something done, but the behind the scenes arm-twisting from the Governor has ended any hope of working together right now,” said MN Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka
Some Democrats have accused the Senate of failing the people of Minnesota. To which Republicans have pushed back against. “The three branches of government are equal and should be willing to work together for the good of our state. Governor Walz has the House in his pocket and has walked away from positive actions,” said Senator Utke.
You & the @MinnesotaDFL blocked almost $1 billion in relief for our cities & counties because we aren’t willing to dismantle our police departments. @MaryStephensMN will be a true representative of the Woodbury area! https://t.co/FrQQu8KQAA https://t.co/F22DmJwy3g
— Karin Housley (@KarinHousley) June 20, 2020
“We are not walking away from the table, but we do need to reset the table so we can move forward. I do believe we will have another special session, but not until all the parties can agree,” wrote Gazelka.
Judah Torgerud
Judah Torgerud is a freelance journalist working with Alpha News to keep the people informed and bring the truth to light. Contact him at whqnu@nycunarjfza.pbz.