This time Geoff Michel plays the lead role opposite Michele Bachmann.
Geoff Michel, who is running for reelection in a district which prefers moderates to Michele Bachmann types is pushing the Bachmann amendment. From the DFL blog.
The extremists in the Minnesota Senate, led by Republican celebutante Michele Bachmann, attempted to subvert the legislative process again today by bringing the Senate to a standstill for nearly an hour over the anti-marriage amendment. After derailing the 2004 legislative session and attempting to do the same last year, they are up to their old tricks.
One person we might not really expect to be intimately involved with this distracting and mean-spirited issue is Senator Geoff Michel (R-Edina). Geoff is from a moderate, common-sense district that does not look favorably upon social extremists. But, in actuality, Geoff has shown a bizarre attraction to the same sex marriage issue. And he stands with the celebutante.
That's right, despite his constituents’ clear disdain for extremists, Geoff regularly follows orders from the extreme right of his party. Today, he showed his radical tendencies once again.
After all the hyperventilating over the gay marriage issue in the last week, Bachmann tried to ignore the legislative process yet again today. She wants the anti-marriage amendment to not be heard in committee - where the public is able to come to the Capitol and testify in support or against a bill - but instead to bring the bill directly to the floor for her own political expediency. Today, Senator Michel backed the anti-marriage amendment and followed Bachmann's orders.
After Bachmann and Michel's subversion failed, Senator Sean Nienow (wanting a piece of the extremist pie for himself) tried the same move. Despite the support of Geoff Michel (and the rest of the Bachmann crowd), Nienow failed as well.
Led by Senator Dean Johnson, the Minnesota Senate is committed to providing every bill that is introduced a fair hearing in the Senate. This includes the committee process. Every bill must go through it.
Geoff Michel is hearing from his constituents on this issue - and his constituents oppose it. A friend of mine has been part of a group in Edina which has been door knocking residents in opposition to the amendment. She told me that 75% of the people she talked to signed her petition opposing the Bachmann amendment. That's an amazing result for a petition effort in a neighborhood. My friend has talked to over 100 people with this door knocking.
Michel says he supports civil unions. If that's the case, then he should make an attempt to amend Bachmann's bill to replace the legal equivalent language with language that explicitly says that Minnesota recognizes civil unions. |
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