Plenty of Blame to Go Around

Our most recent blog poll asked who was to blame for the then ongoing mess (otherwise known as the federal government shutdown and inability to agree on just about anything) in Washington. Your votes were similar to some of the national polls:

  • House Republicans: 41%
  • President Obama: 16%
  • Senate Democrats: 6%
  • All of the above: 31%

Some of you bypassed the vote and simply went to the comment box. The two themes there were "my way or no way at all" in reference to the President and the "impact of the Tea Party in Republican primaries."

Our new poll (top right) seeks your view on holiday shopping and whether you'll be driving to the store or using a hard drive (for online purchases).

Going Down to the Last Day … Again

A supposed budget agreement on April 29, the last day of the regular legislative session, fell apart when barely a quarter of the 100 House represenatives voted for it. Let’s hope for better results Tuesday, when all 150 legislators will cast their votes on a budget compromise and plan to help Indianapolis’ Capital Improvement Board.

Key legislators worked behind the scenes, Gov. Mitch Daniels offered his insights and legislative caucus meetings were undoubtedly interesting. But as the budget bill was being printed Monday,  House members called it a day. While there were rumors of a Senate vote to come yet tonight, Democrats there opted to go home.

No complaints with either of those decisions. Rushed votes, without a true understanding of what is in the legislation, would likely lead to an unfortunate outcome. The state can’t really afford that.

Few details are known at this point, other than the core of the agreement being the Republicans’ two-year plan instead of the Democrats’ one-year proposal. How far the compromises went on education funding and other key issues is yet to be seen.

The good news is there is a bill to vote on, a step many have doubted in recent days. The uncertain news is in the details of the hundreds of pages of the proposal and what legislators will do tomorrow. It’s not the last day of the special session then, but the final opportunity to avoid a state government shutdown.

Good luck to all!