Speaker: ‘They’re not happy’
It's Earth Day, it's warm and sunny, and it's the 101st day of the legislative session. At the Capitol Annex, both houses are scheduled to go on the floor at 9:30 and run some bills, but both are running a bit late; the House has just started. House Speaker Lawerence Denney said the governor's 25 vetoes yesterday took many House members aback. "He's setting in concrete the votes that were maybe - I mean, they're not happy," Denney said. "Truly yesterday we thought we had a way forward," he said, involving the removal of the ethanol exemption, raising DMV fees, "and possibly a fuel tax with an economic trigger. We were starting to shop that around when he vetoed those bills - and the talk stopped. I would hope that he wouldn't veto any more bills, and that we can start talking again."
Denney said the House is now hesitant to run any appropriation bills because the governor wouldn't sign them. Plus, they're hearing from constituents, but he said the ones who are calling him are saying "Stand your ground." House leaders have no meetings scheduled with the governor today as of yet, Denney said, but, "Hopefully we get the call saying, 'Come and visit.' "