Day 31 without a budget.  The Governor again changed his schedule about when the House should vote on Senate Bill 850.  He said Monday, then said that it should be before Monday and now is saying Monday or Tuesday.   In any event, this could have been done a month ago.  The most disturbing news today was that, starting Sunday, the budget negotiations were going to take place behind closed doors at the Governor’s mansion instead of following the open meeting requirements of the Conference Committee.  For once, there was some public scrutiny of the budget talks.  People could see for themselves the games being played by the House Democrats and the future looked even worse for them.  They were going to have to ask for WAM’s , ask for a 16% tax increase and try to defend some of their special projects primarily focused in Philadelphia.  I hope that this is a one-time meeting and that the negotiations resume as prescribed by law, in public.   If the Governor and the House D’s are afraid to make a case for their agenda In public, they shouldn’t be making it at all.

- John