A short time ago, Gov. Mark Dayton and the GOP leadership ended the last in a series of scheduled meetings Wednesday — less than two days before a potential government shutdown —without presenting reporters with a clear idea of any progress made or a timeline for future talks.
Dayton and lawmakers dodged the waiting media all of Wednesday, occasionally escaping through side doors to avoid being seen. Senate Spokesman Michael Brodkorb addressed reporters instead and said late Wednesday afternoon that the GOP leaders would meet into the night, but there are currently no scheduled meetings between legislators and Dayton.
Although both sides said another meeting could be quickly added to the schedule, there’s no indication that the governor and Republican Leaders Amy Koch and Kurt Zellers reached an agreement on Wednesday, which Dayton previously called the last day to avert a shutdown.
Dayton, Koch and Zellers have been meeting furiously for nearly a week to avoid a shutdown before the July 1 deadline.
At the DOT, we received check list yesterday of steps to take to secure our work spaces, such as a script for phone and email messages. We also received instructions to remove plants and items we may need during the shut down from our work spaces. The MN Unemployment Insurance web site was updated yesterday with a schedule of when we should apply for benefits, based upon our social security numbers, so that the system isn’t flooded. Looks like this is for real. Here we go.