‘It’s over. We’re done.’ Looking back at the year 2023 in Minnesota politics through notable quotations

The year 2023 in state government and politics as told by the people involved.

“It’s over. We’re done.”
— DFL House Speaker Melissa Hortman, announcing the failure of bipartisan talks on a bonding bill, one week before the deal was struck

“Unlike fine wine or cheese it doesn’t get better from delay.”
— State Management and Budget Commissioner Jim Schowalter on why lawmakers should pass a bonding bill soon

Legislators should “not let a modest benefit for the wealthy make us throw out the middle class baby with the wealthy bath water.”
— DFL Sen. Aric Putnam on why DFLers should pass a complete repeal of state taxation of Social Security benefits

“When I go to Menards and they say, ‘Get 11% back if you fill out this and send it in to this address,’ I think, ‘Well OK, how many times have I actually done that?’”
— State Campaign Finance Board director Jeff Sigurdson on why the state’s campaign contribution refund doesn’t work very well

“While I’m not always the strongest voice for local control, today I am.”
— GOP Rep. Kurt Daudt, explaining why he wanted local governments to have more regulatory control over recreational marijuana

“And by the way, I do like Sen. Wesenberg’s beard. It is just that beards are not the issue before the body.”
— DFL Sen. Bobby Joe Champion on why he was opposing an amendment to add beards to a bill that protects discrimination against people with natural hair

“Senator Champion, have you ever seen the … TV series ‘Duck Dynasty?’”
— GOP Sen. Steve Drazkowski, urging support for the amendment

“Just being homeless and riding the train is not a problem. But smoking on the train is a problem, drug use on the train is a problem. We are tackling those issues so people who need help can get help.”
— DFL Rep. Brad Tabke on his bill to create a program to restore safety on Metro Transit light rail lines

“Appellants ask us to fulfill that revered responsibility by invalidating the disenfranchisement provision for people convicted of felonies under Minnesota Statutes.  The court eschews that responsibility. I would not…”
— State Supreme Court Justice Natalie Hudson in her dissent of the decision against restoring voting rights to people convicted of crimes but still on probation

 “I don’t believe tribal exclusivity without something for the tracks has the votes to pass in the Senate. I could be wrong.”
— GOP Sen. Jeremy Miller on his prognosis for a sports betting bill he turned out not to be wrong about

“I can tell you … there’s nothing like this in the United States that has this much broad discretionary authority and taxing power. There’s nothing even close to it anywhere in the United States.”
— Law professor Myron Orfield on the unelected government structure of the Met Council

“All I’ve heard all session is that we have the best, cleanest, fairest, most-trustworthy election system in the entire country, yet this is another bill that will change every single aspect of a system you said was the greatest in the country.”
— GOP Sen. Mark Koran, speaking against a bill to use ranked choice voting for all state elections

“It seems that nobody’s at fault, or everybody’s at fault. We have policies and we have processes and we have working groups, task forces, reports, warning signs and bells and whistles saying something’s wrong, and it still goes off the rails.”
— DFL Rep. Rick Hansen after hearing a report on management problems on the Southwest Light Rail Transit project

“If these rules had been in place back in 1998, the state of Minnesota would not have had a chance to elect Gov. Jesse Ventura. I’m sure that pleases both of the parties because I believe that is why this is being done, so there can never be another Gov. Jesse Ventura. The people of Minnesota won’t be able to ‘shock the world’ again.”
— Former Gov. Jesse Ventura on a bill that would make it harder for third parties to win access to the general election ballot

“I’ve been affectionately calling this bill my Taylor Swift Anti-Hero bill. ‘It’s me. I’m the problem.’”
— DFL Rep. Erin Koegel on her bill to place a delivery fee on most packages to raise money for transportation improvements

“You would come here and you’d have a list of things that were well thought out and would improve people’s lives, and they would treat it like a wish list. ‘Isn’t that nice. Isn’t that cute.’ Those days are over. That list is a to-do list and we’re checking it off.”
— Gov. Tim Walz on the DFL trifecta that replaced divided government the previous session

“I’ve seen some of these other governors on TV — they find a lot of time to be on TV — and they’re always talking about ‘freedom.’ But it turns out what they mean is that government should be free to invade your bedroom, your children’s locker room, and your doctor’s office.”
— Gov. Tim Walz during his State of the State speech

“Some call opponents fear-mongers. No, we’re truth-tellers with data and experience regarding the negative impacts that really do happen in states that legalize recreational cannabis.”
— John Hausladen, president of the Minnesota Trucking Association, about those raising questions about recreational marijuana

“I blocked out a lot of the third grade and the bullying and just what it felt like to not be able to read.”
— DFL Rep. Heather Edelson on how her personal experience led her to sponsor a reading education reform bill

“We’re offering them what I think is gonna be their best offer this year. And the question on the table will be, would you rather have this or have nothing?”
— DFL Sen. Matt Klein on a late-session (but ultimately unsuccessful) bill on sports betting that gave horse racing tracks some money from tax collections

“A billion dollars. That’s a number I’m going to have to get used to.”
— State Housing Commissioner Jennifer Leimaile Ho on a just-passed housing finance bill to appropriate five times what her agency had gotten in the past

“I would disagree that this is a home run. I would categorize this as about five or six foul balls and then chasing a ball that’s down and away and striking out.”
— GOP Rep. Jim Nash on the same bill because it did not address fees and regulation that add to the costs of new housing

“I would also invite you all to my district in the summer. Maybe on an 80- or 90-degree day.”
— DFL Rep. Rick Hansen on his bill to regulate smells from industrial plants

“You bang on somebody’s door, ‘we’re here to take your guns,’ that’s a dangerous proposition in some communities, frankly.”
— Tim Leslie, a former Dakota County sheriff and a lobbyist for the Minnesota Sheriffs’ Association on a bill that would allow removal of guns from people who pose a risk to themselves or others

“The everyperson will probably be searching their bags for seeds they have already, or with people in their immediate circle.”
— Bryant Jones, cannabis plant scientist, on how Minnesotans would get seeds to grow marijuana before they are approved for sale in the state

“Transformational is definitely on the bingo card. Transformational and historic.”
— DFL House Speaker Melissa Hortman on the 2023 legislative session

“Today, as we pat each other on the back and congratulate ourselves for excessive spending and even more borrowing, know this: The spenders are not done.”
— GOP Rep. Pat Garofalo on the 2023 budget

This beautifully embroidered sign from @AthenaHollins is one of the most thoughtful gifts I’ve ever received. #mnleg #bonkers https://t.co/fp2AUcbV0i pic.twitter.com/BOj7KcdU9L

— Anne Neu Brindley (@ANeuBrindley) May 23, 2023

“Bonkers”
— Word embroidered on a sign given to GOP Rep. Anne Neu Brindley from DFL Rep. Athena Hollins to commemorate Neu Brindley’s  favorite one-word criticism on nearly everything on the DFL agenda

“At the start of session, I did something I never thought I would do: I went into legislators’ offices and said ‘can we get some regulation and can we pay some taxes’”
— Minnesota Craft Brewers lobbyist Bob Galligan regarding state regulation of hemp-derived edibles and beverages

“Starting with the premise that cannabis is a plant, not a crime, we envision a peaceful community where growing a little hemp to smoke, share, or sell at farmers’ markets is no more unusual than growing rutabagas or zinnias.”
— Longtime legalization advocate Oliver Steinberg on why he thinks the state constitution prevents licensing of growers of marijuana

“I think there is strong government interest in regulating here. This isn’t carrots or pumpkins, this is an intoxicating substance.”
— DFL Rep. Zack Stephenson, prime sponsor of recreational marijuana bill, on how he doesn’t think the constitution prevents licensing of growers of marijuana

“Based on what we’ve seen and based on the structure that we have for funding and building, I’m not convinced that Met Council is the right entity to be the responsible authority for those projects.”
— State legislative Auditor Judy Randall on why future transit projects should not be managed by the Met Council

“Oh, my gosh.”
— What DFL state Rep. Ginny Klevorn recalled saying when she first heard about the very old subsurface wall of unknown quality that keeps St. Anthony Falls from collapsing

“I’m a role model so I have to show him the right ways instead of the wrong ways. Now I’m a part of society, I can vote, I can show other people that you have a voice.”
— Former federal prison inmate Milton Rucker after registering to vote following legislation restoring voting rights to people still on probation

 “HF 100 is poorly crafted, inconsistent, and in need of immediate remedy to avoid preventable damage.”
— GOP Rep. Peggy Scott on her calls for a special session to repair what she saw as gaps and omissions in the recreational cannabis bill

“People ask, ‘I smoke. It’s legal. And now you’re telling me I can potentially lose my job because I was tested.’ ”
— Lisa Kons, traffic safety programs manager for the Minnesota Safety Council, on employment provisions in the recreational marijuana bill

“Home grow, in and of itself, is a game changer for patients.”
— Medical marijuana patient and advocate Patrick McClellan on the provision to let residents grow marijuana plants

“… He picked the chief architect of the 2020 lockdowns and mandates that destroyed businesses and kept our kids out of the classroom.”
— GOP House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth on the appointment of Walz’s chief counsel Karl Proccacini to the state Supreme Court

“There remains uncertainty, but it feels like it’s a more-normal level of uncertainty, more-normal types of uncertainty than what we were seeing a few years ago.”
— State economist Laura Kalambokidis on post-pandemic stability in economic and revenue forecasting

“Police have used this idea — ‘do you smell marijuana? I smell marijuana’ — as a pretext to search cars for a long period of time.”
— Mitchell-Hamline law professor Brad Colbert on a state Supreme Court ruling restricting the use of marijuana smell as probable cause for vehicle searches

“Not the finest hour. In this case the process did not work, and we got this wrong.”
— Gov. Tim Walz on the botched appointment of his first Office of Cannabis Management director

“Our hope is the Legislature will revisit this next year since it’s pretty impractical — how are we supposed to know if someone who just walked into our building had a beer 4 hours ago?”
— Minneapolis Cider Co. owner Jason Dayton on a provision in the recreational marijuana law that will make it illegal to both drink alcohol and THC beverages within a five hour period

“While we know that not everyone will agree with this type of industry, it is now legal in the state of Minnesota. If it doesn’t happen here it is going to happen somewhere else in our state.”
— Ida Rukavina, Commissioner of Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation, on an agreement to invest state money in a marijuana grow operation sponsored by a Missouri company

“How’d we get to here? How was the decision made? How did the board decide? Who else applied? We should find that out? This is the age-old question: Is government picking winners and losers? Is it the appropriate thing to do this?”
— Gov. Tim Walz on the agreement by Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation to invest state money in a marijuana grow operation sponsored by a Missouri company

 “So should we do it, even if we could do it?”
— State Supreme Court Chief Justice Natalie Hudson in response to a request to use the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to keep Donald Trump’s name off the state presidential preference primary before ultimately deciding against such action

 “The Christian in me doesn’t. The policy person in me does.”
— GOP Sen. Julia Coleman on whether she was tempted to say “I told you so” after an actuary found that costs for a new paid family and medical leave program would be higher than previously estimated

“We’re seeing lots of hemp flower — doing air quotes — out in the marketplace, and we don’t have the regulatory authority over that flower.”
— State hemp-derived edibles and beverage regulator Chris Tholkes on the lack of regulatory authority of raw cannabis flower that might — or might not — be legal

[cms_ad:x104]“Let me clarify that we are not projecting a deficit, we are projecting a structural imbalance.”
— Minnesota Management and Budget Commission Erin Campbell on a projection that if the current state budget was carried over into 2025, there wouldn’t be enough revenue

“The bottom line … is that spending is expected to exceed revenue. That’s a deficit, my friend.”
—House GOP Assistant Minority Leader Kristin Robbins of Maple Grove

Maybe NSFW…
Minnesota’s tax rebate checks are subject to federal taxes and when @CallaghanPeter asked about it, @GovTimWalz had a choice word to sum it up before discussing his disappointment in more detail. pic.twitter.com/nUHMBinnW6

— Corin Hoggard (@corinhoggard) December 6, 2023

“Bullshit”
— Gov. Tim Walz when asked his reaction to an IRS ruling that state rebate checks are federally taxable