Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:07):
Welcome back to Michigan's Big Show starring Michael Patrick Shields.
I'm Kyle Malynn, editor of the MURS Newsletter, filling in
for Michael Patrick.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Today.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
We had a state budget signed, as we've talked about
earlier in the program, and one of the observers of
the process is joining us now, a former chief of
staff for Governor Rick Snyder and a friend of this program,
Dennis much More. Good morning. How you doing Dennis?
Speaker 3 (00:34):
Hi, Kyle, how are you good?
Speaker 1 (00:36):
Good? Good? I had you on our Monday pundit section
at the MURRS Newsletter to ask some to answer some
questions that we posed the people and did a fine
job on that. Well, I thought, well, why don't we
go ahead and revisit this. So here are the pundit
questions I asked Dennis much More for those of you
(00:56):
who don't subscribe to MURRS, and you'll get his you'll
get his genuine answers to the pressing questions of the week.
You ready to play with us here, Dennis.
Speaker 3 (01:07):
Yes, sir?
Speaker 1 (01:08):
All right. So between midnight and four oh seven on Wednesday,
October one, state government operated without a budget, but the
governor didn't overtly call it didn't overtly call for anything
to be shut down during that timeframe. So did we
have a state government shut down or not?
Speaker 3 (01:28):
Well, I would say we did have a shutdown because
you can't spend money without a budget. So you know, theoretically,
if you're going to abide by the constitution, you've got
a gap there where there wasn't any approved spending. So
I'd say that qualifies as a shutdown, all right.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
So that would be our third government shut down here
since two thousand and seven. But they all lasted for
four to two hours in the middle of the night,
So and have that all right? So question number two,
as far as the substance of the budget is concerned,
how are we going to remember this particular budget.
Speaker 3 (02:09):
Well, I think for the acrimony that attended that budget
and the fact that people were really not meeting frequently
to resolve it, I think that's part of what we'll
remember about it. It'll be it'll be a tough insert
into our budget history, mostly because of the lack of
(02:34):
agreement until obviously at the very end, and even at
the end, I'm not quite sure what happened.
Speaker 1 (02:41):
It seemed like the posturing season went on really long
in this case, like usually it goes on but then
it ends in you know, the first week in September.
This one seemed to go right up until like the
last two weeks of September.
Speaker 3 (02:57):
Yeah, that went on for a long time. I think
that we've got to find a way around that. I've
complained several times that the problem with all this is
really term limits. That we have some very capable legislators
Speaker and the Senate majority of Leader included, who just
(03:21):
have not been there for a lengthy period of time,
and so they don't really know each other, and so
they don't really have that personal relationship. And I know
people think they do because they're both in the Capitol building.
But you and I had discussioned the other day at
about Curtis Hartill and Paul Hilligan's when they didn't really
(03:42):
know each other and they were co speakers for a while.
So that takes some time to develop, and I just
think that term limits is impeding that kind of progress.
Speaker 1 (03:55):
Question number three to dene As much more, which player
in the process came out as theiggest winner.
Speaker 3 (04:02):
Well, as I said to you Monday, the biggest winner
to me is the road building industry because they finally
got some more infusion of several billion dollars, and that
means a lot more contracts. Now, some of these contractors
will get some of those contractors and some won't, So
you've got winners and losers inside the overall win for
(04:26):
road contractors. But I think that would be the group
that I would say did the best in this.
Speaker 1 (04:32):
House, Republicans and Senate Democrats came together to pass this
budget with the governor's blessing. Is this a harbager of
things to come or the necessary product of a limited
time engagement?
Speaker 3 (04:46):
I think it'll go on for a while because we
still don't have that kind of cohesion between leaders people
that have been around each other for ten or fifteen years,
that know each other pretty well. And I think we're
going to continue to see that people take positions, and frankly,
the federal tenor of discussion has a lot to do
(05:10):
with it too. I mean, there's a there's a lack
on the federal level of conversation and pleasantry, so there'll
be a lack on the state level. Just as a
matter of fact.
Speaker 1 (05:21):
All Right, So I didn't ask this question of you Monday,
but I'm going to ask it now, this is kind
of the bonus question. So one of the things that
I see with this federal government shut down is a
lot of press releases from Democrats saying that this is
a Republican shutdown, and of course the Republicans call this
the Chuck Schumer shut down because he's holding off the
(05:42):
votes on a continuation budget. So which is it. Is
this a Republican shutdown or a Chuck Schumer shutdown?
Speaker 3 (05:50):
Well, I don't think it's either. I don't think that
you can use these shutdowns for your own political purposes.
I think, you know, sometimes it starts, it's out that way,
and then it'll change. But basically, you know, the process
of legislating is kind of our cane to most voters,
(06:10):
and they look at it and say, hey, I don't
care what you do, just get it done, and you know,
and that keeps it, in my opinion, from becoming a
Democratic issue or Republican issue. And they can pick out
the pieces and take one particular thing and say, well,
(06:31):
oh woe is me look at this, and another one
gonna say wow, we did this. But frankly, I don't
think that matters to most of the public. They just
want the thing resolved in the government to go on.
They've got their own lives to do with, and when you're
trying to pay your mortgage, you don't care whether Chuck
Schumer is pontificating from the floor or whether you know,
(06:52):
Mike Johnson has got his problems with his caucus, or
any of these people have particular issues. So I don't know.
Speaker 1 (07:01):
It's troublesome, all right, Well, it looks like the breaking
point is going to come what October thirteen, when if
they don't have a budget, people aren't going to get paid.
I think at that point, if military people aren't getting paid,
then you may have some real problems and it may
not matter if you're a Republican or a Democrat. And
I guess we'll see what happens. Den Us much More,
senior advisor with Honigmann and former chief of staff for
(07:24):
Governor Rick Snyder. Thanks for joining us on the program
here on Michigan's Big Show starring Michael Patrick Shields.
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