Minnesota Government Shuts Down

On Independence Day weekend, Jul.4, 2011 the lights were turned off at Minnesota's State Capital and a state government shutdown began. After months of haggling over how to solve the state's $5 billion dollar deficient, no agreement could be reached on how to deal with it and a shutdown became eminent.

The historic Minnesota Government shutdown is the second one in 6 years for our state. The devastating effects of the shutdown has touched the lives of thousands and thousands of Minnesota individuals.

State Parks and recreation facilities in Minnesota were all closed, ruining the plans of many campers who had made reservations months ago for the 4th of July weekend. Yesterday afternoon, anybody that was camping at a state park in Minnesota was asked to pack up and leave, and the entrances to parks were then blocked and gates locked.

Not only is the effect being felt by vacationers, but also by anyone whose paycheck depends on a state job such as construction workers here in Minnesota. Road projects came to a standstill, a devastating blow to the seasonal workers who depend the entire year on what they make during the summer months working on construction projects. During the cold winter months when road construction doesn't take place here in Minnesota, many of these workers have only unemployment benefits to rely on to feed their families. In an economy that's already struggling, this isn't something that's going to be very easy to swallow.

Though many states are having budgeting difficulties, most of them were able to pass workable budget proposals. Some of them had healthy reserves stashed away while Minnesota's rainy day account was totally drained, due in part, to past administrations government policies and shenanigans.

Services deemed critical such as State Patrols, prisons, and federally funded programs will continue throughout the shutdown.

The blame game is running rampant here in Minnesota. Republicans are blaming the governor for refusing to call a special session so lawmakers could pass a "lights on" budget. Governor Dayton is standing firm on his total budget approach only policy. He said it's significant that this shutdown begin on 4th of July weekend when we're suppose to be celebrating our independence. It reminds us that there are causes and struggles worth fighting for, he went on to say.

This shutdown will definitely play a big role in the next election, especially for those who will be up for re-election. Many of us will think twice when we enter that voting booth about exactly who we do really want to represent us in government. Obviously some of the wrong choices were made in the last election considering the situation the State of Minnesota is in now. With our first Democratic Governor in 20 years, Republicans are running the entire legislature for the first time in 38 years, which is one reason why it's very tough to reach an agreement when one party has so much control.

Source:CBS News.com