The sheer scale of the Great Republican Takeover has yet to sink in.
According to the Washington Post, prior to The Night, "...Republicans controlled the governor's mansion and both legislative chambers in only nine states. Today it is 21 states. Democrats are in full command in 11 states, down from 16, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL).... The NCSL says on its Web site that Alabama's legislature is in Republican hands for the first time since Reconstruction. Republicans hold the North Carolina Senate for the first time since 1870 and the Minnesota Senate for the first time ever."
The NCSL website shows a party control map that is much more eye-appealing than it was pre-Nov. 4. Another map shows Minnesota proudly among the 11 states that switched legislative control.
Okay - so what now? In Minnesota, Republican leaders have been working on major reform proposals for years, having controlled the House from 1999 to 2006 and the Governor's office from 2003 until, pending the recount, 2010. As a result of all the past activity, most of the major reforms are already drafted.
From a work flow standpoint, it would be simple to send these reforms upstairs to the Revisor's office to be re-drafted and jacketed for author and co-author signatures. Major and minor reforms should fill the bill hopper to overflowing on Day One of the new legislative biennium.
For starters, the list could include: real incentive pay for teachers, major government pension reform (with a repeal of new taxpayer subsidies), photo ID to vote, Legacy tax hike repeal, nuclear power ban repeal, repatriation of millions of acres of state-held land back to private ownership, and a repeal of the so-called Freedom to Breath Act.
These have all been offered as bills and/or floor amendments in past sessions and they should be high on the hearing list for the new GOP committee chairs. As part of its 504 Days Project, BillsandVotes.com is busy preparing a ranked list of these and additional reforms that the Minnesota Legislature should consider in the 504 legislative working days it has until the end of the 2012 legislative session.
Minnesota politics is different now. It's no longer about incumbent protection and seniority, its about fixing a broken government in 504 days. As quickly as the sharp edge of the election pendulum decapitated the Democrat agenda, it will swing back on the Republicans if they fail on their mission of reform.