When the cats away, the mice will play...

and play and play and play.

Clearly we have some legislators that are clearly bored or they have no idea what they are doing.

Check out what some of our legislators are doing while their leaders are trying to negotiate a budget-

Huebsch responded after other Assembly members, restless at the impasse between Democrats who control the Senate and the Republican-led Assembly, proposed changes they said would prevent another summer-into-fall gridlock.

For example, Democratic Rep. Louis Molepske (D-Stevens Point) today proposed changing state laws to set up specific budget-progress "benchmarks" and deadlines that, if broken, would suspend the pay of all legislators.

Molepske's proposal would also require both houses of the Legislature to specifically authorize spending by state government beyond July 1. Now, state government continues to operate without a new budget at pre-July 1 levels, which avoids a government shutdown like the one set to take place in Michigan before the Legislature raised taxes early Monday.

Good grief- some of the changes that these legislators are boxing themselves in a hole. This is great if everyone agrees on a budget, but that never happens.

Huebsch is right when he says-

"Deadlines will not change the fundamental differences between Democrats and Republicans on the amount of government spending taxpayers can afford."

As if this suggestion were not bad enough, another not so brilliant suggestion has come out of our legislators-

In a related development, Democratic Rep. Joe Parisi of Madison and several other Democrats today proposed this timetable that would require legislative leaders to negotiate a budget compromise: first week of the stalemate, eight hours per day; second week, nine hours per day, and third and future weeks, 10 hours per day and six days per week.

The good news is that the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has figured out what these Democrats making these suggestions cannot figure out.

Perhaps the Democrats should have checked out our state's constitution before making these suggestions. Thanks to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel for posting this statement:

Don't bet on any of the budget-or-else proposals to go anywhere in the Capitol, however. Legislators rarely discipline themselves, and they can't bind those who come after them.

Hey Democrats, pay very close attention to the last part of that paragragh- "they can't bind those who come after them".

Duh!