Opposition to compromise budget deal could tilt it further towards GOP

MN Capitol: Budget compromise teetering on brink of blowup

The bipartisan budget compromise is on the brink of exploding. FOX 9's Corin Hoggard explains why.

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - The bipartisan budget compromise announced Thursday is teetering on the brink of a blow-up this weekend.

Loud opposition

Outside looking in:

Loud opposition started before the deal announcement finished, and it didn't let up Friday.

And now the deal could start to change, but not in the way the opposition hoped.

There are 101 DFL legislators and 100 GOP legislators, and none of them got everything they want.

But now it looks like passing the entire budget will mostly rely on Republican votes.

Undocumented dispute

Healthcare haves, have nots:

Progressive Democrats are knocking the budget deal that calls for removing about 17,000 undocumented immigrants from MN Care. All the adults would lose coverage, while around 3,000 children would keep it.

As the clock winds down on the session, the progressives may be stuck on the outside looking in.

But they are far from alone. Clergy from several faiths joined them at the Capitol Friday to rally against the deal.

Almost invisible in the crowd was Dieu Do, who says her immigrant father had no health insurance and died because he waited too long to treat his illness.

"When we’re talking about this killing our community members, this is not hyperbole," she said. "This has happened and it’s happening and it happened to me. It happened to my family."

Losing the deal?

A new vote dynamic:

Several DFL legislators stood in the crowd and pledged not to vote to pass the deal, saying healthcare coverage is morally the right thing to do, and fiscally, too.

"If the legislators are concerned about costs, it’s a helluva lot cheaper to pay for early care and to prevent things," said Dr. Katie Guthrie, a family physician in St. Paul.

Republicans made several compromises in the budget deal — on keeping unemployment for seasonal school workers and paid family and medical leave, for example — but they were laser-focused on the healthcare issue.

"This is a bipartisan deal that focuses on the largest cost driver, which was working-age adults that were signing up for this taxpayer-funded health care benefit," said Sen. Jordan Rasmusson, (R-Fergus Falls).

And now, without those progressive DFL votes, GOP votes seem essential in passing the budget bills, which gives them a little leverage.

Senate Republicans are hoping to sweeten the deal a little before they commit their votes.

It’s a delicate balance, though, because any more concessions could make Democrats like the deal even less and chip away more of their votes.