On again, off again
You may remember last week that Senate President Pro Tempore Marc Basnight cancelled all non-budget-relate committee meetings in his chamber to let budget negotiators focus on, well, the budget.
So I was curious when, on Tuesday's and Wednesday's Senate calendars, committee meetings that had nothing to do with the budget. They include a Mental Health & Youth Services committee meeting on the definition of child care and Commerce Committee meeting on a passel of different bills.
When I asked Basnight about this on the floor of Senate after session, it seemed like I may have reminded him of a question that he meant to ask. He walked over to where his Chief of Staff Norma Mills was standing and asked, "Norma, why did R.C. Soles do that committee meeting?"
Then Basnight pretty much ignored me as he and Mille and Sen. David Hoyle went through the list of bills that were, for the moment, put on the calendar to be heard in Senate committees Tuesday July 12.
"Just shut them down tomorrow," Basnight ordered.
Mills told Basnight: "The instruction that you had given them was that if the committees had finance or appropriation related bills that they could ... "
"Just budget, I didn't say anything about finance. I just said anything to do with the budget," Basnight said.
The conversation went on from there, and Basnight got a bit hot under the collar, seemingly unpleased that his instruction to stop work on anything not budget-related hadn't been adhered to. I don't think it would be a stretch to say he was emphatic.
So, if you happen to following bills scheduled for committee hearings on the Senate side over the next couple days, don't bet on them actually getting done.
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