Sean Kershaw's Weblog
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January 5, 2007
What should "real" conservatives focus on this session?
It was an honor and a lot of fun to be a part of the Center for the American Experiment's discussion yesterday on what the "conservative agenda" should be this legislative session. It was good for me to think about beforehand, and a great discussion. Mitch is a great partner in this work.
Some thoughts:
* It highlighted that there aren't enough good ideas on the table right now. When asked about legislative priorities this year, I'm not sure if any of us hit the mark -- although it gave me a great chance to talk about the benefits of our Medical Facilities recommendations. Good thing for MAP 150 too -- and the charge to develop new and implementable ideas!
* I got into a great argument/discussion with Mitch about vouchers. My point was not about vouchers as such, but if the Republican governor won't support them, it doesn't matter right now if the public supports them or if they've worked in other places. What can we do -- because we need to do something right away given our outcomes.
* One of the panelists criticized us for supporting the MN Mental Health Action Group's "roadmap" recommendations for universal childhood mental health screening. This person's concerns were that it could lead to labeling and over-diagnosis among kids of color. I should have thought about this at the time, but this is a little like not supporting public education because kids of color aren't doing well. "Labeling" and stigmatization, and the potential to diagnose kids by race, are a huge concern. But mental health issues are real conditions, not ideological hallucinations, and we're paying in real lives and real dollars by not catching serious mental health issues early.
* And I think most people are suprised by how much the panelist get along and like each other, despite significant policy and ideological differences. Minnesota is better served by a vigorous debate.
Posted by Sean Kershaw at January 5, 2007 7:31 AM