Dealing in the dark

When you're on the Republican leadership team in the legislature, it is just one tough decision after another.

The latest: Should we help people who can't afford to heat their homes, or should we go to Washington DC for some fundraisers?

In case you can't guess it, Carrie Lynch has the answer., and Mark Pocan has more.

The Republican position on this is interesting: Gov. Doyle wants to spend too much money on this. We would support some smaller amount. We'd like to negotiate a compromise with him. And we want to do it in the back room, without ever coming into session until the deal goes down.

What ever happened to the legislative process where bills were introduced, hearings were held, amendments were offered, debated and voted on -- while negotiations took place -- and a bill was passed and sent to the governor?

Far too many deals are being made in the dark, without public scrutiny. This shouldn't be another.