Today, Governor Mark Dayton and Senate President Michelle Fischbach met for lunch at the Governor’s Residence. The following is a statement from Governor Dayton:
“Senator Fischbach and I had a very cordial and enjoyable lunch of Minnesota walleye and hot fudge sundaes. The Senator very graciously brought me a loaf of homemade banana bread, which I expect to devour this weekend.
“We talked about her role as Lt. Governor. I stated my view that she will be an independent Constitutional Officer and thereby entitled to express her own views on state policies and procedures. I said that I don’t think it will surprise anyone, when we disagree; however, that should not prevent us from having a constructive working relationship. She readily agreed. We also agreed to look for areas where we could work cooperatively together, and she suggested elder care. We will explore that and other opportunities to work together further in the weeks ahead.
“We discussed very briefly her desire to retain her Senate seat, while serving as Lt. Governor. I told her that I am fully prepared to work with her as Lt. Governor; her standing in the Senate is beyond my purview, which is why I have requested a legal opinion by the Attorney General on that subject. I said that it has been my office’s consistent practice not to proceed to call for or schedule a special legislative election, unless or until we receive a formal letter of resignation from the incumbent legislator.
“Most of our lunch was spent sharing pictures of our grandchildren and our pets: her cat and my dogs. We took a picture together at the conclusion of our very friendly lunch, which I believe Senator Fischbach has tweeted out.
“I look forward to building our good working relationship in the year ahead.”
