Dayton-Appointed judge rules Walz may continue dictatorship in perpetuity

Ramsey County District Court Judge Thomas Gilligan, a Dayton-Appointee on Tuesday, September 1, ruled that Governor Tim Walz may continue to usurp the legislative process in perpetuity.

Free Minnesota, a coalition of citizens and small businesses filed a petition for Quo Warranto lawsuit in May, alleging that the governor was beyond the executive authority granted him by the state constitution and has been exercising purely legislative power by issuing his numerous decrees in response to the Covid-19 virus. The lawsuit was joined by the New House Republican Caucus and members of the State Senate. Judge Gilligan found that the individual legislators lacked legal standing for the case, but didn't rule out the Free Minnesota Coalition's ability to sue.

Although the Minnesota Constitution and legal precedent against delegation of legislative power do not permit exercise of pure legislative power by any but the state legislature, Judge Gilligan OKed the continuance of an unjustified literal dictatorship that completely bypasses the representatives of the people. The governor may continue to bypass the legislative process indefinitely under Judge Gilligan's ruling.

Besides being largely in conflict with the state Constitution, Minnesota's emergency powers act was written to cope with immediate, short-term emergencies. The legislature explicitly rejected attempts to amend the act to include public health as a reason to invoke it. If the governor may wield autocratic power as long as a virus exists, he may do so until the end of time, because a virus, once introduced into the human population may persist forever. The governor's peacetime emergency is now nearing six months. No Governor in history has held on to these kind of extraordinary peacetime emergency powers for nearly as long as Governor Walz has to date.

Free Minnesota announced they will immediately appeal, saying the coalition will continue the fight, by all means necessary to restore the voice and will of the People, through their representatives in the legislature.

"No decision the governor made has turned on crucial timing that would preclude legislative action," said coalition spokesman, Dan McGrath. "The governor is clinging to self-proclaimed emergency powers for political reasons, because he doesn't believe the legislature will do as he wishes, not because of an urgency requiring split-second decisions. That isn't how our state or our nation operates. Our founders did not establish a dictatorship and we will not tolerate it, now."