Budget deal nears without gov

With the clock ticking toward a budget meltdown in Michigan, Gov. Jennifer Granholm left the Capitol for a three-day trip to Japan.

It doesn't matter. She won't be missed.

The budget talks continue at an intense pace. There's a very good chance an agreement will be reached in her absence and without much of her input.

Democratic House Speaker Andy Dillon and Republican Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop are close to a deal that would do what many thought impossible this year -- produce a balanced budget that doesn't rely on big tax hikes and is reached without the threat of a government shutdown.

"We need to do this with or without the governor," says Bishop, who was unaware of Granholm's trade mission. "I give all the credit to Andy Dillon for stepping up and providing leadership. He wants to do what's right."

Dillon and Bishop won't comment on what they're up to. But those close to the talks say Dillon has persuaded his caucus to accept the Senate's $1.3 billion spending cut target.

If that's true and it holds up, budget bills will begin moving out of conference committees this week. The sticking points are the Promise scholarships for college students, revenue sharing for communities, Medicaid and early education.

To get past those blockages, Dillon will offer a supplemental spending bill after a budget is passed to fund the programs with a variety of small tax hikes and other revenue. The supplement will be taken up separately and won't impact implementation of the budget.

The goal is to drop a balanced budget on the governor's desk before the Oct. 1 deadline.

"This puts her on the spot," Bishop says. "If she vetoes a budget we send her, she'll be responsible for shutting down government."

The strategy changes the dynamic in Lansing. Both Bishop and Dillon have been frustrated by the refusal of the governor to make firm budget commitments. They've been held hostage to her whims and indecisiveness.

Last week, Dillon's frustration became public when he accused the governor of grandstanding by offering a thinly detailed plan that includes $1 billion in tax hikes, saying she knew he couldn't get it through the House Democratic caucus.

Dillon's willingness to untie himself from the governor at the risk of alienating her allies in the Democratic base reflects a courage first exhibited when he proposed pooling health insurance coverage for all state employees.

Dillon won't talk about Granholm or whether he's running for her job next year. He says only -- and rightly -- that there's no more room for avoiding hard decisions.

"We know that next year's budget is going to be even worse," Dillon says. "We have to build goodwill with the public by getting the job done this year."

Dillon has stepped firmly into Lansing's leadership void. If he can stand there, and find another country or two for Granholm to visit this month, it's quite possible that he and Bishop can craft the first realistic state budget in seven years.

Nolan Finley is editorial page editor of The News. Watch him at 8:30 p.m. Fridays on "Am I Right?" on Detroit Public TV.