Muna Barnes Resolves Adverse Impact of Democrat Impasse

The legislature’s rules committee adopted resolutions by Tina Muna Barnes that remove any adverse impact on legislative business due to the six Democrat senators’ inability to elect a minority leader.

As previously reported, the Democrat senators – Chris Barnett, Tina Muna Barnes, William Parkinson, Sabina Perez, Joe San Agustin, and Therese Terlaje – are evenly split and at impasse on who between Ms. Muna Barnes and Ms. Terlaje should be the minority leader.

The position is largely ceremonial and political (previous minority leaders like Eddie Baza Calvo have used the position for earned media that propelled them into Adelup), however the senatorial tradition and the original rules adopted by this legislature provided that the minority leader conduct critical legislative business. The rules committee, through Ms. Muna Barnes’ Resolution No. 12-38 and 13-38 , dispossessed the position of those roles and assigned the duties to Democrats whom either the rules chairman or the legislative speaker would appoint.

Resolution No. 12-38, which passed yesterday, amends the standing rules of the legislature regarding the expenditure of funds by minority members of the legislature. The original rules stated that the minority leader would sign off on such expenditures. The rules now provide that either the rules chairman – who is Tony Ada – or a Democrat senator appointed by the rules chairman can sign off on minority expenditures in the absence of a minority leader.

Resolution No. 13-38, also passed yesterday, allows the legislative speaker – Frank Blas, Jr. – to appoint the two members of the legislative ethics committee that the previous rules slotted for appointment by the minority leader.

The resolutions clear the way for the full function of the legislature following weeks of impasse by the split Democrats. Both Ms. Terlaje and Ms. Muna Barnes are highly anticipated by political observers to make separate bids for Adelup against fellow Democrat Joshua Tenorio, the incumbent lieutenant governor.