The Godfather is reporting that the Vikings stadium bill will require a special session to get passed. We all knew that, and that's not any information that should be a surprise to any of us.
What IS interesting is that Sid says the hot talk around the Capitol is that the Governor will call a SECOND special session for specifically passing a Vikings stadium bill. A couple of observations on this tactic.
For one, Sid mentions that with all the acrimony in state politics because of the shutdown, it might be better to wait until September, giving the Vikings to play a couple of games, sell out the Metrodome once or twice, and hold up a copy of their ginormous TV ratings. That's a good idea...as long as they're playing football. If they're not, I think there will be just as much acrimony towards a stadium bill, but because of the lockout, and not necessarily the shutdown. But it does give everyone a 'cooling off period' from the budget fight, and it might result in a better working environment for what will surely be a tough vote. As insane as this shutdown is, Dayton has said he wouldn't call a special session until he had a deal, so one would think, if he called a special session specifically for the stadium, the same rules would apply.
But waiting until September is a risky strategy, as it would give the full throated anti-stadium groups another two or three months to piss and moan about increased property values in Ramsey County, thousands of construction jobs, and millions of dollars flowing into the state coffers. Legislators who are a weak yes vote muight be flipped, and if the votes are there now, Dayton is really rolling the dice by putting off the vote for another two months.
I say get the stadium bill done as early as possible. It's going to get done, so the sooner the better.