Thread by @ChrisDunkerLJS

It's Day 51 of your Nebraska Legislature, and the first day of all-day debate. The big question is what Legislature will we see today? The lawmaking body that worked thru some disagreements earlier this year or the, knock-around Legislature we saw Thurs?

The big news from Monday's recess was the plan to implement the voter-approved Medicaid Expansion. Long story short: Voters approved it in November 2018 and it will not go live until Oct. 1, 2010. journalstar.com/news/state-and…

Here we go. First thing on the agenda is some more confirmation reports. This one for the NET board, which is as innocuous as the emergency response board. Sen. Justin Wayne, continuing down the war path, asks Sen. Mike Groene what the vetting process was for these individuals.

Groene says he relied on the governor's staff, the committee, and the 2nd house. No one opposed the appointments, Groene says. Wayne asks what Groene would do if something about an appointment came up on the floor, Groene said he would let the Legislature debate it.

Just to give people a visual, if you're looking out onto the senators, Groene sits on the far right near the back. Wayne sits all the way on the left in the middle. The distanced has widened between the two over the long weekend, it seems.

Also, the Medicaid Expansion start date will be Oct. 1, 2020. I had a typo in an earlier tweet. Thanks to the person who pointed it out.

Wayne asks to consider each of the appointees to the NET board individually. He asks for someone to jump in the queue to give him time to file a motion. Sen. Ernie Chambers is happy to oblige.

"We're going to see now if those who are dictated to by the governor are going to continue following his lead, and if he will bail them out and show them how to get out of the morass his leadership has put them in," Chambers says.

Chambers tells the Legislature his voice will be moderated and calm. "You have given me the second half of the session." Settle in, folks. We're going nowhere for the next 39 days.

Speaker Jim Scheer grants Wayne's motion to divide the question. The Legislature will now consider all three appointees to the NET Board individually. Wayne says he has a problem with one of the individuals specifically.

"This has caused me to divert from my dissertation on the happiness of a clam, of which I am experiencing at this moment," Chambers, out of context.

"I wouldn't know a clam if I saw one. People talk about having clammy hands. I suspect clams don't have hands, but they might."

"White people have had it easy. Clams, as far as I know, have never been enslaved...Whatever happens to a clam at high tide, it has never been polluted or diluted by slavery."

It's April 2, and springtime, but Chambers is reciting "A Visit from St. Nicholas" on the floor. He wants to focus on "a long winter's nap."

He's also marveling at the flexibility of the English alphabet.

Oh, and quoting Macbeth. "Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow." Chambers says it originally went on for 3,000 tomorrows until an editor came in.

"He said, 'Shake,' that will not work. We've got to 'speare' some of those and shorten it."

When the Ku Klux Klan used to gather, they would call their meetings together by clucking like chickens. Good luck to the transcribers putting the clucking sounds into the mythical legislative record.

My favorite use of irony is when Chambers says "I'm going to digress."

Now referencing Blondie in his ongoing thoughts about clams and high tides:

Back on his favorite target: "The power of the government should be bent toward making life better for everybody, but that's not the way it goes in this Legislature." 37 senators supported Sen. Megan Hunt's SNAP bill until the governor told them otherwise, he says.

Responding to Groene calling Chambers a "Son of Perdition" last week: "I'd rather be a son of perdition than a son of a you-know-what."

Has anyone read "Ulysses" by James Joyce? You know the chapter "Proteus," where Stephen Daedalus is wrestling with his thoughts in a stream-of-conscious prose? That's what it's like trying to keep up with Chambers on the floor some days.

So after hinting that he had a reason to oppose one of the appointees to the NET Commission, Wayne votes for all three. We're onto the next confirmation reports for the State College Board of Trustees.

Seems Wayne's point today is just needle Groene for opposing his proposed constitutional amendment last week. Wayne criticizing Groene's leadership of the Education Committee, said last week he could have beaten Groene for chair of that committee if he wanted.

Chambers with an important Q about trustee John Chaney: "Is it the same spelling as Lon Chaney?" Lon played a lycanthrope in the movies, portraying a werewolf. "He deeply regretted the things he did while in the guise of this wolf man."

"You couldn't kill a wolf man with just anything. There was a certain type of metal that would take a wolf man out of his misery and out of this world. I cannot say when Lon Chaney was worse, when he was a 100% human being, or when he was 50% human and 50% wolf."

We're finally at the point: Wayne brings up some Facebook posts from Robert Engles, a state college board member, that he says may appear racially insensitive. He has asked the Legislature to recommit Engles' name to the Education Committee.

Wayne says he's not calling Engles a racist, but questions a post where Engles brought up "black on black" crime. He says he's looking out for young African-Americans at Peru, Chadron and Wayne. He questions whether the Education Committee properly vetted the nominee.

"It's to make sure everyone is welcome at our state colleges," Wayne says. "If I can find (these posts), so can our students. They are not the craziest posts I've ever seen." Without the nominee answering those questions, the Legislature will never know, Wayne says.

Wayne asks Groene a question, Groene says he's not going to debate education policy on the floor unless it's related to a specific bill.

Sen. Tom Brewer, who is on the Education Committee but chairs the Gov't Committee, says he focuses on whether or not nominees to boards/commissions are qualified for the job, not at their posts on social media. "I assume there has been some screening..."

"...but that's a luxury I won't take for granted in the future," Brewer says. He says Wayne is asking legitimate questions, but said if Legislature scoured all social media posts, very few candidates would be put forward.

"Right now, I think we're going to eliminate good candidates for committee assignments if we have this zero-defect world," Brewer concludes.

Wayne has several times brought up the disappearance and presumed murder of Tyler Thomas at Peru State. A Nemaha County jury has found Peru State at fault in a wrongful death lawsuit, he says. He says he's heard Engles is a good person, but needs vetting before he's comfortable.

Wayne says his motion is about shoring up the process, not opposition to Engles specifically. He says the Legislature needs to establish a meaningful vetting process, instead of just accepting the governor's appointees w/o question.

Sen. Julie Slama, who represents Auburn, where Engles is from, as well as Peru State, corrects Wayne. She says the jury did not find Peru State liable in Ty Thomas' death.

Slama says Engles is a dedicated public servant: The former mayor of Auburn and a long-time member of the state college board. She says she has no hesitation about his character and thinks he will do a great job.

Chambers says Ricketts has indicated shock at racist emails from his father that were made public, as well as racist posting from his state field director on his campaign, and now will act that way with his appointment to the state college board.

Here are two of the Facebook posts from Engles in question. Wayne has not said much about them specifically, but since he's been referring to them:

Groene says he sees "no hate or prejudice" in the posts, just philosophical questions. "There's no racism in here. He doesn't like socialism, and neither do I."

Groene says Wayne is exacting revenge against him for sinking his TIF proposal last week, says Wayne is trying to tarnish a man's name and bring the whole system down.

From our guru court reporter, @LJSpilger clarifying things once and for all:

https://twitter.com/LJSpilger/status/1113111889863639041

We're going to do a roll call vote on Wayne's motion to recommit Engles' confirmation to committee.

Motion to recommit fails 17-28.

Wayne says he could take the debate to 3 hrs and force those who voted against his motion to recommit to get to 33 votes. "This is not bullying, this is about an individual who is going to charge the mountain alone for his community."

Wayne says the Legislature is going to vote that Engles' comments about "black on black violence" doesn't matter. "I want to know if shooting an unarmed black man with his hands up is the same as black on black crime."

He says voting on that sends the wrong message to black youth in the state college systems. Wayne says he was once pulled over with 6 black youth in his car. The officer had them at gunpoint, he said. That's an experience others in the Legislature have never and will never have.

Wayne says his "raggedly blue van" was pulled over at 30th/Sprague in Omaha for a broken taillight in 2010. He asked to step out of the van, was given permission, and when he did, the police pointed their guns at him.

He said a second police told the sixth-graders to stop moving in the van. A sgt came up and told them to lower their guns, but they fought him bc there were gym bags in the van, Wayne says.

"When you see a 6th grader in tears, it takes all restraint not to go after somebody."

That day at bball practice, Wayne said he had to sit down with the 6th graders about what to do if they come into contact with the police. "What I saw from this body today was some of the hardcore issues and prejudices and things we have to overcome in N Omaha can't be delayed."

"We can't delay it for a week to ensure everything is OK. This isn't about felon voting rights, this is about appointing someone today who had a comment, and you expect me not to take it personal. You expect me to rise above it and say we'll just keep moving."

Brewer, who grew upon a reservation, on Engles sharing a Henry Ford quote ("Any man who thinks he can be happy and prosperous by letting the government take care of him better take a closer look at the American Indian.") says he's not offended.

Brewer says he took the post as a knock against socialism & govt healthcare, not against Native Americans. "If someone is offended by that, I would ask them to understand the ground truth of what happens on an Indian reservation. It's not a pretty story."

Going back to a person who withdrew nomination to the state emergency response board, said that happened because the person feared being targeted on the floor of the Legislature, Brewer says.

Slama reading a statement from Engles: "All students are welcome in our schools with open arms."

Here's the full statement from Engles:

Sen. Julie Slama addressing Chambers' comments that Engles' statement "was delivered by a woman." She said she will "not sit quietly when blatantly sexist comments" are directed toward women on the floor.

Slama says Chambers was trying to make out women to be the weaker sex. "Perhaps it's because I'm a strong conservative woman. In this body, I'm a senator and deserve to be addressed as such."

Sen. Megan Hunt said she raised concerns about the vetting process for the governor's appointees a few weeks ago. She said the Legislature isn't required to approve those nominees.

Hunt discussing the call from some senators for civility on the floor, but says that call doesn't always run both ways. She shared this article from the North Platte Bulletin:

Hunt asks if Brewer would yield to a question. Brewer roars "YES!"

Hunt: "Do you think I'm trans?"

Brewer: "I don't know what you are."

Chambers says he said Engles was "hiding behind a woman's skirts." He said he's not going to mischaracterize something that happened on the floor, and said Engles could agree to come for another hearing and end this whole argument.

For those asking about how things are going on the floor of #NeLeg today:

Wayne back up, says he will die on the sword for economic development in his community. He adds he turned in a vote card to the speaker today showing he has enough votes to bring his TIF amendment back, although he’s not sure when it will be scheduled.

Wayne says he’s not going to oppose every bill, the next 4-5 bills should sail through. Chambers shakes his head “no.”

BREAKING: Groene says he’s never been on Facebook or Twitter.

Engles is confirmed 28-2. 13 senators did not vote.

Next confirmation report to state college board, Groene begins his introduction: “Can I start with a prayer he’s never been on Facebook?”

Chambers, out of context: "Why does a man have nipples?"

Your Nebraska Legislature has adjourned. Day 51 is over. Back again tomorrow morning for Day 52.

Can’t believe I missed this opportunity: