Day: May 22, 2014

According to literally dozens of sources, Speaker of the House Pete Schwartzkopf and House Majority Leader Valerie Longhurst are no longer allies, to put it mildly.  In fact, they've had a major falling-out. Their 'breakup' is the talk of Legislative Hall, and it could impact legislative deliberations during the final month of session. You will recall that, when running for Speaker, Schwartzkopf insisted that he and Longhurst were running as a team, and that it was either both of them or neither of them.  It's the only way that Longhurst could have been elected Majority Leader. By a narrow margin, it turned out to be both of them. I'll be right upfront and once again tell you that I dislike Val Longhurst intensely. She has proven that she takes delight in intimidating people and in exercising power over anyone who gets in her way. I will also tell you that she is perhaps the most universally reviled legislative leader with whom I've come in contact. Joe Petrilli, also a former House Majority Leader, albeit on the R side, was the previous champion, IMHO. She is despised by many staff people and by many of her colleagues in both the House and the Senate. While I don't know why they've finally stopped working together, I have to think that Speaker Schwartzkopf, if he wanted to remain Speaker Schwartzkopf next session, recognized the need to jettison the toxic Longhurst. I, of course, would welcome any and all inside skinny from Leg Hall.