Not before the business community faced two months of uncertainty in Michigan's already troubled economy.

Not before some companies racked up attorney and accountant fees to comply with the 6 percent sales tax on services.

Not before legislators seemed to spend as much time blaming each other for the tax as they did trying to craft a replacement.

When the House sent a repeal-and-replace bill to the Senate late Wednesday and left town for three days, Republican Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop called it the "lowest point yet." He later accused the Democratic-controlled House of ducking out of work while the Senate "rolled up its sleeves and worked until the job got done."

And that's where that silver lining gets a little bit brighter... when you look back on where we were just a few short days ago.  Consider that Governor Granholm sent signals, in no uncertain terms, that she would simply refuse to sign anything short of a full replacement of any tax dollars lost in a tax repeal.

Consider that the House actually yanked their negotiators in the middle of talks late last week, shocking and upsetting their own Democrat tax experts who, in their own words, thought a deal was possible.  Consider that then Andy Dillon passed a sham bill, intentionally failed to enroll it making reform legitimately and technically impossible and then adjourned the House, sending his members home for the weekend before heading out for celebratory cocktails at a Lansing hotspot.

The Democrat "leadership" in Lansing was more than determined at that point that nothing should get done.  Only after the press and the public started calling the House to the mat for their shenanigans did Andy Dillon return to the bargaining table.  Begrudgingly, a full day too late, the House approved a GOP reform that saved businesses a billion dollars.  

And that is, unquestionably, a victory for conservatives.  Should we have been in this position to begin with?  Absolutely not.  Do we have a half-dozen members in our own ranks who need to find a new line of work?  Absolutely.  But does all of that mean the Senate and House GOP should have declined the opportunity to fight tooth and nail to save taxpayers a billion dollars?  Certainly not.  

There's some measure of practicality needed here.  Mistakes were made in the past.  Mistakes that will kill jobs.  Mistakes that should cost lawmakers their jobs.  If they had any honor at all seventy-some-odd Democrats and a half-dozen Republicans should be sprucing up their resumes right now.  But the question this past weekend was between saving taxpayers a billion dollars or not saving the taxpayers a billion dollars.  

The Democrats staked out their position last Wednesday.  They weren't just OK with Michigan businesses shelling out ten-figures worth of extra cash, they wanted it and took legislative steps to make it happen.  Their behavior might not be surprising but it's just as lethal to job growth as it ever was.  And people are finally noticing.  Nolan Finley blogs in the Detroit News that Detroit Renaissance, a group of the best and brightest minds in the metro Detroit business community, has finally had enough:

Long-term, Renaissance will advocate for specific reforms necessary for state government to operate more efficiently and ease the tax and regulatory burden on business.

If this doesn't signal to Granholm and lawmakers that the most powerful individuals in Michigan are fed up with their sorry performance, nothing will.

Asked what they'd do if their proposals get no response from Lansing, several Renaissance members said they'd wash their hands of the mess and start cultivating a gubernatorial candidate for the 2010 election who understands business and is capable of fixing Michigan.

They'll also put their individual resources behind candidates across the ballot who commit to reform.

Business leaders can't afford to sit idly by and watch their investments erode because elected officials are allowing the state to crumble.

Michigan is desperate for a lot of things, but nothing more than leadership. The politicians demonstrated convincingly that they won't lead. So business must.

The cynic in me wants to ask where Renaissance's conviction was eighteen months ago when they had the opportunity to support the sort of candidate they seem now to want so desperately.  But the realist in me welcomes them to the fray because those of us who care enough about Michigan to tell the truth about our problems can use all the help we can get.