When Minnesota lawmakers met Wednesday, some ran into a surprise after hearing certain programs may not receive as much funding in the upcoming budget.

The surprise? Reality.

Department of Human Service Commissioner Kevin Goodno patiently addressed concerns from legislators, but didn't back down from trying to be aggressive toward cutting back spending and funding for programs.

Goodno tried telling lawmakers if they thought these first round of cuts were bad, they ain't seen nothin' yet.

"This is just the beginning and these are the easy ones," he said.

We've said before that lawmakers and residents of this state are going to be in for a rude awakening in the next few months. Apparently, some are getting woken from their slumber earlier than they would like.

Creativity and cooperation are the two key elements in how this state will climb out of a $4 billion-plus deficit. Minnesotans aren't going to be entirely pleased with these upcoming decisions, but lawmakers not only have to get the ball rolling, they have to execute their plans as well.