It's great when a bad idea dies of its own weight.

During last fall's state budget meltdown, former state state representative and current Macomb county commissioner Leon Drolet was a media darling in Lansing. He strutted a big, fake, pink pig and threatened any sitting legislator with recalls should they vote for a tax increase.

At the time, leaders of the Center for Michigan decried Drolet's recall threats as a form of blackmail that hindered legislators' already frayed ability to govern.

Now, after so much noise, the recall effort is dead. Weeks after recall supporters ditched their campaigns against numerous other legislators, state officials have ruled that Drolet and gang failed to collect enough valid signatures to get a recall on the ballot against House Speaker Andy Dillon (their last target).

Two takeaways from all this...

First, as Lansing political correspondent Susan Demas points out in Dome Magazine, "In reality, Leon was little more than the little boy who cried wolf. And more of us in the media should have raised that as a possibility. (I rather like my crotchety former editor’s philosophy on media hounds: 'Let 'em buy an ad.')"

Second, the next time they face a monumental vote about program cuts, budget reforms, or tax increases (and there will likely be bitter battles on all three topics in coming years) legislators can no longer hide behind the recall bogeyman. Stand up, vote your conscience, and be counted.