There are a few reasons for having a Primary race, in the abstract - let's start by acknowledging those. Mostly this has to do with the circumstance (which I don't think is the case this year) that a party's endorsement process yields a favorite of the party insiders, that the party's own voters can't live with.
Ok, enough of that. Now let's get to the point. Given that the DFL in Minnesota runs an orderly (well, orderly for Democrats, anyway LOL) process to which EVERYONE is invited to participate - completely open for anyone to be involved in - there is usually no good reason to think the above "voters were ignored" argument holds any water AT ALL.
This year, those who are forcing this Primary race which looms, are those who have MONEY. How much will a Primary race cost, all together? Add up what could potentially be the necessary budgets for it, from all four (now three) campaigns heading for it, at present. How much would that be? Someone of you who has actual campaign management experience can comment and suggest a number.
As DFLers, we believe in working our tails off to eradicate poverty, hunger, unemployment and the despair that comes from them, don't we? Aren't WE the ones who clamored passionately to fight the immoral unallotment of funding for GAMC? (though, parenthetically here, where the hell WAS our party leadership after unallotment? Galen Robinson is the hero).
So I ask you three non-endorsed candidates: How is it that you are justifying in your heart, and in your soul where you have to reconcile the integrity of actions and principles, the forced expenditure of HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS OR MORE at the same time you will likely be competing to say you are the best one to fight against poverty and hunger? Are you kidding me??
Do you have any idea how cynical and insulting that sounds to those on the bottom of the economic ladder??. Here's an idea.... put those millions? of dollars toward the causes and principles we stand for, suck it up in your big egos about the fact that someone else is the party's standard bearer this time and cancel the immoral waste you are about to engage in causing!!
Now, just so we take out any idea that I am posting this plea to put aside self-interest, with any self-interest for myself involved, and since many who read this will do so knowing that I am living very poor right now myself, let me take myself out of getting one dime of benefit from my suggestion. I don't care - I'm a survivor and will find a way. It ain't about that. But I do think it IS about principle, and making us honorable in the eyes of those we "claim" to care about.
The big gossip at the convention yesterday is that former Senator and current MN-GOV candidate Mark Dayton was denied access to the convention floor yesterday. Dayton is bypassing the endorsement process and running to the primary.
"This party's big enough for everybody including people who have respectful disagreements about the process which ultimately comes down to a primary and I don't know why the DFL party is so afraid of having a primary where all of the people of Minnesota get to decide who the nominee's going to be." Dayton said. "But, again that's their decision to make."
Party Chairman Brian Melendez is standing behind his decision and notes Dayton was granted access to areas of the convention outside of the floor.
(MPR)
Do I smell burning bridges? Or does the famous lift bridge just need more WD40?
Here's some more gossip to add to this. Matt Entenza offered Dayton a couple of his passes. Entenza said (and this is my paraphrasing) "Mark said if he can't walk onto the convention floor of his own party, there's something wrong."
Furthermore, Susan Gaertner was given the same treatment. Gaertner, as you may recall, is still an elected DFLer -- Ramsey County Attorney. Entenza loaned her two of his passes and she visited her Senate District and chatted with delegates for a while (an hour or so).
What is Minnesota's grade for abortion access? C+. 95% of Minnesota counties lack an abortion provider, while most contain a Crisis Pregnancy Centers. CPCs are 'clinics' that are funded by religious organizations (subsidized by the state) that push an anti-choice message. Once a woman finally navigates herself to an abortion provider in Minnesota, she must still contend with mandatory waiting periods, biased counseling laws and gag rules. All these legal hurdles may not be the biggest challenge the pro-choice movement. Apathy by the general public and young people in particular seems to be rampant. The general public doesn't believe abortion access to be a challenge or in jeopardy.
(NOTE: Newsweek did not interview any young women who are involved ensuring a women's right to choose)
New NARAL research, conducted earlier this year and released exclusively to NEWSWEEK, only amplified Keenan's fears. A survey of 700 young Americans showed there was a stark "intensity gap" on abortion. More than half (51 percent) of young voters (under 30) who opposed abortion rights considered it a "very important" voting issue, compared with just 26 percent of abortion-rights supporters; a similar but smaller gap existed among older voters, too. Worse still for NARAL, the millennials surveyed didn't view abortion as an imperiled right in need of defenders. As one young mother in a focus group told NARAL, it seemed to her that abortion was easily accessible. How did she know? The parking lot at her local clinic, she told them, was always full.
So how does all this relate to the MN governor's race for 2010? Just this session an anti-choice amendment was defeated in a tie vote. Speaker Anderson Kelliher managed to secure 8 no votes from representatives that have a mixed record on choice. More than likely we will lose seats in the legislature, now I'm hoping its just the anti-choice dems that lose, but we can't count on that. Our next governor will be the last line of defense for a woman's right to choose in MN.
Where do our esteemed candidates stand on choice? All are pro-choice. At various panels, I've heard all would repeal the 24-hour waiting period. All support comprehensive sexuality education, though there is definitely a learning curve for some candidates on choice issues, but they have all been responsive and willing to find out more information.
I was surprised when I dug a bit further into the candidates pro-choice stances, ONLY three candidates talk about choice on their campaign pages (Marty, Thissen and Entenza). Hoping to obtain some more information I sent each candidate an email asking their thoughts on three choice issues. I gave each candidate 2 weeks and multiple reminders, hoping they would all participate. The first answers to my questions came from John Marty, who also apologized for not noting the solidarity event. I then heard from Margaret Anderson Kelliher's campaign, Susan Gaertner, and a representative from RT Rybak's campaign. Sadly, I did not receive any responses to the questions from MAK, Gaertner or Rybak. (As I was preparing to post this, I received a voice message from RT Rybak who reiterated his pro-choice stance, along with his work with schools and Planned Parenthood) I also received answers from Paul Thissen and Matt Entenza, but never even heard from Tom Rukavina or Mark Dayton's campaigns.***Mark Dayton's campaign sent an email to me this morning. I've attached it below.
Questions:
1.The pro-choice platform is occasionally ignored by the MNDFL. Will you, as governor, work to eliminate that practice or support anti-choice DFL candidates?
2.Aggression and threats toward family planning clinics have increased. How will you address abortion access and funding in MN?
3.Abstinence-only sexuality education and the prevalence of crisis pregnancy centers have contributed to the rise of STI's and teen pregnancies in MN, how will you help reverse these trends?
I was most anticipating the answers to question one about the pro-choice platform in the DFL. There are many anti-choice DFLers in MN and you can call it a purity test if you want, but I DO NOT believe that the DFL should support candidates that will vote to restrict a woman's right to choose. They can be anti-choice personally, fine, but don't push your beliefs onto women. What good is having a big tent party if they aren't going to protect the rights of the majority in the party?
(Great work, Rachel -- it's going to be a busy week, but we need as much of this apples-to-apples questioning of the gubernatorial candidates as we can get. On-stage Q+A in Duluth is going to be painfully short. - promoted by Joe Bodell)
What is Minnesota's grade for abortion access? C+. 95% of Minnesota counties lack an abortion provider, while most contain a Crisis Pregnancy Centers. CPCs are 'clinics' that are funded by religious organizations (subsidized by the state) that push an anti-choice message. Once a woman finally navigates herself to an abortion provider in Minnesota, she must still contend with mandatory waiting periods, biased counseling laws and gag rules. All these legal hurdles may not be the biggest challenge the pro-choice movement. Apathy by the general public and young people in particular seems to be rampant. The general public doesn't believe abortion access to be a challenge or in jeopardy.
(NOTE: Newsweek did not interview any young women who are involved ensuring a women's right to choose)
Choice isn't my only issue, I strongly care about all the DFL platform, choice just seems to be that crazy uncle that no one wants to really talk about. Why? Why is a woman's right to choose one of the few platforms that is readily ignored by the DFL? After the Solidarity event I was quite disappointed with ALL the DFL governor candidates. Not a single one came to the event or mentioned it publicly. While I'm not necessarily surprised; frustration runs high. Attacks on choice are only going to increase throughout the next governors term. Do we want to lose our right? Is the safety, health and well-being of women not worth fighting for in this political environment?
So, I asked each campaign three questions and have given candidates 2 weeks, with multiple twitter reminders and I resent the questions to Susan Gaertner and RT Rybak campaigns.
I'm sending out, yet another reminder and will write up the post this weekend (conveniently, right before the DFL convention)
Join MPIRG for a gubernatorial forum focused on students and their vision for Minnesota's future.
Where: Hamline University, Kay Fredericks Ballroom (3rd Floor of the Klas Center)
Date: April 15th, 2010 Time: Doors open at 5:30 p.m., forum is 6 - 7:30 p.m.
Please arrive at 5:30 to vote on which questions you would like asked!
Confirmed attendees include: John Marty, Paul Thissen, Mark Dayton, Susan Gaertner, Tom Rukivina, Bob Carney, Jr, Leslie Davis, Peter Roess, Rob Hahn, Tom Horner, Peter Idusogie.
Who will Minnesota's next governor be? We'll assume and hope that it will be a DFLer. There are a lot of candidates. Which one should we vote for? How do voters choose?
Many voters choose a name on the ballot at random. We've all done this at some point over the years, especially when we see a list of judges or county attorneys on the ballot. Most people have no idea who these candidates are. Some voters choose a name that sounds good to them or is vaguely familiar. Others may choose by gender. Some will choose a female just for the sake of having more females in office.
Others choose a name that they recognize. The more recognizable the candidate's name is, the better the chances of getting elected. In this year's gubernatorial race, the two top candidates for name recognition, at least so far, are Mark Dayton and R. T. Rybak.
Some voters actually research the candidates' stand on various issues. Others abide by the party's endorsement or by the endorsement of their union or other organization. Others will vote for their legislator who happens to be running for governor.
Many others vote on personalities. Jesse Ventura had a personality that was unforgettable. Skip Humphrey didn't. Norm Coleman might have had but his mudslinging alienated voters.
Finally, voters vote for a candidate they resonate with. They want a candidate they have something in common with. If they think a particular candidate is nothing at all like them, they probably won't vote for that person.
So ... many of us went to our DFL caucus last night. Many of because we want a DFLer to be our next Governor. So what? Well there are many implications going forward in the Minnesota Governor's race (MN-GOV), mainly for the RT Rybak and Margaret Anderson-Kelliher campaigns -- the race is wide open for them to win or lose. All campaigns will be working hard to get some delegates elected from the upcoming Senate District conventions.
Will John Marty, Paul Thissen and Tom Rukavina be able to get enough delegates together to get the 7-9% that their straw poll results indicate they might pull?
Obviously, the Rybak and MAK campaigns will more than likely go into the state conventions with 20% to maybe even 25% of the delegates committed to them. But what about the rest?
Any delegates Tom Bakk, Matt Entenza, Susan Gaertner and Steve Kelley elect will have choices after their candidates are dropped on the first ballot.
This event was at Macalester College tonight. It was sponsored by TLC (Transit for Liveable Communities), as well as by MPTA, Isaiah, Sierra Club, MPIRG, Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, Fresh Energy, Alliance for Metropolitan Stability and 1000 Friends of Minnesota.
This forum had the highest energy level of any event that I have been to yet. Everyone was there. Well, Matt Entenza wasn't there, or Tom Bakk, or Steve Kelley, or Paul Thissen, or even Ole. It was high energy without them, though. I missed Thissen because he always has something new and refreshing to say and because he always makes sure to say hi to me, not for Brownie points, but because he's interested in what I have to say. I hear he's really, really smart...
This forum was a bit different than the others I've been attending because there were several Independent Party candidates. Rob Hahn, Tom Horner and John Uldrich all took part. On the Republican side, there was Leslie Davis. Davis brought copies of his book to give away. He autographed a copy for me. He said he won't forget my name. Honey, none of the candidates will forget my name. I told him I wrote a book, too. He said he would read it. I told him it's a romance novel. He said he'd read it anyway. I wonder if Dayton read his copy yet? I forced it on him for a Christmas present. With an inscription in the front that said, "because all guys ought to read at least one or two romance novels in their life." Right, ladies? Ok, now I sense Tom Rukavina rushing out to buy one.
I felt good tonight at this forum. I felt really crappy all day at work. With hepatitis C there are flareups. The viral load fluctuates. When it flares up, the immune system kicks in along with the flu-like symptoms that accompany it. There was so much energy in the room tonight, though, that I felt great. Gosh, I think I'll quit my job and join somebody's campaign. I haven't felt this energized since my hippie days on the West Bank when I was protesting the Viet Nam War. Or when I was a member of the Twin City Federal Drum & Bugle Corps/Color Guard. We took first place in all the parades for our Headchopper routine. We had a guy who arranged all the Henry Mancini songs to fit our special parade march step. Pink Panther, Peter Gunn, Baby Elephant Walk. Sigh. What great memories.
This event was chaired by Dan Hoxworth. The moderator was Steve Berg. Orrie was there, of course, and the table next to Rukavina's was Dayton's. Brian (not Klaas) was staffing it tonight. What an enjoyable young man, full of energy and enthusiasm and good cheer. There were friends from reNEW Minnesota and TakeAction Minnesota, as well. And I can't forget to mention Craig Stellmacher from The Uptake. I just love him even if he does talk your ear off.
First, each candidate was given time to give a brief introduction. Mark Dayton was the only one who stood up. He'd make such a great Toastmaster. He's already got the techniques down. The other candidates remained seated. They didn't say anything I haven't heard before or won't hear again. The introduction formality was mostly for first-time forum attendees.
After that we got right into the questions and answers. I'll state the questions one at a time and then give each candidate's response.
On the evening of January 19, reNEW Minnesota had its third and last set of candidate interviews. This one included Susan Gaertner, Tom Rukavina and R. T. Rybak.
You know the routine. I'll take each candidate separately, state the questions they were asked, paraphrase their answers, and then give my take on it. Each candidate was asked a set of six identical questions and two questions unique to each candidate. Here we go:
Last night I attended a gubernatorial candidate forum at the Fridley Community Center. It was hosted by SD50 and SD51. Here's what happened:
After work on Thursday evening I drove to Fridley for the SD50/51 gubernatorial candidate forum. It was held at the Fridley Community Center. I didn't go home first since the roads were very slick and greasy, so of course I arrived an hour and a half early. That was okay; I started a conversation with an elderly woman who was the evening monitor for the center. We had a great discussion about how Pawlenty has ruined Minnesota and what might be done about it. Of course we both agreed that the only solution is to elect a DFL governor. She noticed my by-now-famous campaign button and asked where she could get one. I just happened to have an extra one...
The first order of business at the forum was mingling. I saw some people I've met at other events. It was great to see them again. I also met some new people, such as John Choi, who is a candidate for Ramsey County Attorney, and Jeanna Sather. These are two very nice people. I'll have to learn more about John Choi and what his goals are for the Ramsey County Attorney position.
It was fantastic to see so many people come up and talk to me. I was surprised to hear how many are reading my blog. Three candidates greeted me warmly. They were John Marty, Paul Thissen and Steve Kelley. It's always good to be nice to political bloggers.
The only other two gubernatorial candidates who were there this evening were Susan Gaertner and Margaret Anderson Kelliher. Tom Bakk was supposed to be there but unfortunately he got stuck in southern Minnesota because the highways were closed due to the weather. The remaining candidates had been invited but they all had previous engagements. Quite a few people told me that they were disappointed that Mark Dayton couldn't make it. Apparently he had a fund raiser to attend that he had already committed to. "Rats!" exclaimed one woman. "That makes this a rather constricting experience."
I thought it was easier to manage a smaller forum. The candidates seemed more comfortable when there weren't so many of them. It was probably easier for the audience to keep them straight, too.
There were quite a few people there considering how slippery the roads were. Then the frolics began. Each candidate was given a couple of minutes to introduce themselves. After that they were given a question which each answered. Here are the highlights.
Susan Gaertner has just announced that she will run in the primary whether she wins the DFL endorsement or not. I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, I don't think she has a chance of winning. I think she's wasting her time and money. Where is she getting that kind of money, anyway? On the other hand, I like her. Even so, would she make the kind of governor Minnesota needs and wants? I doubt it. Why did she prosecute those who were merely protesting at the Republican National Convention? Many, many years ago I protested the Viet Nam War. Would she have prosecuted me? Would she have prosecuted the protesters at Kent State? Does she really think that DFL voters will elect her? I thought she was a lot smarter than that.
What will that mean for the other candidates? We currently have four DFL gubernatorial candiates who say they won't abide by the endorsement. Dayton, Entenza, Kelley and now Gaertner. The only one who has a chance at winning the primary out of these four is Dayton. His other contender, though, will be whoever gets the DFL endorsement. I predict that will either be Kelliher, Thissen or Rybak. Of all these candidates, the race would be closest between Rybak, Thissen and Dayton. And what a close race that will be.
If Gaertner, Entenza and Kelley want to waste their money, I guess that's up to them. However, I would suggest that they take that money and put it toward paying off Minnesota's deficit. The people of Minnesota would be forever grateful.
Susan Gaertner announced today that she'll appear in the DFL gubernatorial primary later this year.
"To be honest, I think my original plan to rely solely on the endorsement and convention process was too politically limiting. I firmly believe that an effort to expand our reach to a much larger universe of Minnesotans is the right direction-especially since some in the field have been in that mode all along."
Gaertner, who has been campaigning in the close quarters of DFL activists for over two years, said her core supporters have been urging her to consider a primary run and have convinced her that someone of her political profile-an outsider with a reputation as a straight-shooting moderate-can do well in the larger primary universe.
"This doesn't mean that I have given up on anyone in the DFL. Like other candidates who have stated their intention to run in a primary, I respect the party process and will continue to work to gain the support of delegates to the DFL convention. I will be working hard, however, to gain the support of the many loyal DFL voters who don't always get engaged in the caucus and convention process," Gaertner said.
It's a newsmaker in the race, to be sure, but when most candidates are going to be announcing fundraising totals, it doesn't quite fit -- does this mean that Team Gaertner raised a bunch of money but doesn't think they can get the endorsement, or they didn't raise much in '09 and think they need more time to get their message out?
In either case, this makes at least three, possibly as many as many as four or five candidates who are fairly sure to run in the primary. Let the deal-making begin!
Update: Tom Scheck of MPR just tweeted that Steve Kelley now *will* abide by the endorsement -- this was announced in early December in a letter to the DFL State Central Committee. Interesting back-room deals could be in the cards.
This post is to point something out to DFL voters. As you know, we have not had a DFL governor for twenty years. That's an entire generation. Young people don't know what it's like to have a DFL governor. We have got to change that in this November's election. How can we do that? By making sure we have a candidate who is electable. It's not just the DFL voters who will determine the final winner. It's also all the Minnesota voters who don't vote by party affiliation. They will vote for who they think will make the best governor. Some people will, as always, vote for the person whose name they recognize. Others vote for very strange reasons. One person told me they would never vote for anyone named Steve because that was her ex-husbands name. Crazy? Well sure. And we can't do anything about that kind of voting mentality. On the other hand, we can make sure that the candidate with the greatest liklihood of getting elected gets the DFL endorsement. We have to put aside thoughts of who we personally like best. We have to put aside ideas that the candidates may have that are just not going to bring in the independent voters. Also, we have to look at past electability. There are several candidates who have run for governor and lost. More than once. They have a history of not being electable.
Let's take a look at all the DFL candidates and see just how electable they might be. I won't include Ole Savior for obvious reasons.
I am automatically a state delegate to the DFL state convention. Add in my persuasive abilities and personal volunteer work, to make me, a good endorsement for candidates. That means many personal contacts. So I declared myself "neutral" in the governor's race. I plan on using my vote for fairness and to unite DFLers on later votes. So most campaigns are wisely focussing effort elsewhere than on me!
However, Tom Rukavina spent the day DOORKNOCKING in St. Paul. Tom says that he plans to get 20 votes out of St Paul. So most of you, readers out there, are in Minnesota. So contact Tom Rukavina for your own personal doorknock. I warn you, that you might actually get a knock on your door and be charmed by him.
