North Star Politics

MDE says Mike Ciresi is entering the Senate race. This will completely and totally change the dynamics of said race. I think it'll be the death knell for the Wetterling and Bell campaigns; against two well-funded and better-known candidates, they just lack the resources and position to compete. The Klobuchar campaign, which until now seemed to have a clear shot at the nomination and a primary win, must be very worried, though it's not clear which side in a Klobuchar vs. Ciresi face-off has the advantage. One thing's for sure, though: Ciresi is entering this race relatively late, as Klobuchar already has a lot of money, a lot of endorsements, and a lot of support among the party faithful.

More soon.

I'm sorry, but any time you've managed to use the words "brilliant" and "President Bush" in the same sentence, you have screwed up somewhere along the line (WARNING: Power Line Link).

It is a little-known fact, I'm afraid, that, in a series of speeches extending over a period of years, President Bush has articulated his policy vision more consistently and more eloquently than any President since Lincoln. His speeches have, for the most part, gone unheard, unread, and uncovered by the mainstream media.

These people are honestly so far out of touch with the kind of reality I'm used to that it takes my breath away. Bush, more eloquent than anyone since Lincoln? Have you ever heard this from ANYONE else?

If the good folks at Power Line keep this up, they might just snag themselves a SCOTUS nomination when Alito withdraws.

Our state has a surplus? Yep. Why? Because Gov. Pawlenty and the Republican House made cuts in what makes our state great. Is that a victory?

In my mind, at least, it's not.

...yet another Republican scandal. Any other year, this probably wouldn't be a huge deal, but this year it may turn out to be. Whether it's mere incompetence or malicious misreporting, there's a simple solution - Pennsylvanians can vote Gerlach out of office next year and not have to worry about it anymore!

There are so many scandals these days, with lots of bloggers tracking them down. I feel like I lack political blogging credentials without having found some Republican misbehavior.

Seriously though, kudos to MN Publius for looking into this. God knows the MSM isn't doing much investigative journalism like this, instead revealing scandals like college students drinking. It's a pretty sad day when bloggers are doing far more of this stuff than they are.

I've kept quiet on this for quite a while, but today it's just too much.

I abhor this kind of stuff.

Everyone says that it's extremely difficult to run for office these days, and for a guy like Kelly Doran, who's extremely successful at what he does, to run for any office - much less to run for governor of Minnesota - is a very big deal. Thus, whether or not we choose Mr. Doran as our candidate for governor or not, I'm impressed and grateful that he's running. I'm a proponent of a big tent party; I believe that our best chance for a progressive future is to accept those in our party who disagree on some issues if they believe, at their core, in the same ideals. While Mr. Doran probably leans to the right of this blogger, I don't think that's a reason to label him a Democrat-in-name-only and write him off as a candidate. I think that while Doran may not be the best choice in this race, he has a bright political future; he's not that old (47), he's got lots of money, and he seems to have the political ear. He's got opportunities ahead to establish himself politically. He'd be perfect for a job like state auditor, if he's interested, which could be a stepping stone to the governor's office. Doran seems honest and genuine, which is more than we can say about some politicians on both sides; I believe that he's running because he wants to make Minnesota a better place.

DFL Governor, contrary to his name, makes it seem like he wants a Republican to be governor of this state. We should be criticizing rather than name-calling, always remembering that the goal in 2006 is to have a DFLer elected. Think a Democrat is too conservative? Fine, say so. Don't rip him or her apart unless you've got an awfully good reason.

UPDATE: This kind of stuff gets exploited by our opponents, to not just the candidate's but also the party's detriment.