Minnesota Gubernatorial thread

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

I got to hand it to the PAC responsible for this site: http://www.tomemmersmn.org/

I am literally seeing Google ads for it everywhere I turn that has it. Here, TVTropes, you name it. They are really getting the word out to every Minnesota IP. Good thing.

Fairly amusing, here is the TVTropes page where it appeared: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BiggerBad

[Lief 🗽]

I don't really know who this guy is, he's probably a teabagger, but I have a real problem with his views on naming children.

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Tripp? Explains the Sarah Palin endorsement.

But the rest of them? You can't name your children nicknames. Their names should be John, Robert, Katelyn, Joseph, William and John. Yes, you've named two of your children nicknames for the real name John, you dumb redneck.

[Ban my account ffs!]

As soon as Emmer details his way of not only using cuts exclusively to deal with a $7 billion budget deficit, but also proposes more cuts to pay for tax cuts to the wealthy and corporations.. he'll be toast.

Rural Minnesotan Republicans already are nervous about him (hence why not one western/southern Minnesota Republican delegate endorsed him)

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Emmer was one of a total of five members of the State House that voted against banning dangerous chemicals in childrens' toys and baby bottles. That's going to play well with the soccer moms I'm sure.

[Ban my account ffs!]

Now the hacks at Minnesota Democrats Exposed are trying to call the Independence Party frontrunner a Democrat, despite having served as an aide to former Republican senator Dave Durenberger in the 1980s.

The guy at MDE claimed that Tom Horner made a $250 contribution to Tim Penny's house campaign in 2000 (Tim Penny is a former DFLer turned independent)...  the contribution was actually returned to Horner some months later.  Tim Penny endorsed Dean Barkley in the 2008 senate race and John McCain in the presidential election.

The GOP knows that they nominated the rightwing nutjob, and they're going to try and do anything they can to paint Horner as a viable alternative to the DFL so Emmer can squeak by in the general... when in fact, for the first time since the rise of the IP, the likely candidate is actually on the right side of the spectrum.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Kelliher has chosen her running mate, former state finance commissioner John Gunyou.

Not a bad choice. Not that anyone knows who the guy is, but he's an expert in the right area with the current budget issues and whatnot.

Mark Dayton has chosen Duluth State Senator Yvonne Prettner Solon. Entenza is reportedly trying to court retiring newsanchor Robyne Robinson, quite the odd pick.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Uh, Emmer voted against banning salvia?

That's just...weird. Actually what's really weird is that about half of the no votes were all exurban far right Republicans, the other half being liberal Democrats.

[Lief 🗽]

Uh, Emmer voted against banning salvia?

That's just...weird. Actually what's really weird is that about half of the no votes were all exurban far right Republicans, the other half being liberal Democrats.

Did the ban pass?

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Uh, Emmer voted against banning salvia?

That's just...weird. Actually what's really weird is that about half of the no votes were all exurban far right Republicans, the other half being liberal Democrats.

Did the ban pass?

Yeah. Salvia won't be legal post-August. The penalties will actually be a lot stiffer than marijuana, but honestly that does make perfect sense if you compare salvia and marijuana (assuming either one has to be illegal to begin with which I certainly don't think so but the point is clear.) Anyway it'll probably be as enforced in the Twin Cities are marijuana laws currently are.

At least my current State Rep, former state Rep from NE Minneapolis and other former state Rep from Mankato all voted Nay.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Nay votes:

House:
Brod (exurban/rural district Republican, very far right, mentioned above, retiring.)
Brynaert (My old rep from Mankato)
Buesgens (far right Republican from exurban Scott County)
Clark (My rep. Lesbian Minneapolis liberal.)
Emmer (yeah...)
Garofalo (conservative Republican from the southeast fringe of the metro.)
Hackbarth (Republican from far right northern Anoka county.)
Hansen (Liberal Democrat from a blue collar inner suburban district just south of St. Paul. Amusingly he shares his Senate district with the main sponsor of the bill last session.)
Kahn (My old rep from a district in NE Minneapolis and University areas. Known for sponsoring all sorts of wacky legislation and being very far left. Her husband was wearing a Che shirt in some of her campaign literature in 2008.)
Lesch (St. Paul liberal.)
Peppin (Far right Republican from an exurban district in northwest Hennepin county.)
Persell (Snowguy's rep. Liberal from Bemidji.)
Rukavina (Iron Range liberal and failed Gubernatorial candidate.)
Thao (Retiring liberal Democrat from St. Paul.)
Thissen (Liberal Democrat from southwest Minneapolis, shares his district with Richfield. Also unsuccessfully ran for Governor.)

Senate:

Betzold (Liberal Democrat from an inner suburban district just north of Minneapolis.)
Gerlach (Conservative Republican from southern outer suburbs.)
Johnson (Conservative Republican from northern outer suburbs.)
Moua (Liberal Democrat from St. Paul.)
Tomassoni (Liberal Democrat from the Iron Range.)
Vandeveer (He represents Michele Bachmann's old seat. Uh yeah...)

Yeah I gave up trying to make sense of this.

[Ban my account ffs!]

Yeah.. my rep is quite liberal.  He doesn't look it though:

Here he is at the DFL endorsing convention with my state senator, Mary Olson, and former rep Frank Moe.


The obligatory gun shot:



And John showing off his windmill:



When I worked at the bookstore he used to come in and order obscure old country music all the time.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Emmer's son is officially an asshole and probably not much different from Hamilton: http://blogs.citypages.com/blotter/2010/09/tom_emmer_was_f.php

Granted this doesn't have much to do with Emmer himself directly but at least it'll bring light to his vote against that anti-bullying bill which certainly won't play well with the soccer moms. I didn't know that Pawlenty even vetoed that bill. What trash.

[JohnnyLongtorso]

Emmer's son is officially an asshole and probably not much different from Hamilton: http://blogs.citypages.com/blotter/2010/09/tom_emmer_was_f.php

Granted this doesn't have much to do with Emmer himself directly but at least it'll bring light to his vote against that anti-bullying bill which certainly won't play well with the soccer moms. I didn't know that Pawlenty even vetoed that bill. What trash.

I don't think it's a good idea to use a candidate's family to attack him.

[Torie]

Drawing a penis on a passed out girl hardly seems to me to be a capital crime. Yawn.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

No it just proves one to be a huge douchebag. And as noted this was used to bring up Emmer's vote against the anti-bullying bill, which is something the DFL could probably use well.

[Obnoxiously Slutty Girly Girl]

Uh, Emmer voted against banning salvia?

That's just...weird. Actually what's really weird is that about half of the no votes were all exurban far right Republicans, the other half being liberal Democrats.

Did the ban pass?

Yeah. Salvia won't be legal post-August. The penalties will actually be a lot stiffer than marijuana, but honestly that does make perfect sense if you compare salvia and marijuana (assuming either one has to be illegal to begin with which I certainly don't think so but the point is clear.) Anyway it'll probably be as enforced in the Twin Cities are marijuana laws currently are.

At least my current State Rep, former state Rep from NE Minneapolis and other former state Rep from Mankato all voted Nay.

I'm glad I don't live in an extreme authoritarian hellhole like Florida/Minnesota/Oklahoma.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

All the stuff did was make you feel scared or very sick. It wasn't worth it. We still have fully legal K2 sold everywhere and really really lax marijuana laws which aren't really enforced anyway in the inner city, which is more important.

[Lief 🗽]

Also the idea that salvia being illegal turns a place into an authoritarian hellhole is kind of ridiculous.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

I'd be amazed if anyone has been arrested for it yet too.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

More drunk driving issues for the Emmer campaign: http://blogs.citypages.com/blotter/2010/09/tom_emmer_campa.php

Normally I wouldn't consider this that big a deal if Emmer didn't already have DUIs himself and a reputation in the legislature as kind of a go-to guy for loosening the law on drunk driving (admittedly in some ways that actually were kind of reasonable.) But with all those factors it looks horrible.

I wonder if we can now take out Buesgens. He's in a 56% McCain district, but the timing is horrible.

[Eraserhead]

Also the idea that salvia being illegal turns a place into an authoritarian hellhole is kind of ridiculous.

The walk toward fascism is a slow but steady one, Lief. First salvia and then the world.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

This is pretty weird. Pawlenty cut an ad for Emmer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1tbzUKD1os

I'm not sure who is targeted by this since Pawlenty is hardly popular, last poll I saw was in March but it had him at 42/52 and was from generally GOP-leaning in this state SUSA. If it's a motivate the base thing I can sort of see it except motivating the base isn't really the biggest problem for the Republicans this year. And Emmer has been trying to distance himself from Pawlenty a bit (He's been quoted as saying a "Pawlenty mask" won't fit him just a few days ago.)

[ilikeverin]

This is pretty weird. Pawlenty cut an ad for Emmer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1tbzUKD1os

I'm not sure who is targeted by this since Pawlenty is hardly popular, last poll I saw was in March but it had him at 42/52 and was from generally GOP-leaning in this state SUSA. If it's a motivate the base thing I can sort of see it except motivating the base isn't really the biggest problem for the Republicans this year. And Emmer has been trying to distance himself from Pawlenty a bit (He's been quoted as saying a "Pawlenty mask" won't fit him just a few days ago.)

Right.  What a confusing idea.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

I'll include my updates on the recount here, even though it's not as interesting as the last one. Day one is complete.

So far the tally is:
Dayton: 86 challenges of Emmer votes
Emmer: 281 challenges of Dayton votes

On the count itself:
Dayton +20
Emmer -4

[ilikeverin]

Emmer concedes