Dayton -v- Emmer: The Bloodbath!

I was pretty disconnected from this primary race. Of the three candidates in the DFL Primary, I felt Matt Entenza was clearly the best possible person for the Governor's seat. I know his past was a distraction, but when I put 'Minnesota First' it seemed he had the best ideas, the most balanced approach, and a solid foundation to get the state back on track.

But in the end, I voted for MAK. If I had any regrets I would go back in time and have worked towards a MAK victory. A MAK nomination would have put Emmer in 'stick a fork in him' land. Democrats, moderates like myself, and sensible Republicans would have been able to support her, we would have a issues based campaign, and the people would decide.

So with Dayton the nominee, and Emmer, the Tea Party and Palin chosen one, I expect a blood bath. The greatest fear the Right has is having to run on issues. They know their policies and practices have gotten us into an economic and social mess. A MAK candidacy would have kept this race cleaner. Now the Right will cherry pick the quirks of Senator Dayton and keep the electorate in confusion. The Left will then be on the defensive and continue with the DUIs smear.

The airwaves will be filled with blood and mud. The people will grow weary of juvenile style junior high politics. Classic Right Wing "I know you are but what am I' defenses along with the 'I'm rubber you're glue' gambit will replace what we should do to fix the pending 6 billion dollar deficit without further gutting the budget. We won't here one candidate's desire to further chip away at the bone, cracking into the budget marrow, and sucking it dry, just to appease his rich donor friends. But we will hear about how the other candidate wants to steal every one's money through taxes, rather than the truth of tweaks to bring fairness back into the tax rates.

And sitting back is the IP candidate, who will proclaim he is above all this and if you want to end 'politics as usual' that is where your vote should go.

Sorry, this state can't afford another 4 years of a Governor who is selfish and out of touch while the rest of us suffer. I never thought I would say this, as Senator Dayton was on my 'no way in Hell' list. But since the Right has opted for a Palin style Tea partier, they've alienated me.

Senator, have your people call my people, we have a state to rescue!

Flash

UPDATE: MAK bows out gracefully:

“I just spoke with Mark Dayton and congratulated him on winning the DFL primary. I offered him my full support. He will make an excellent governor.

“I am so grateful for all of the hard work of our volunteers and supporters over the last twelve months. This was a people-powered, grassroots campaign and we should all be proud of what we achieved together.

“In Minnesota we value every person’s voice and count every person’s vote. And that’s what happened this election.

“Today we will come together as DFLers. We will unite behind Mark Dayton, and beat Tom Emmer in November.”

Margaret Anderson Kelliher