City Pages: Mark Dayton leads DFL race for governor. Margaret Anderson who?

[geardaddy]

So, Margaret Anderson Kelliher has to be scratching her head a little bit this morning. She spent a boatload of energy and political capital winning the DFL endorsement to run for governor, and now she's playing second fiddle to former U.S. Sen. Mark Dayton -- who didn't even enter the endorsement race.

http://blogs.citypages.com/blotter/2010/05/mark_dayton_lea.php

[ISUGRADIA]

1. To Be Fair

Dayton's been active statewide politically for 30 years. 10 points 2 months out is not a insurmountable gap. Plus with the margain of error this race could be really tied between Dayton and MAK. Entenza is the one that should be worried.

[Minnesota Raindog]

2. Entenza finished right where he belongs in that poll--dead last at 6%

Actually, that's 6% more than Millionaire Matt deserves. And the jerk continues to lie and mislead. His latest smarmy tv ad implies that Matt has spent his entire life here in Minnesota, growing up in the farming community of Worthington. Quite a stretch for the three years Entenza spent in Worthington in high school before he went on to school at Macalester and Oxford and representing St. Paul--not Worthington--in the legislature. And how long is Entenza going to use his alcoholic dad as a whipping boy and campaign prop? Where is his dad now? Has Matt ever heard of forgiveness? I guess not, when you can use your dad as a stepping stone to higher office. That's all Entenza has ever used anybody for.

[CatholicEdHead]

3. True, Dayton has the highest name recognition

which goes both ways as his Senate baggage will both help and hurt him in different parts of the state (we all know which ones). One of the biggest attack points I see coming is that time Dayton closed his Senate office because of threats. I expect that to be the top character assassination attack point by the Emmer camp.

[becxx]

4. If my family owned a store that was bombed, I might close a Senate office too

I think we need to defend Dayton on this point. His family owned the Dayton's store when it was bombed and any normal person would have been very cautious after such an experience in the family.

I am voting for Dayton. I think Kelliher is a dishonest manipulator. I can't believe the campaign stuff she is sending out. She claims she fought for average Minnesotans. Yeah, sure! What Kelliher really does is to deliver for his ritzy friends. That and make deals -- I'll bet she got a lot of those legislative endorsements by promising cushy jobs.

Some of these politicians are just pathological liars.

So here's my deal with Kelliher: if she offers me a cushy job, I'll vote for her too. LOL

[glinda]

5. Excellent point about Mark.

[mascarax]

7. Which Dayton's store was bombed & when?

I didn't know that...

[Mister Ed]

6. If the fact that Dayton sent his staff home is the worst attack the GOP can mount, then bring it on.

The Administration warned the Senate of a potential terrorist threat, and the senators all vamoosed. Dayton was the only senator too ethical to ask his staff to face a danger that he and his VIP peers would not.

So he treats the "little people" who work for him as though they actually matter, and that's a political liability? Crazy political climate we're living in.

[dflprincess]

8. That's an excellent point

Congress was in their already scheduled summer recess when Mark closed his office and, as you said, the only one who said if it wasn't safe enough for senators, reps and tourists (who were also being warned away) it wasn't safe for his staff.

I've sometimes wondered if Mark wasn't really trying to call Bush's bluff on his all terra all the time crap and show the public how stupid this has gotten but it just didn't come off the way he meant it because of the way it was reported.