I Don’t Hate America!

In the “in case you missed it file,” a post that should frankly scare the piss out of anyone who’s eyes gaze upon it:

http://www.bluestemprairie.com/bluestemprairie/2009/10/nsmsamjohnson.html

I’m not sure I have whole lot of new analysis to add, but I hope this helps all of us reevaluate the manner in which we think about racism in our society.

I’m pleased and proud to be listed amongst such great company. Former Congressman Martin Sabo. Former Secretary of State Joan Growe.  Former House Speakers Bob Vanasek and Dee Long. Many current and former local government officials and state legislators. Countless rank and file Minnesota DFLers.  I’d say this is quite the impressive list.

Sheesh, and to think, just over a month ago I was merely flipping burgers.

This week, the Georgia gubernatorial race brings us an internet advertisement which is going viral and potentially will end up as the worst political ad of all time.  Currently, the “Willie Horton” ad from the 1988 Presidential election is widely believed to hold that title.  Floyd Brown, the man responsible for this ad which aided in bringing down Michael Dukakis, has been hanging out with our own absentee Gov. Tim Pawlenty, but that is neither here nor there.

This brings me to the ad which I consider to be the worst I have ever seen. Let’s rewind to 1994, when super-mega-ultra right winger Allen Quist was endorsed by the Independent Republican party for governor over incumbent Arne Carlson.   The primary would prove to be a no-holds-barred affair, which featured Quist in his attempt to use his brand of conservativsm to “retake” the party (which would in the not-too-distant future after that shed the word “independent” from its name) by taking down Gov. Carlson, generally judged to be a centrist.

Quist lost to the popular Carlson in a landslide.

I was only the age of 10, however one advertisment from that bloody primary struck me as particularly farcical despite my young age. In fact, I still remember it to this day in all of its inflammatory glory.

Here’s how Dane Smith explained it in a September 3, 1994 story in the Star Tribune:

Video and audio (Ad  1): Throughout this 30-second ad, a man wearing a suit and a President Clinton  mask dances with another suited man, who has his back to the camera and is supposed to be Gov. Arne Carlson.  Their dance opens with children’s voices singing to the tune of “Love and Marriage.”  The lyrics are: Clinton  and Carlson, Carlson and Clinton, go together on a lot of issues.”  As the men dance on, a narrator says: “They’ve raised your taxes.  They support government-run health care that will lead to rationing.  They support gun control as an answer to crime.  They favor legalized abortion into the ninth month.  And neither Clinton nor Carlson has ever been endorsed for governor by the Independent-Republican Party.  On Sept. 13, elect the real Republican.  Vote for Allen Quist.”

Bill Clinton: never endorsed by the IR party for Governor.  That might have been the most obviously absurd assertion in the ad, but Smith’s analysis shows it wasn’t the only one:

But the ad ’s claims on gun control and ninth-month abortions have been criticized as distortions by IR Party chairman Chris Georgacas. Carlson and Clinton did raise taxes, but Carlson also cut spending programs and balanced the state budget. And although Hillary Rodham Clinton lavishly praised the MinnesotaCare program, which Carlson helped initiate, Carlson has been critical of Clinton ’s health care proposal. The ad is supposed to be humorous and light, but the Clinton mask, the shadowy background and the disembodied dancing shoes give this ad a strange and ominous quality. Quist’s campaign manager, Leon Oistad, offered the unsolicited disclaimer that the dancing has nothing to do with the gay rights issue, which has become a symbolic dividing point between Carlson and Quist.

Yes, in perhaps an unprecedented move, the state chair of the IR party publicly criticized his own endorsed candidate in a separate Strib story saying the ad “stretches the truth to the edge of credibility” and could cause the losing side in the primary to “sit on its hands, won’t vote, or worst of all, support Democrats.”

Now it’s developing that, having already registered a domain name, Allen Quist is a likely candidate for congress against Rep. Tim Walz.

If Quist ultimately decides to run, my only hope is that he will run ridiculous, off-the-wall TV ads again.  We can never have enough whacky spots like Quist’s from 1994, especially in this age of YouTube and viral video.

Oh, and seeing Walz win with 70 percent of the vote would be cool too, I suppose.

By the way, does anyone have video of the “Dancing Carlson and Clinton” ad? If so, please upload it to YouTube immediately; the “new generation” must see it!

Rep. Tim Walz sent out a mailing today applauding the expansion of the list of diseases that the harmful chemical Agent Orange has had on many of our Vietnam Veterans.  With a family member awaiting a heart due to this serious threat, I am glad to see this step forward by VA Secretary Eric Shinseki.  As a cardiac nurse, I feel adding ischemic heart disease is a major win for Vets given the time frame this specific illness affects the population and the current age of the Vietnam Veteran cohort.

From the VA:

“VA presumes that all military personnel who served in Vietnam were exposed to Agent Orange, and federal law presumes that certain illnesses are a result of that exposure.”

Their current list of diseases include:

acute and subacute peripheral neuropathy, porphyria cutanea tarda, chloracne, prostate cancer, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, respiratory cancers (lung, bronchus, larynx and trachea), Hodgkin’s disease, multiple myeloma, soft-tissue sarcoma, acute; non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Type II diabetes mellitus

From the Walz mailing:

I am writing to inform you that Veterans’ Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki has made the important decision to add Parkinson’s disease, ischemic heart disease and hairy cell leukemia to the list of presumptive illnesses related to Agent Orange exposure for Vietnam veterans. I applaud Secretary Shinseki for making this decision, which will have a positive impact on thousands of America’s veterans.

VA presumes that all military personnel who served in Vietnam were exposed to Agent Orange, and federal law presumes that certain illnesses are a result of that exposure. This “presumptive policy” simplifies the process of receiving compensation for these diseases since VA foregoes the normal requirements of proving that an illness began or was worsened during military service.

The decision announced this week expanded the list of presumed illnesses to include ischemic heart disease, hairy cell leukemia and Parkinson’s disease. This policy change means that all service members who served in Vietnam and are suffering from these illnesses will no longer have the additional burden of proving their illness is connected to their service to our country.

I am happy the VA made this decision today, and I want to thank Secretary Shinseki for moving us in the right direction. When our warriors return home, they should always be given the benefit of the doubt, and we have an obligation to ensure that they receive the care and benefits they earned. This decision helps us fulfill the moral responsibility we owe to the men and women who have served this country.

I would also like to thank the U.S. Military Veterans with Parkinson’s (USMVP) for their untiring efforts. Their advocacy and research helped VA make this important decision and their efforts will have lasting impacts on the lives of Vietnam veterans. I appreciate the close partnership and assistance they continue to give us as they advocate for our nation’s veterans.

For more information about Agent Orange and VA compensation eligibility, please see http://www.vba.va.gov/bln/21/benefits/herbicide/aono1.htm. To file a compensation claim for a current disability related to Agent Orange, veterans can call 1-800-827-1000 for an application form or visit VA’s Web site at: http://vabenefits.vba.va.gov.

For more information about my activities representing southern Minnesota in Congress, please visit http://walz.house.gov and sign up for my e-newsletter.

Sincerely,

Tim Walz
Member of Congress

According to a Rasmussen phone survey, Gov. Tim Pawlenty trails the field of GOP presidential hopefuls with less support than “some other candidate” and “undecided.”

Twenty-nine percent (29%) of Republican voters nationwide say former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee is their pick to represent the GOP in the 2012 Presidential campaign. The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey finds that 24% prefer former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney while 18% would cast their vote for former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich gets 14% of the vote while Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty gets 4%. Six percent (6%) of GOP voters prefer some other candidate while 7% remain undecided.

My first thought was “Ah, well. It’s still early and ole’ T-Paw prolly still’s got plenty o time to build name recognition and gain support within the GOP base.”

He did lead the field in one category, though, and it unfortunately doesn’t appear Pawlenty’s problem is name recognition. While obviously not as well known as the rest of the candidates, 28 percent of respondents said T-Paw is the candidate they would least like to see on the the ballot.

The numbers for Huckabee and Romney look even stronger when GOP voters were asked which candidate they would least like to see get the nomination. Pawlenty came on top in that category with 28%. Palin was second at 21% while 20% named Gingrich. Romney and Huckabee were in the single digits with 9% and 8% respectively.

Tim Pawlenty: less popular than, ahem, Sarah Palin? I suppose it is early, but at this stage our lame duck, absentee governor might need to start managing expectations for his presidential ambitions.

Indeed, from his perch utop the Governor’s Mansion on Summit Avenue, perhaps T-Paw should, rather than aspiring to move to Washington, D.C., or even Iowa for the caucuses, look toward moving closer: his home in Eagan.