I’m out at Jimmy’s Convention Center in Vadnais Heights at the 4th CD Republican endorsing convention.

I’m kinda impressed that I found Vadnais Heights.  So the morning’s off to a good start.

Well, it was; Bev Aplikowski tells us that we have a long list of speakers.   That’s just fantastic.  I have to duck out of here at 11:45 to go do the show.

8:47 – Phil Herwig is kicking things off.  Phil Herwig is the gubernatorial candidate that makes Tom Emmer go “Yow – he’s far-right”.  Wondering if Leslie Davis is planning on showing up…

9:09 – Credentials report.  Speaking of credentials, I managed to check the MN Criminal History database, per Phil Herwig’s request.  No records for Emmer or Seifert.  What was he talking about?

Herwig’s big “bombshell” – “go on your computer and google your candidates and see that I haven’t knocked over a 7/11”.  Is he saying something we don’t know about Tom Emmer and Marty Seifert that Google (at a quick glance) doesn’t seem to know about?  (Funny – there are three of us in the 66B row of seats madly googling away trying to figure out what the flaming hootie-hoo

8:51 – Bill Haas is next.  He’s a former legislator from Bemidji.  Super-likeable guy, great business chops.  May get to the first ballot…

8:54 – Randy Gilbert, State Auditor candidate, up next.  I’ve interviewed him on the air.  He’s a sharp guy; I think that if Pat Anderson weren’t in the race, he’d have a great shot.  But I’m also thinking Pat is a 900 pound gorilla, figuratively speaking…

Is that Teh Andee Appelkowskie I see?   Why yes, it is!

Straight up 9 – Jeff Wiita, another Auditor candidate.  He makes a bit of hay with the fact that he’s a CPA.  His speech shows it; he talks like an accountant.  That’s not a bad thing, but it’s very much in contrast with Gilbert and Anderson.  On the other hand, he brought his daughter, who has the cutest delivery you’ve ever seen.

9:04 – And Pat Anderson rounds out the group.  She’s got the room pretty well organized, I think.  Good speech; I’ve heard it before, of course, but it’s a good one.

Talking with my BPOU chair Tom Lageson.  It’s the first time either of us can remember having all our primary delegates show up for a CD convention; we have all seven, plus probalby eight alternates.

9:12 – Marty Seifert and his wife are onstage now.  He’s hitting the right notes; “I’m the chief zookeeper; I’m looking for elephants, not RINOs”.    “We need to stop the influx of thousands and thousands of people who come here to take advantage of the welfare system”.    Bangs hard on the Minnesota Federation of Teachers, calling for spending cuts, shouts out for the military, and their defense of liberty.  “The second line of defense is you in this room”.  The small-l libertarian message is alive and well; the moderate Republican seems to be dead.   Good friggin’ riddance.

9:18 – Tammy Pust, candidate for Ramco Attorney, is asking to speak.  It’s a “non-partisan” race, but he’s believed to be a DFLer.    There’s about five minutes of speakers (myself included) on both sides of allowing her to speak.  She eventually won a vote to allow her a couple of minutes.  She notes that she’s the only DFL RCA candidate who’s not running for the DFL endorsement.  She’s speaking now; she’s stating a decent nonpartisan case, more or less; she notes that on the Roseville City Council, she was one of two that didnt’ vote for a tax increase.  I’ll give her points for cojones, walking into the lion’s den when it’s in high conservative dudgeon.

9:30 – David Schultz, another Ramco Attorney candidate addresses us.  Notes he’s a “very politically moderate Democrat”.   Notes he’s never run for office, and that Ramco Attorney isn’t a stepping stone for him.  Notes that he’s never been a party activist, and he hasn’t a chance of getting the DFL endorsement – but is asking for votes in primary and general anyway; notes he has “real legal experience”.

Some of the delegates are audibly upset we’re allowing non-GOPers to address the convention; they make a good point.  It’s an endorsing convention, not a campaign stop.   I hope CD4 revisits this at some point.

9:36 – Greg Wuersel, judge candidate, is on now.  He’s been out front on the issue of political judicial endorsements.  He’s a very entertaining speaker, with some great points about reforming the judiciary.  He’s speaking against the proposed amendment to bar endorsements; “tell them not just no, but hell no!”  Drew quite a round of applause.

9:41 – Tom Conlon, former St. Paul School Board member, now running for State Auditor again . Another great candidate; for many years he was the only elected Republican in the city of Saint Paul.    Really sharp guy, and he’s got great experience at winning quixotic quests; he’s running down his bona fides as a small-government warrior; the guy earned his stripes on the SPPS board.  In a race without Pat Anderson, he’d be a very strong candidate.  The GOP needs him to be in the game, somehow, somewhere.  Notes that Rebecca Otto, the DFL incumbent, is basically a wind-up chattering toy for the DFL; not a bad line to take in this room.  Also true.

9:46 – Bob Carvey – a “moderate progressive Republican” – addresses the group.  He’s running for governor.  Looks like a quaker minister.  I’m going to get some coffee.   So, it seems, is everyone else.  He’s bagging on unallotment.  Let’s just say this room won’t be carrying him to the governor’s mansion on their shoulders.  Says he’ll be running in the primary against whomever gets nominated.  His big platform item – bicycle skyways.   I repeat; enclosed, elevated bicycle (and Segway) skyways.

Oy.

9:52 – Tom Emmer is on stage now.  Seats are full again.  “It’s a good sign that Democrats are coming to GOP conventions to ask for votes!”  That draws a nice round of applause.  Introduces wife Jackie, “my best friend in this world”.  In two weeks, notes, we will be endorsing a candidate; notes we must all get behind that endorsee.  Huge round of applause.  Notes our party must be about perception of integrity.  Standing O.

9:57 – Andy Cilek of MN Voters Alliance gives update on Voter ID.   Tom Emmer still working the room – it’ll take him half an hour to get out of the place.

10:02 – Twila Brase from the Citizens Council on Healthcare speaking for the petition on infant DNA privacy.

10:06 – Bev Aplikowski notes that her novena got answered – her call for CD4 candidates was answered with seven candidates to run against Betty “Rubble” McCollum.  Field is down to probably three right now, and we’ll be deciding the endorsement today – but it’s a huge change in the Fourth.

10:12 – credentials report; it looks like almost all the primary delegates have shown up.  This is kinda big news, actually.

10:14 – Janet Beihoffer is looking for election judges.

10:20 – Dan Severson, SecState candidate, former Navy fighter pilot, and sitting House Minority Whip, is on now.   “If you don’t think SecState is important, i gotta name for you; Al Franken.  We elected a comedian; the joke is on MN!  MN didn’t elect Al Franken; Mark Ritchie did”.    Aggressive.  Good play in this room.   He presents a searing indictment of Mark Ritchie’s regime at  State.  He will be supporting voter ID.  Look for scabrous claims of “racisim” from the DFL long before any issues raised.

10:26 – Chair moves to push the gubernatorial straw poll up ahead of the Constitution Committee report.  Resounding approval.

10:29 – Michael Brodkorb, deputy chair, addresses the convention.   Notes that on May 1, all GOP candidates will leave unity breakfast as friends, all on same team.  This is a huge thing.

10:40 – My computer just in time for Leslie Davis’ speech.  I’m not kidding.

11:00 – We’ve spent the last 22 hours discussing some arcane point of CD4 central committee procedure as part of the Constitution Committee report.

11:04 – I’m told it’s only been 22 minutes.

11:09 – Finally calling the question for the Constitution Committee.  Maybe.  It was a report that was supposed to take three minutes.  Blah.

11;20 – Straw poll happening now.  Informal verbal poll of my tiny district (66B) – Emmer 5, Seifert 2.    Waiting for lunch.   I guess I’m not gonna get to vote for CD4 Rep endorsement.  Bummer.

11:28 – Tony Sutton, State GOP Chair, is onstage now.  “All districts are winnable…but it’s going to take work.  Can’t just watch Fox News and listen to Rush”.

11:35 – I had to take off to do the show.  Hopefully I’ll have results to pass along…