Congratulations, DFL

If last night’s results showed us anything, it’s that any little boy can grow up to outspend his opponent almost 3:1 with family and union money, and run an epochally sleazy campaign based on dodgy context and virtually no fact, with the aid of an in-the-bag media that won’t start asking the tough questions until January, and back into office by a fraction of a point (maybe) while insulting the intelligence of a little over half the electorate, and become governor just in time to sign on to an agenda that just got overwhelmingly repudiated nationwide.

For a term.

That’s one Renoir for every 3,000 votes’ worth of margin.

Congratulations, Governor Hatch.  Er, “Governor Dayton”.  Seriously.  Don’t change a thing.

17 thoughts on “Congratulations, DFL

  1. Here’s the question I want answered: who the hell is Yvonne Prettner Solon? It’s going to matter because there’s a better than even money chance that Brave Sir Mark isn’t going to be able to make it through the next four years.

  2. The more I think about this development, the more pleased I am with it. We’ll have Low Water Mark safely ensconced in the glass bubble, his goofiness on display to all, while both legislative chambers (sucks to you and your unicameral legislature, Jesse!) are on hand to see that he’s gently restrained and kept away from sharp objects. It’ll be a sustained educational experience for the electorate.

  3. It looks like even with a recount, Goofy Mark will still prevail. But hey, we have our own Nancy Pelosi/Barry Obama to rally the center-right around in defiance of.

  4. “gently restrained and kept away from sharp objects”
    Heh. Brave Sir Mark’s wit will not be a threat.

  5. Minnesotans once again displayed their own special brand of willful, gleeful ignorance as they cast their votes for Governor. “Watch how cool we are as we do something that makes absolutely no sense!”
    Three times makes a pattern. We can now officially claim the nickname of “The Laughingstock State”.

    We had a smart, good, honorable man who was a perfect fit for what the country and state needed and were asking for in these precarious times. He genuinely “got it”. Wanted to serve, help steer us away from the iceberg, and then get back to his other life. Ran a clean, issues-oriented campaign in the face of vicious personal attack ads from his opponent’s pit bull special-interest groups and shrugged off the snarky, biased articles in the mainstream media. Displayed an energy, a work-ethic, and a positivity that was a joy to behold. Liked people. Knew how to lead and encourage. Tom Emmer is the real deal.

    But instead, voters chose a strange, guilt-ridden, trust-fund elitist…a textbook 70’s radical leftist with an exceedingly thin resume of dubious productivity and veracity. A man who has been back again and again seeking affirmation for his existence via public office. He calls it “service” but what it really seems to be is a plea to be validated. One senses that he just can’t think of anything else to do.
    He doesn’t enjoy people. His campaign was carefully orchestrated to put him in contact with the regular folks as little as possible. No free-wheeling give-and-take for Mark. There was a gray robotic dreariness to his message…and its delivery. And, now, it seems we may get to experience this rather pathetic man for 4 long, wasted years.

  6. D , U , M , B

    that spells Dayton

    …. …. …. …. ….

    BTW, I’m always a bit cautious when the Repubs control both houses and the executive… and downright fearful when the Dems control leg and exec.

  7. Mr. D: For as loopy as Dayton is, Yvonne Prettner-Solon was a very shrewd choice by him. Solon is an old political dynasty/family up in Duluth – the Kennedys of the Iron Range. He won the primary because she gave him St Louis county. He also took St Louis county for the general election because of her. If Big MAK had won the primary, she’d have conceded last night.

    As to Ms P-S’s bona-fides, constitution and wherewithall? Who (outside of Duluth) the hell knows?

  8. Mitch,
    I tip my cap. You were a lot closer than I was to getting this right.

    While it is somewhat unbelievable that MNGOP won the house and the senate and beat Oberster and couldn’t win the governor against Mark frickin Dayton, another day.

    Kudos

  9. Given the other results in MN, I, from my perch in a Pacific island paradise, I can’t help but think that Horner cost Emmer the election. Given the tsunami nature of the election in MN Emmer could have tacked a point or two to port and picked up 10k Horner votes without losing any GOP votes to Dayton or stay-at-homes. Live and learn.
    In my state Abercrombie (D) won the governorship over Aiona (R) by 17 points, which means I am on track to work until I am 70 so public employee union members can retire at 55.

  10. You know, I’m not much for TV or radio, but tuning in on my commute yesterday, it was impressive how much dough Dayton and the DFL were blowing on him…..and depressive to think that a plurality of Minnesotans may have fallen for it.

    And what was the deal with tens of thousands of votes bouncing around in Hennepin County? Hmmm…..if only we had state offices devoted to maintaining fair elections…..

    That said, kudos to Mr. Emmer for running honestly, and not “tacking to the left” and prostituting himself (lying) for votes.

  11. Bubba: Richie overcounted Hennepin county. Something like 886K votes counted for 702K or 706K registered voters…something along those lines. When they got their shit together and counted accurately, it cut Dayton’s lead in half. I’m not holding my breath for this news to get any farther than the NARN, Sue Jeffers’ show on KTLK Saturday afternoon and MNGOP.com

    Joan Growe and Mary Kiffmeier gave us a national reputation for clean, fair, accurate elections. Mark Ritchie turned us into a cold, dark Florida.

  12. Well, you need to revise his Title/Name.

    … Governor Dayton, who some claim bought the election by spending three times as much as his opponent, was …

    Use some form of it every time (once per story)

    Feel free to do the same for our President, and maybe add the foreign funding.

  13. Something like 886K votes counted for 702K or 706K registered voters…something along those lines. When they got their shit together and counted accurately, it cut Dayton’s lead in half.

    So there was a problem, and it was fixed.

    What a terrible job they did.

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