Minnesota Profiles in Courage & Ego

Ron Erhardt and Jesse Ventura. Which of these politicians is trying to do the right thing?

Erhardt is a victim of party discipline. A Republican, he voted with the DFL in the Minnesota House to overturn Gov. Pawlenty’s veto of the transportation bill. Erhardt, a nine-termer representing Edina, was stripped of committee leadership and denied Republican endorsement because he — horrors — thinks for himself and does what he sees is best for his constituents and the state. So he clearly is out of step with the pusillanimous Republicans. Asking citizens to pay for the common services and infrastructure we share is clearly a dangerous, subversive, commie concept to the GOP.

Erhardt, who says his constituents, a majority of whom have gone for John Kerry, Amy Klobuchar and Tim Pawlenty in the past, are “fed up with the right-wing junk that the Republicans have been pushing for years.”

You go, guy. Erhardt’s going to run for re-election as an independent and says he’ll probably caucus with the Dems. As someone who lived in Edina once (after mocking it for years from South Minneapolis), I wish I still lived there so I could vote for Ron. We should reward independent thinking. And courage.

And then there’s Jesse. He’ll deign to inform his subjects via the celebrity megaphone of the Larry King show on Monday whether he’ll swagger into the Minnesota U.S. Senate race.

Jesse is the definition of “cocky” in all its meanings. The dictionary says “overly self-assertive or self-confident.” Jesse’s twitching pulsing arrogance says tower of misguided testosterone. I smoked Jesse’s dope when he ran for governor, had fun voting for him. Never again. Jesse’s all about Jesse.

“People want someone to shake up Washington,” he was quoted as saying in the Strib (he doesn’t lower himself to talk to local reporters, which tells you about his commitment to openness and accountability). “I keep asking myself, if not me, then who?” People who feel they are the answer scare the crap outta me. (Notice how Obama in his whole campaign has talked about what we can do, while Clinton said “I” “I” “I”?)

Washington needs shaking up. Hell, Minnesota and its voters need shaking up. But the right person to do it is someone who can see beyond his own chest. Or other parts.

–Bruce Benidt