Remember when Minnesota was known for Hubert Humphrey and Walter Mondale?

[alp227]

Dear Minnesotan DUers, I'm sorry that your state is known now for two Republican wackaloons, former governor Tim Pawlenty and US Representative Michele Bachmann. Doesn't that make you reminisce for the days when Hubert Humphrey and Walter Mondale served together in the US Senate for Minnesota? And they both became Vice Presidents (Humphrey under Lyndon Johnson, Mondale under Jimmy Carter). And both unsuccessful presidential candidates (Humphrey 1968, Mondale 1984). Doesn't it seem scary how the first Minnesotan President of the US could possibly be Pawlenty or Bachmann? (There has never been a President who was born in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.) And yes I know about Senator Al Franken, the former Saturday Night Live actor and Air America Radio commentator, but not much is being discussed about him at the moment, neither about his fellow senator Amy Klobuchar. When was the last time a Minnesota sports team won a championship? Hmm. Never for the Wild or Timberwolves, the Twins in 1987 and 1991, the Vikings after 1969...damn the state's reputation has been ruined (in the eyes of sensible people re Pawlenty/Bachmann, and also by the government shutdown).

Mondale recently wrote an autobiography, The Good Fight: A Life in Liberal Politics. I will read it soon.

[Gidney N Cloyd]

1. Not to mention Paul Wellstone.

But yeah, point taken about the much more sensible old guard.

[laylah]

2. I was a "wee" one...My parents

LOVED him. Thank you for the reminder...those days of old. :cry:

[elocs]

3. How about when Wisconsin was known for Russ Feingold, Gaylord Nelson, and Bill Proxmire? n/t

[myrna minx]

4. Unrec.Mercifully you're speaking for yourself. Minnesota, while we're still brushing off some battle

wounds, we're still going strong. We are still the state of Wellstone, Humphry, McCarthy, Mondale, Sabo, Dayton and now Franken, Ellison and McCollum.

I don't have any idea why you're trashing my wonderful state, but you're greatly mistaken if you think Minnesota is now tarnished by crazy eyes Bachmann and "I'm sorry...and your name is..." Pawlenty and because Dayton stood stood firm as long as he could against the repubs during the government shutdown. Minnesotans stand on the shoulders of giants. It takes more than a forgettable so and so and a religious nutter to take us down. At least to us. I'm sorry you feel such contempt for us, the employment of Al Franken on SNL and for some reason our sports teams too. :shrug:

[alp227]

12. I wanted to DEFEND Minnesota not trash it.

It's just that the Dynamic Duo of crazy Republicans is the center of attention now...and I thought that many will think about them whenever they think about Minnesota. But I know better. I guess I was misguided.

[myrna minx]

5. So you have nothing to say to my rebuttal, even though you've claimed my

state's reputation has been ruined in the "eyes of sensible people"? We had a bridge collapse and our own citizens perish as a result. I think we know how to pick up the emotional pieces even if we know the Vikes will always blow it in the playoffs. :shrug:

[Brickbat]

6. Oh, shut it.

[myrna minx]

7. This still has a "rec" and it's disgusting.

:grr:

[Brickbat]

9. Fixed!

I had forgotten to unrec. :)

[myrna minx]

10. Thanks comrade. We can link arms and celebrate our Minnesotan "ruined" reputations together.

:D

[Brickbat]

14. How will we ever carry on?

:P

[myrna minx]

22. Will someone stop the ruinous sullied reputation nightmare that is Minnesota?!?

:rofl: Oh the humanity!

The OP's profile states that they're from California - wow, as if that's the baseline state to shame us - with our two public crazies.

[jwirr]

8. It doesn't matter - no matter what you say I will not vote for her!!

:cry:

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

11. Ruined? Hardly.

Every state has its share of crackpots. Bachmann and Pawlenty are ours, this time. But Pawlenty is effectively finished, and I'd be willing to bet that Bachmann has peaked.

Why didn't you mention my Congressman, Keith Ellison, who represents Minnesota's 5th district and is one of the most progressive members of Congress? Or our current governor, Mark Dayton, who is a former senator and a solid liberal? Plenty of other states have elected dingbats like Bachmann and Pawlenty without balancing them with any liberals at all.

I believe you have impugned the honor of my state, and I want you to take it back.

[alp227]

13. In the view of current events Bachmann/Pawlenty are the most popular Minnesotans right now

that's the viewpoint i was speaking from.

[Brickbat]

15. Stupid national people paying attention to other stupid people.

Don't treat it like a trend and it won't become one.

[alp227]

23. I respect your opinion, but do realize that B&P are both appearing on the same Sunday show tmrw

ABC's This Week...gotta be a reason why ABC would book two politicians from the same state. (I've followed the Sunday shows for the past 3 or so years and have yet to see Al Franken, Amy Klobuchar, Keith Ellison, etc. on the same program.)

[Brickbat]

29. Franken, Klobuchar and Ellison aren't running for president. Bachmann and Pawlenty (at least, when

they booked him) are. That might be it.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

16. Popular in the eyes of a small number of lunatics in Iowa.

Neither is especially popular here. Bachmann got re-elected because her district has been weirdly gerrymandered so as to include pockets of wingnuts, weirdos and fundies; Stearns County, part of her district, is almost as famous for inbreeding as the Ozarks. Timmy "The Tool" Pawlenty managed to turn Minnesota into a cold Alabama by defunding just about everything, notably education, infrastructure (remember that freeway bridge?) and medical assistance for the poor. As a result he is now about as beloved as a case of hemorrhoids.

They may be the most famous Minnesotans for the time being, until their stars fade. Popular? Not so much.

[Brickbat]

17. Well said.

[myrna minx]

20. Hi Velveteen. Of course you would do our fine state justice!

:hi: I hope you're well.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

28. Hi there!

:hi:

[PufPuf23]

18. Eugene McCarthy was a Minnosotan as well nt.

[Hart2008]

25. Eugene McCarthy's Heir: Who Has The Courage To Challenge Obama In The Party?

Minnesota Senator Eugene McCarthy stood up against LBJ and his war in Vietnam. In my humble opinion, he was greater than either Mondale or HHH in terms of his impact on history.

Eugene McCarthy's Heir: Who Has The Courage To Challenge Obama In The Party?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=433x739102

:patriot::toast::patriot::toast::patriot::toast::patriot::toast::patriot::toast::patriot:

:kick::kick::kick::kick::kick::kick::kick::kick::kick:

[RFKHumphreyObama]

27. He also moved significantly to the right after his primary loss, endorsed Reagan

and ended up pandering to right wing anti-immigration advocacy groups during the last few decades of his life. A great progressive voice indeed:sarcasm:

[Hart2008]

33. Bullshit! The PARTY moved right, but he refused to move right with Carter!

Eugene McCarthy was always to the left of Carter, particularly on the issue of unemployment and workers rights. Back when the Democratic party stood for workers rights, McCarthy chaired the special committee on unemployment in the Senate. Had Carter embraced Keynesian economics, he could have solved the unemployment problems which ultimately cost him his reelection. Restricting immigration is one method of reducing unemployment in troubled times. It is not "pandering to right wingers", especially if that immigration is in fact illegal. Obama could learn something from Carter's neoliberal employment failures, but he is still granting visas so foreign kids can come here and work at McDonald's and the summer resorts that my friends and I did in our youth.

Eugene McCarthy had a distinguished career. When Joe McCarthy was at his peak with his communist witch hunt, Eugene McCarthy debated him on national television. He was an early critic of LBJ in Vietnam, before the Tet offensive, and McCarthy ended LBJ's presidency before he could embarrass the party in the '68 elections. He didn't see enough of a difference between Reagan and Carter, and he had a feud with Carter. Much of politics is personal. McCarthy's endorsement did not result in Reagan beating Carter. (Even had Anderson's 6% gone to Carter, he still would have lost.) Had the party not nominated Mondale in '84, Reagan probably loses. His son has confirmed that Reagan was slowly going senile in office. Gary Hart had led Reagan in the polls in '84, while Mondale NEVER did. Hart wouldn't have pulled his punches like Mondale did at that debate in Louisville when Reagan was clearly mentally muddled. Without a second term, Reagan's mythical legacy would nothing. We can thank Mondale for that!

[dflprincess]

19. Floyd B. Olson

One of my all time heroes.

Some highlights for those not familiar with him

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floyd_B._Olson

Floyd Bjørnstjerne Olson (November 13, 1891– August 22, 1936) was an American politician. He served as the 22nd Governor of Minnesota from January 6, 1931 to August 22, 1936. He died in office from stomach cancer. He was a member of the Minnesota Farmer-Labor Party, and was the first member of the Farmer-Labor Party to win the office of governor in Minnesota. He is consistently considered one of the greatest governors in Minnesota history and one of the most influential American politicians of his era....

...As Hennepin County Attorney, Olson quickly earned a name for himself as a stern prosecutor who relished going after crooked businessmen. He took on the Ku Klux Klan in a well publicized case that brought both respect and death threats and was re-elected to the position in 1922 and 1926.

In 1923, Olson brought a case against the leaders of the Minnesota Citizens Alliance, a conservative business organization dedicated to preserving right-to-work laws, after they hired a hitman to dynamite the home of a union leader. Olson's vigorous pursuit of the Citizens Alliance made him a hero to the local labor movement, which encouraged him to run for the Minnesota Farmer-Labor Party's gubernatorial nomination.

At the time Olson assumed his office, Minnesota's legislature was officially nonpartisan, but was, in reality, dominated by conservative Republicans who opposed most of what Olson stood for.

Nevertheless, Olson soon proved himself skilled at the art of politics and he managed to fulfill the vast majority of his campaign promises. During his three terms as governor, Olson proposed, and the legislature passed, bills that instituted a progressive income tax, created a social security program for the elderly, expanded the state's environmental conservation programs, guaranteed equal pay for women and the right to collective bargaining, and instituted a minimum wage and a system of unemployment insurance...

...In its April 24, 1933, issue, Time magazine quoted Olson speaking from the steps of the state capitol:

"I am making a last appeal to the Legislature. If the Senate does not make provision for the sufferers in the State and the Federal Government refuses to aid, I shall invoke the powers I hold and shall declare martial law. ... A lot of people who are now fighting measures because they happen to possess considerable wealth will be brought in by provost guard and be obliged to give up more than they would now. There is not going to be misery in this State if I can humanly prevent it. . . Unless the Federal and State governments act to insure against recurrence of the present situation, I hope the present system of government goes right down to hell."

This is the kind of politician we need today.

[Morning Dew]

24. Oh YEAH! Floyd B. Olson

“I am not a liberal. I am what I want to be — a radical.”
—Floyd B. Olson to the 1934 Farmer-Labor party convention

They don't grow 'em like him anymore.

I smile every time I pass the statue on 55 - which is, of course, the Olson Memorial Highway.

[Odin2005]

32. There is a great painting of him in the state capitol.

[Odin2005]

31. He is one of my political heros.

I have always loved this quote:

"I hope the present system of government goes right down to hell."

[Odin2005]

21. I am a Minnesotan and Bachmann and Pawlenty are an embarassment to us.

[kickysnana]

26. +1

[csziggy]

30. Whatever Became of Hubert?

Tom Lehrer
http://youtu.be/ld7VVBztuVM