It's good to be back!

Sometimes life interferes with what we enjoy doing; which unfortunately has been my case for the past year plus. My goal is to be more active with my blogging, or as my friends on the left and right like to say my ranting, moving forward.

Check back and see what I have to say, I mean rant about.

Give me some time and I will see what I can do about this awful layout and color scheme.

The Current and Future...

As promised…

Several weeks ago I indicated that I would post my opinions of the position of the Independence Party and how the campaigns were run.

Filed under “If I knew than what I know now”
I was a delegate at the Independence Party State Convention way back in June..
I should have supported Jim Haviland for US Senate rather than Robert Fitzgerald and I think the party would have been better off if more people would have done so. That is not to say that I think Jim Haviland would have been a better candidate rather it would have freed up Robert to run for different office.
I never thought even in my wildest dreams that Robert Fitzgerald would have even the slightest chance of winning in this election. I think several things were working against him, okay 25 Million things were working against him, but other problems also were against him; Age Experience and okay Money. If Robert would have been say a State Senator than suddenly rather than say 3% he could have drawn 11% or better; it’s all about developing the party’s future.

Filed under “I just wish he was more likeable”
I think the Minneapolis Star Tribune Endorsement of Mike Hatch summed it up best. “But winning the office and succeeding once there require an ability to sell ideas, build broad support, assemble allies in the Legislature and mobilize voters -- all things that Hutchinson and the weak IP have thus far failed to do.”
I honestly believe that Tim Penny and Peter Hutchinson are two of the most intelligent men I have ever met when it comes to Governmental Financing, however neither was most personable people, not that they didn’t try mind you.
Looking forward to the future if I had to choose a Lt. Governor Candidate either one would be great choice, as long as you can find a very personable Governor Candidate.

To be Continued

Election Coverage

You know it is bad coverage when *I* decide to watch a repeat of poker on ESPN instead of election news.

ABC - Where did they find these people?
CBS - Kouric wasn't too bad but everyone she talked to seemed to want to be somewhere else.
CNN - Interesting Graphics, but way too many people were talking and no one seemed to be "in charge".
FOX - I guess it was just a really bad day to be a republician, or republician supporter.
NBC - Did they have election coverage? On a local side they weren't too bad, except showing all of Senator Elect Klobuchar speech.

Predictions for Tonight.

Okay Jeff's Predicitions

Governor
Pawlentey - 43%
Hatch - 42%
Hutchinson - 14%
Other - 1%

Senate
Klobachar - 51%
Kennedy - 40 %
Fitzgerald - 8%
Other - 1%

US House 1
Gutknecht defeats
Walz

US House 2
Kline defeats
Rowley

US House 3
Ramstad defeats
Wilde

US House 4
McCollumn defeats
Sium

US House 5
Ellison - 41%
Lee - 35%
Fine - 22%
Other - 2%

US House 6
Wetterling - 46%
Bachmann - 46%
Binkowski - 8%

US House 7
Peterson defeats
Barrett

US House 8
Oberstar defeats
Grams

Exclusion of Robert Fitzgerald from the MNN/MFN US Senate Candidate Debate.

I have been informed that the Minnesota News Network / Minnesota Farm Network has decided to exclude Independence Party Candidate Robert Fitzgerald from thier US Senate Candidate debate on November 2 in Rochester.

One must wonder where such exclusionary and arbitrary practices are supposed to accomplish. Democracy is built upon the foundation that the voters are given the opportunity to make the best choice in their personal opinion. Suppressing the opinions of any candidate diminishes democracy suppressing the opinions and views of a Major Party Candidate are unheard of, unless you believe the rhetoric put forth by some in the other Major parties.

Three weeks ago, they set an arbitrary 10% polling threshold as a requirement for inclusion and all of our appeals have failed. This is despite the following facts/conventional precedents:

· On 9/1/06, Robert’s opponents Amy Klobuchar and Mark Kennedy conceded that Robert should be included in all debates.

· The threshold for major party status is 5% of the vote in a statewide race.

· Most other media outlets use either a 5% polling threshold or a major party status standard. Robert has met both of these (the only exceptions are Minnesota Public Radio which only uses major party status and Debate Minnesota which only uses a 5% polling threshold both included Robert).

· Robert has easily exceeded the 5% threshold in numerous polls reaching a high of 9% despite marginal media coverage.

· The Independence Party of Minnesota has maintained Major Party Status since 1994 and is on solid ground to continue that through 2008 at the very least.

Jeff

Back Sort Of...

It’s been a tough summer in the Johnson Household. Three separate major medical emergencies have hit home, involving my wife, my mother and myself. It surprising where time goes when not so great things are happening in your personal life.

While I am not going to have the time to make this blog extremely active over the next couple of weeks, I am going to post some of my views.

Jeff

S much to do so little time

I'll get some more posts up later this week. With work and my other job I been really busy.

I have some interesting thoughts on the CD5

Jeff

MySpace

Below are the links to Robert's, Tammy's, and John's myspace web-pages:

Robert:
http://www.myspace.com/votefitzgerald

Tammy:
http://www.myspace.com/tammyleeforcongress

John:
http://www.myspace.com/johnforcongress

An Inpendence Party Group:
http://groups.myspace.com/IndepencePartyofMinnesota

Stephen Williams's decision to run in the primary election.

I spent several evening attempting to confirm that Stephen Williams had decided to run in the September Primary. Unfortunately I must rely on a news report which says he is.

At the IP State Convention Stephen only mustered 14 votes on the first ballot out of 250 plus votes, which is about 5%. So I must say I am perplexed by Stephen’s choice, I doubt he can get too many more votes in the Primary than he got in the State Convention. His chance is probably so small that Robert Fitzgerald will completely ignore him and concentrate on the General Election.

This is a completely different case than Ford Bell’s decision to run against Klobuchar in the Primary for the DFL nod. Ford decided he could not muster the votes at the state convention to win the nomination and rather than creating in-fighting and dissention at the DFL state convention by not attending.
Ford Bell has raised between three quarters of a million and one million Dollars to support his candidacy. This is a substantial amount to which he can use the entire amount before the Primary which can not be done by Klobuchar. She must plan on the big fight before the federal election.

So little time; so many great ideas

Whenever you make a create a new web-site, blog, or make dramatic changes to one that already exists you have so many good ideas; however you also have so little time.

Should I write about Stephen Williams decision to run in the Primary against the endorsed candidate Robert Fitzgerald in comparison to Ford Bell decision to run in the DFL primary against Amy Klobuchar?
Or maybe I should write on Governor Plawenty’s proposal for free tuition for the top Minnesota High School students? Or comment on the bumper sticker “Why do so many suffer in the land of Pawlenty?”
Or how about Ron Carey’s latest attack against Hatch and Hutchinson, I mean what suddenly changed the MN GOP chairman plan he actually acknowledged Peter Hutchinson as a candidate.
Or maybe I should write about realistic expectations in the upcoming November elections. Or maybe I should blog about how about the Disenfranchisement of Minnesota or transportation problems in Minnesota, or political news coverage or maybe the price of gas, how to get young people involved in political process, or the two man governor’s race, Give Five, or is it better to have one great candidate or man average candidates.

Let me know what you are interested in reading about.