Tuesday, January 24, 2017

Time to go, Governor

Mark Dayton collapsed last evening as he was delivering his State of the State speech:


I don't like Mark Dayton the politician, but no one wants to see this happen. I hope he recovers from whatever illness he is fighting, but he needs to do so as a private citizen. This is going to be a contentious session and I don't think the governor is up to the task he faces. A lot of potential DFL candidates would grumble if he resigns, because it would give Lt. Governor Tina Flint Smith a big leg up in the 2018 campaign, but that shouldn't matter.

9 comments:

3john2 said...

A leg up is how I would start with the DFL - if I were a dog.

Bike Bubba said...

So is your prediction on when he'll resign (SITD) coming up? :^)

Seriously, agreed, and if the Dayton administration has been hiding nasty health information for a while, they need to come clean on this as well. Something like "I'm sorry, but for the past x months, I've been trying to pretend I was healthy enough for this job, and I'm not. I'm resigning today with an apology that Minnesotans have not had the on-task governor they deserve."

jerrye92002 said...

Shouldn't the very idea of a Governor Tina send shivers down every sensible spine? Or are we imagining that her looney-left and totally unsympathetic style will make it EASIER for Republicans to do good work?

Mr. D said...

So is your prediction on when he'll resign (SITD) coming up? :^)

I had it for Feb 2, 2016, so no. Funny thing was, he had a health scare back then, too, as I recall.

Shouldn't the very idea of a Governor Tina send shivers down every sensible spine? Or are we imagining that her looney-left and totally unsympathetic style will make it EASIER for Republicans to do good work?

Don’t get me wrong — I don’t want a Governor Flint Smith. Having said that, though, I also don’t want to see Dayton keel over at his desk. It’s not as though we have a lot of good options at the moment.

Bike Bubba said...

I actually heard a little of his talk on WCCO--before the head-bang apparently--and noted that he really, really sounded dopey. Dunno if its worse than usual, but it was bad enough that I thought "how on earth did he get elected to anything?"

I don't particularly want a Governor Flint-Smith, but given that there are a number of things the Governor does which aren't terribly political, I'd be willing to deal with her radical nature if it's needed to have someone who isn't incapacitated. This is especially the case when I consider that Dayton probably shares most of Flint-Smith's radicalism, at least privately.

Bike Bubba said...

He's saying "prostate cancer". Not quite believing that's the problem...a problem of his, sure, but not THE problem.....

jerrye92002 said...

He says he is healthy enough and plans to serve out his term. And prostate cancer isn't something that kills you quickly even left unchecked (usually). But I think urging the guy to avoid stress and not fight with the Legislature would show compassion AND serve the public good, yes?

Mr. D said...

It's a good plan, Jerry, but there is no chance he would take such good advice.

jerrye92002 said...

I'm just saying that the Republicans have the opportunity to be the "good guys" here and still do what is right for the taxpayers.