As a delegate, I was able to participate in the District 16 Republican convention in Stillwater this past Saturday.
Some of my thoughts on the players:
For U.S. SenateMark Kennedy: Currently the U.S. representative for the 6th congressional district. An absolute shoe-in for the seat being vacated by
Mark Dayton, who saw the handwriting on the wall and decided it was best not to give it the "old college try." Mr. Kennedy, who is pro life, pro troops, pro-marriage, and knows how to win campaigns, has been tight with the Bush white house. His unblemished record as Congressman, along with his unconditional support of the troops make him the hands down favorite. It would not be beyond the realm of possiblity to see Mr. Kennedy on the 2012 or 2016 presidential ticket.
Harold Shudlick: I had a chance to hear him speak at the convention. He is beyond a doubt a man of conscience, character, and integrity. A former army chaplain, educator, and Lutheran pastor, he is a conservative's conservative. His gift of oration is Reaganesque, and speaks of America in Reaganesque terms. He is a strong proponent of borders, language and culture. While being Reaganesque in vision, however, he has not made clear any "nuts and bolts" solutions in accomplishing that vision. Another thing, quite unfortunately, that Shudlick lacks is charisma. Had he been elected 20 years ago, there is no doubt in my mind that he would today be a revered statesman. But without an outgoing, magnetic personality, I am afraid that he cannot win. Shudlick did speak highly of Mark Kennedy, and stated that Mr. Kennedy is needed where he is, and that he felt that Kennedy's seat will be made vulnerable to democrat control by virtue of his senate run. Again, although I am sure that this man is the genuine article, and that he would make a fine senator, he lacks the outgoingness, assertiveness and persona to get elected. Which is an unfortunate reality nowadays.
For U.S. Congress, 6th DistrictJay EsmayNow here is the up and comer. A former special ops pilot, who commanded over 1500 aviators as the 16th Special Operations Group Chief of Standardization and Evaluation. Jay also served in highly-classified positions at the Joint Staff (JWAC) in D.C., and he earned 14 medals and awards for his military service,as well as the Senior Pilot and Parachutist Wings. Jay also has experience in business, being the Quality Control Manager, to the Production Manager, and is now the Director of Commercial Operations for Cold Spring Granite, which has over $65 million in annual revenues. He is also the Co-Chair for the SD 16 Republican Party, and was the head of the Bush Campaign in the St. Cloud area, which had the highest voter turnout for Bush per capita in the state. As a military man, Jay has a lot of nuts-and-bolts ideas for strengthening our military. He is pro life, is for a National Sales Tax (vs. income tax), and is for reining in the judiciary and for term limits. In all fairness, I should note that Jay is a personal friend of mine. And while I have not yet endorsed his candidacy, his record in both the military and in business leaves no doubt in my mind as to his fitness for the job.
Cheri Yecke:
Along with Jay Esmay, IMO, at this point the strongest two of the field of congressional candidates. The thing that impressed me about Mrs. Yecke the most was her push for immigration reform, and for reinforcing our borders, an area in which the current GOP leadership is sorely wanting. A no-holds barred firecracker, Yecke took a leadership role in scrapping the disastrous Profile of Learning in Minnesota schools. She comes from a military family, and one thing is for sure, she is not interested in winning popularity contests. But while that may be her strongest point, it may also, unfortunately, be her Achille's heel. The one liability that Yecke holds, IMO, is the DFL's (and
Education Minnesota's) successful attempt at character assassination in their bid to deny her confirmation as head of Minnesota's Department of Education. In that process, the DFL successfully (though unfairly) vilified her, and they were able to make that stick in a lot of Minnesotans' minds. If she can overcome that long stretch of bad press, she may indeed be a viable candidate.
Michelle Bachman:
Now I know that she is the
Fraters' and the NARN's favorite, but to tell you the truth, Michelle appeared one of the weaker candidates at the convention. She did speak of her work at the Minnesota legislature in terms of pushing for the Marriage Amendment, and that she would push for defense of marriage at a national level. One thing is for sure, Mrs. Bachman has ruffed the feathers of
some fairly prominent leftists, so she must be doing something right. One of my favorite lines from her speech was, to paraphrase, "I eat democrats for breakfast---and I have a voracious appetite!" Her squeaky clean demeanor and sunshiny personality, IMO, makes her June Cleaver on steroids.
Jim Knoblach:
By far one of the more disappointing at the convention. That's what I first thought. As I drove in to the Stillwater High School parking lot, I saw Bachman signs, Esmay signs, Yecke signs, and Krinke signs in abundance, but nowhere to be seen were any Knoblach signs. Had one not already known that he was running, it would have been an impossiblity to detect. My first thought was, "Does Jim really care about the seat--he really seems to be the last out of the starting blocks here!" When it came time for Jim to give his speech, however, all my questions were answered. "I could have put up a bunch of signs around here, but I did not do so for a reason. The reason is that as chair of the House Ways and Means committee, I have a first job and a duty to the Minnesota voters to get that done. Once my business in that capacity is finished, you can believe that I will work harder than anyone else to convince you that I am the best candidate for the job." You do have to admire Knoblach's dedication to his work. As chair of the Minnesota House Ways and Means committee, his crowning achievement was being the main architect of the budget that took Minnesota from a 4 billion dollar shortfall to nearly-balanced budget status, largely within a year, without raising taxes. I also know Mr. Knoblach personally, and know that he is a tireless worker at what he does. Along with keen business sense (he has owned and/or managed over 10 successful businesses) he is an astute accountant, and knows how to manage a budget.
And finally, the most polished presentation award goes to
Phil Krinke. Mr. Krinke had a lavishly pre-produced 3-4 minute, extremely entertaining video. Mr. Krinke presented himself as the "mover and shaker" of the Minnesota House, and said that he would continue that trend should he be elected to the U.S. House. While polished and spit shined, and while it was no doubt an enjoyable presentation, I personally would have been more impressed in a "from the heart" speech from Phil, without the glitz and glamour.
Regardless of who gets the nod, each of the candidates appears to share similar values, and each would bring strong representation to the State of Minnesota and the 6th Congressional District in particular.
But the most contentious GOP race in Minnesota, ironically, is not for a House or Senate seat at all, but for control of the State party itself. The heirs apparent and current leadership, consisting of Ron Ebensteiner and Eric Hoplin for State Chair and Deputy Chair (endorsed by Governor Pawlenty) are being seriously challenged by Bill Pulkrabek, running for Party Chair, and Tom Ellenbecker (from Waite Park) running for vice chair. In a scathing attack, Mr. Pulkrabek laid the loss of the 13 House seats directly at the feet of Ebensteiner. Mr. Pulkrabek also criticized Ebensteiner for attempting to run a "top-down" organization instead of a "bottom-up" organization. Pulkrabek pledged to run a "bottom up" organization, and to visit every BPOU to assess and meet their needs rather than dictate policy to them. I'll be following this very closely, as I am inclined to agree with Mr. Pulkrabek on many of his points.
I'll be blogging on the state and local races here on the Ice Palace as things progress. Being a delegate, I will also attempt to live blog from the State Convention floor.
