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Monday, September 11, 2006
I'm not voting for Keith Ellison
The 5th district primary is tomorrow and as a DFL party stalwart I am expected to vote for the endorsed candidate. But I just can't bring myself to do it, for a couple reasons. One is the fact that outside Madison and San Francisco the 5th must be one of the safest Democratic districts in the country. Whoever gets the DFL nomination will likely be a member of congress for the next couple decades if they so choose. Forgive me if I think that call should be made by more than 250 not necessarily representative people who show up for a couple long Saturday afternoons. Don't get me wrong, I like the caucus system and have logged my fair share of hours attending them at all levels. But I don't think the endorsement is the be all and end all of the process, especially in such a safe district. And come on, it's not like the party has a great track record with its picks. If Mark Dayton hadn't bucked the endorsement process 6 years ago we'd be running against a Republican incumbent rather than defending an open seat. And don't get me started on how we could be looking forward to Judy Dutcher's reelection this November.
But the other reason is the endorsed candidate himself. I just can't bring myself to support Keith Ellison. Some people I really respect in the party think he's great, but he gives me a very bad feeling. Now I will admit to being intrigued at the prospect of sending an African American Muslim to congress, but couldn't we find one without the Nation of Islam baggage? And while on one level the Muslim angle is interesting, long term 3WN readers will know that strong religious affiliation of any sort is not generally a plus in my book. And then there is the whole traffic ticket/campaign finance reporting/federal taxes problem. None of those by themselves is a deal breaker (tho not paying your federal taxes is pretty hard to overlook) but together they start to paint a not very flattering picture. I think it is too much to say "Ellison doesn't think the laws apply to him" as some would do but I do think it illustrates a fairly casual attitude to the law that is unbecoming in a lawyer and dangerous in a congressman. It makes one ask, "Is this the kind of guy who is going to end up with $90,000 cash in his freezer at some point, or get caught taking inappropriate gifts from some disgraced lobbyist?" I don't NECESSARILY think Ellison is that kind of guy, but with three other candidates that would cast the very same congressional votes 99% of the time why take the chance? Democrats get hammered enough by the right, let's not make their job easier but sending them someone who is not squeaky clean. And I can just see the ads the first time there is a major vote on a tax bill--"Keith Ellison doesn't like to pay his own taxes, but now he wants to raise yours. Call Keith Ellison and tell him that's just not right." A fair ad? Maybe not, but that doesn't mean it won't work.
The comments of a friend of mine also weigh on my decision. My friend, who knows Ellison professionally, was a bit dismayed upon hearing of the endorsement, telling me he was nothing but a "self aggrandizing poser." I've never met Ellison personally so I feel a little apprehensive presenting hearsay about him but it is from a source who has been pretty sharp about things in the past (and I've since spoken to others who have come away from personal meetings with Ellison feeling similarly) so I'm willing to put some stock in it. (I don't expect anyone else reading this to take my word for it, tho. After all, these are simply MY reasons for voting the way I will.)
Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe Ellison's a great guy who will make a great congressman. If he wins I hope that is true and I will be happy to support him in the future. But for now he seems like too much of a risk and I think we can do better. I have no doubt that the other three candidates in the race differ very little from Ellison politically. The one I am most familiar with is Mike Erlandson and he will be getting my vote tomorrow. I met him a number of times during his stint as state party chair and found him to be very bright, and as Sabo's chief of staff, incredibly well versed in the issues. As such I feel he will be a very effective representative in Washington, with the background and connections to make a quicker and bigger impact than any of the other candidates. Erlandson is likable without being a glad-hander, wonkish without being TOO much of a nerd. And as a dedicated environmentalist myself any candidate who is willing to have a press conference solely to promote his stand on global warming is OK in my book. (Yes, I know Ellison got the Sierra Club endorsement, while Erlandson got the League of Conservation Voters endorsement. Like I said, I don't think there is much distance between the candidates on issue.) Note: my opinion of Erlandson has also been positively influenced by CP's excellent debate coverage over at Minvolved.
3 Comments:
Ditto, Jambo! Except for actually having met Erlandson. I have not, but that's probably a good thing because as far as politicians go, he's a bit of a hottie and I would probably do something embarassing.
By 
ben. for reals., at
10:11 AM
As noted in another comment, I agree with you. No, I didn't vote for Mike, I'm in the 3d, not the 5th. I did vote for Mike Hatch, however.
Anyway, what are you going to do now? Hold your nose and vote for the lesser of two evils? Wouldn't it be nice if Erlandson would run as an independent? I would bet anybody dollars to doughnuts that moderates throughout the district would vote for him, and that he would win hands down. I'd even consider moving back into 5 to cast that vote.
By 
, at
10:22 AM
I guess I'm inclined to at least give Ellison a chance. I would like to meet him sometime before the election since I have heard from a number of people who find him to be kind of the used car salesman type of politician which I hate. Not that I'm such a great judge that I can figure someone out in a brief meeting but I'd at least like to get a sense of the guy. If my worst fears are confirmed I'm not sure what I would do. If he comes across OK I'll figure 2 years is not that long and give him the chance to win me over.
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