Walz for U.S. Senate?
Tim laughs it off
by Leigh Pomeroy
"Yeah, a reporter asked me that the other day," Tim Walz told me at a gathering of State DFLers at the Holiday Inn in Mankato Saturday night. He chuckled. "Heck, I've just finished almost two years campaigning. You think I want to go through that again?" He meant, of course, campaigning as a challenger against an incumbent Republican for a seat in Congress.
He smiled. "I haven't even started the job they elected me to do, and now they want me to run for another one. No way. I'm committed to doing this job first."
The problem with politics is that too many observers of the process, particularly the news media, concentrate on the personalities and the competitive factor. Political writers are probably just frustrated sports reporters. They could care less about the governance issue; what they care about is who wins, who loses, and why.
I know Tim well enough to understand that when he says he never planned on becoming a congressman he's telling the truth. The fact that he's heading off to Washington is undoubtedly as surprising to him as it is to Mr. Gutknecht, whom he defeated, as well as many others who said it couldn't be done. Running and winning for him is not the end but the means. As I've written before, he is idealistic, even naive, enough to believe in the true principles on which this country was founded. In short, you serve for the betterment of the people, not your political career.
Which is why this talk about Tim running for Senate is a wholly made-up game advanced by people who really are frustrated sports fans. Give it up, folks. Why not use your energies toward making this country and this world a better place to live. That's what Tim's going to be doing over the next few years. And if you really want to support him, that's what you should be doing too.
by Leigh Pomeroy
"Yeah, a reporter asked me that the other day," Tim Walz told me at a gathering of State DFLers at the Holiday Inn in Mankato Saturday night. He chuckled. "Heck, I've just finished almost two years campaigning. You think I want to go through that again?" He meant, of course, campaigning as a challenger against an incumbent Republican for a seat in Congress.
He smiled. "I haven't even started the job they elected me to do, and now they want me to run for another one. No way. I'm committed to doing this job first."
The problem with politics is that too many observers of the process, particularly the news media, concentrate on the personalities and the competitive factor. Political writers are probably just frustrated sports reporters. They could care less about the governance issue; what they care about is who wins, who loses, and why.
I know Tim well enough to understand that when he says he never planned on becoming a congressman he's telling the truth. The fact that he's heading off to Washington is undoubtedly as surprising to him as it is to Mr. Gutknecht, whom he defeated, as well as many others who said it couldn't be done. Running and winning for him is not the end but the means. As I've written before, he is idealistic, even naive, enough to believe in the true principles on which this country was founded. In short, you serve for the betterment of the people, not your political career.
Which is why this talk about Tim running for Senate is a wholly made-up game advanced by people who really are frustrated sports fans. Give it up, folks. Why not use your energies toward making this country and this world a better place to live. That's what Tim's going to be doing over the next few years. And if you really want to support him, that's what you should be doing too.
Powered by Blogger
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home