Photo by Jeff Skrenes, blog post by John HoffIf history is any guide, Republican or third party candidates won't be able to make any serious challenge in Minnesota State Senate District 58. So it seems better to endorse State Senator Linda Higgins when it matters, right before Tuesday's caucus, rather than waiting for November.
Linda Higgins has been an outstanding state senator, whose long service has given her valuable seniority which--as informed voters know--is a key to getting stuff done in the legislature. She is energetic and involved in the nitty gritty day-to-day happenings in her district, always showing up at the events which matter where stuff gets discussed and decided. I could stop right there but, well, regular readers know I won't.
Linda's challenger, Raymond Dehn, is (for lack of a better word) a non-entity. When Dehn announced he was running against Higgins, this was the first time I'd heard of him. And I like to think I'm pretty informed.
Instead of real issues, Dehn has slogans like...
"The solutions of the past are not going to solve the problems of our future."
Who said this first? Well, it was Raymond Dehn himself. Only one problem with the saying: it's not even remotely true. There are all kinds of solutions that work over and over, past and present and future. Boiled right down to its essence, the saying seems to mean "Try something new for the heck of it, vote for Raymond Dehn even though there's REALLY NOTHING WRONG WITH LINDA HIGGINS." I can't help be reminded of Kenya McKnight's "Why not?" slogan.
And, actually, Raymond Dehn has a little too much in common with Kenya McKnight for my taste. Dehn was the subject of a positive article in Insight News, just like Kenya McKnight, Lennie Chism and Natalie Johnson Lee. This really tells me all I need to know about Raymond Dehn. The Hillside Chronicles blog was also not impressed with Dehn, click here.
At the recent debate with Higgins, Dehn made a point of mentioning his youthful mistakes which caused him to be incarcerated and receive addiction treatment, including a stay at a "halfway house." He talked about how there are crimes which, thirty years ago, weren't even crimes. Well, I think that makes perfect sense since THIRTY YEARS AGO OUR STREETS WERE NOT AWASH IN CRACK COCAINE. Dehn sounds like an ultra-liberal thug-hugger who wants to forgive, forget, and let the criminals out of jail to re-occupy our streets because, oh gee, their lives are so hard and society has been so unfair. There, but for the grace of God and addiction treatment, goes Dehn himself. (I'd like to point out drug/alcohol treatment is a fine example of a "solution of the past" which just keeps working, over and over)
Well, I'm glad Dehn is a productive, contributing member of society instead of somebody whose life has been ruined by addiction, but Dehn's not fit to replace a really great state senator. Vote for Linda Higgins, and don't forget to caucus on Tuesday.
Linda Higgins has been an outstanding state senator, whose long service has given her valuable seniority which--as informed voters know--is a key to getting stuff done in the legislature. She is energetic and involved in the nitty gritty day-to-day happenings in her district, always showing up at the events which matter where stuff gets discussed and decided. I could stop right there but, well, regular readers know I won't.
Linda's challenger, Raymond Dehn, is (for lack of a better word) a non-entity. When Dehn announced he was running against Higgins, this was the first time I'd heard of him. And I like to think I'm pretty informed.
Instead of real issues, Dehn has slogans like...
"The solutions of the past are not going to solve the problems of our future."
Who said this first? Well, it was Raymond Dehn himself. Only one problem with the saying: it's not even remotely true. There are all kinds of solutions that work over and over, past and present and future. Boiled right down to its essence, the saying seems to mean "Try something new for the heck of it, vote for Raymond Dehn even though there's REALLY NOTHING WRONG WITH LINDA HIGGINS." I can't help be reminded of Kenya McKnight's "Why not?" slogan.
And, actually, Raymond Dehn has a little too much in common with Kenya McKnight for my taste. Dehn was the subject of a positive article in Insight News, just like Kenya McKnight, Lennie Chism and Natalie Johnson Lee. This really tells me all I need to know about Raymond Dehn. The Hillside Chronicles blog was also not impressed with Dehn, click here.
At the recent debate with Higgins, Dehn made a point of mentioning his youthful mistakes which caused him to be incarcerated and receive addiction treatment, including a stay at a "halfway house." He talked about how there are crimes which, thirty years ago, weren't even crimes. Well, I think that makes perfect sense since THIRTY YEARS AGO OUR STREETS WERE NOT AWASH IN CRACK COCAINE. Dehn sounds like an ultra-liberal thug-hugger who wants to forgive, forget, and let the criminals out of jail to re-occupy our streets because, oh gee, their lives are so hard and society has been so unfair. There, but for the grace of God and addiction treatment, goes Dehn himself. (I'd like to point out drug/alcohol treatment is a fine example of a "solution of the past" which just keeps working, over and over)
Well, I'm glad Dehn is a productive, contributing member of society instead of somebody whose life has been ruined by addiction, but Dehn's not fit to replace a really great state senator. Vote for Linda Higgins, and don't forget to caucus on Tuesday.
10-4 Good Buddy. Ray's a nice guy, and probably wouldn't be a bad elected official, though I'm not sure if he's capable of getting p*ssed off even when getting p*ssed off is what needs to happen. Supporting Sen. Higgins, however, is the way to go, and it isn't even a close call (especially knowing that Al Mc-I'm-gonna-win-one-sooner-or-later is lurking in the background).
ReplyDeleteI agree. Ray is a very nice guy. I have enjoyed knowing him around the NoMi political scene for several years/cycles now. I cherish him as a northside neighbor.
ReplyDeleteAnd he would probably be a great rep.
But replacing Senator Linda Higgins is virtually impossible. She is one of those irreplaceable sorts of persons. And an irreplacable public servant.
She is just simply irreplacable.
No reason to not re-elect her.