My occasional contributing blogger Chris Johnson addressed the popularity, or lack thereof, of former governor Tim Pawlenty in the conservative parts of Minnesota, and, as Minnesota readers should be aware by now[1], Pawlenty did in fact lose to Hennepin County Commissioner Jeff Johnson in the primary yesterday for nomination the governor’s seat of Minnesota.
This brings up two issues with regards to GOP nominee Jeff Johnson.
First, the various news outlets are proclaiming this a shocker, and that the polls showed Pawlenty comfortably ahead. I have not been able to find these polls, beyond something called MN-Emerson that had Pawlenty at +9. I’ve not heard of them before, they are perhaps not credible. Perhaps these polls don’t exist? Certainly, the superior Pawlenty name recognition could be considered a plus for the former governor, but as Chris implicitly pointed out, this may not be true, as Pawlenty’s years in office were undistinguished no matter which way you were inclined. His name may have reminded Minnesota GOP primary voters of years where his achievements did not measure up to their expectations – realistic or not.
But let’s stipulate I’m too dull to find these polls. What happened, then? Is polling that awful? Keep in mind that, although Jeff Johnson once called Trump a jackass (Pawlenty went further), he’s has since clasped Trump to his breast. Are Trump voters refusing to be truthful with the pollsters?
Is that even an American thing to do?
Second, I saw Jeff Johnson’s admirably short victory speech, but I was still unsettled. He went in for the code word “political elite,” but this must be read as “throw out the experts who do things we don’t like, let us amateurs at the controls of the airplane!” Now, Johnson isn’t a political neophyte, having been County Commissioner of Hennepin County for the last 9 years, but if he’s talking that way, and he wins the Governor’s seat, we may find our government crawling with amateurs and money-seekers.
Just like the White House.
