“Regardless of where you live, please visit and share this website: VOTE.GOV”.

The following is my personal thoughts about politics, generally, formed over many years of observation and involvement.  This is just a summary, only intended to assist as a thought-starter for anyone who reads what follows.

Anyone who knows me knows my politics.  In this post, before the Democratic Convention next week, I want to take a short look at my personal view of us, collectively, as U.S., as in all of us.

Following the Convention, which ends Aug. 22, I’ll write more specifically about the next 2 1/2 months.

When it comes to voting, every one of us is as powerful as anyone else.  We each have one vote, period.  We each have the opportunity to get involved or not.  At the end of the day, we get exactly who we elect to represent us.  When we complain about the politics or the politicians, we are complaining about ourselves, collectively.

In the last Presidential election, 81,284,666 persons voted for Joe Biden; 74,284,666 for Donald Trump; a few for an assortment of others.  That’s the good news.  About one third of those eligible  to vote in 2020 did not vote at all….  These non-voters ‘voted’ by their absence, possibly against their own interests.  Generally, fewer vote in off-year elections.

We have about three months to get up to speed and get registered (if we’re not), learn the positions we will be filling in the election, and particularly who the candidates are (ALL of them on your ballot, whatever the office) and what they stand for.

Another number interests me.  There are said to be about 1,000 billionaires in this country of over 345,000,000.  Each of them each have only a single vote, too, just like the rest of us.  If they all were collected in my town of 83,000, they couldn’t win a single election.  They don’t have any more power than I do, or you.  Nor do they all think alike.

Surely, they have boat loads of money with which to manipulate and deceive, but for this to work they need people who believe the ‘advertising’.  They gain power only by our forfeiture of our own individual power to make a difference.

Those who know me in the political context know that for a lot of years now I have said the future lies with the action (or inaction) of three groups: young people, women, and persons of color.  At my age, “young” is my kids age or younger – around 60 or less.  Each of the groups mentioned need to  be very visible to get their justified seats at the table of power at all levels of society.   At the same time, there are millions of people like me, older white folks, who support this change.  But each of us also only have one vote….

There are new challenges.  Unlike any other generation in my lifetime, there is a generation gap in how persons communicate with each other.  It is folly for me to suggest that I can effectively speak to or for the groups mentioned above for differing reasons.  I come from a different era.  I retired near 25 years ago.  But it is foolish for the new generation to pretend that we don’t matter; as it is for us to pretend that only we elders matter.

We are not all alike, no matter how small the unit you’re considering: whether as a single person, family member, spouse, parent, part of a neighborhood and town, county, state, nation or world.  When each of us vote, my hope is that we each will vote for the leaders at all levels  who really genuinely care about what I would call the “We”, all of US.

In the late 1980s I wanted to illustrate how I saw the political orientation of U.S. citizens.  Below is the rough illustration I came up with, which seems to be consistent with other opinions I’ve seen over the years.  I’ve used it often.  The only change I’ve made on this one are the hi-lite in three places below.

Here’s the illustration in pdf; Political Scrum 2024.

It has been my observation that the media we rely on generally focuses on conflict, most obviously found at the farthest fringes of left and right.  This is not to be critical of either extreme left or extreme right.  We seem to like conflict.  At the same time, fringes are just that: fringes.  The vast majority of us are somewhere in the messy middle, and we all depend on cooperation to thrive.  Obviously, this is just a personal opinion.  You can judge it through your own personal situation.

Like the illustration, this country of ours is a remarkable “mess” of people generally successfully living in community together.  We are all different in our own unique ways.  Somehow or other, up to this point in our history, we have managed to not only survive but to thrive.  It is up to us to keep it that way.

I have much more to say.  This is a start.  More to come after the convention.  Comments welcome.

POSTNOTE Saturday afternoon: As it happens, less than 24 hours ago I got a letter from President Biden that illustrates the conundrum of living in the most powerful nation in a diverse society and world.  The letter is here, one page, and speaks for itself: Pres Biden re Gaza Aug 12 2024.  This particular letter was especially unusual.  It was on genuine stationery and came first class mail.  It was printed August 12, mailed August 13 and received August 16.  In my day-to-day world I don’t expect to hear from any President or for that matter any government official about anything.  In this particular situation I had written the President about a current international issue.  You have to read the letter to see what it says.

I pdf’ed the letter and sent it to two good friends, on opposite sides of the issue, both Americans, neither directly involved in the conflict.  The first responded after I published this post, but hasn’t seen this post yet.

I will say no more about that.  The President, indeed any government official at any level, is constantly faced with making decisions which are unpopular with someone.  There is not a single decision, I would guess, that will not be considered wrong to someone.  President Truman faced this with the atomic bomb in 1945, when he became President just months after FDR was inaugurated for a 4th term, and a month before the Germans surrendered.  Best I recall, he was an old-time vice-president, with no portfolio of consequence, and little knowledge of the atomic bomb being developed.  But at the time he became President, the decision about the bomb was left in his lap.  And depending on one’s point of view, the decision was correct or not….

In the case of yesterday’s President’s letter, it is not known, but very possible, that neither antagonist (who don’t know each other personally) will not like its contents.  It’s a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” situation.

Take a look, and apply it to your own non-negotiable priority for the next administration.

We sink or swim together….

COMMENTS (more at end):

from Fred:  I haven’t said it before, but I do like your hand-crafted graph of the electorate.

POSTNOTE August 23, 2024: An editorial and a commentary about Tim Walz in Saturday Aug 23, Minnesota Star Tribune (formerly Minneapolis): Tim Walz Minnesota Star Tribune Aug 24 24

Tim Walz Minnesota State Fair August 29, 2022

Wednesday night Tom Walz accepted the nomination for vice-president of the United States at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.  The next morning was the first day of the Minnesota State Fair.  The last photo in this post (below) is one I took of Tim Walz at the Minnesota State Fair in 2022.  It is as Tim Walz is.

My ‘filing cabinet’ about Tim Walz is below, the last edit August 19.  It will remain unchanged.  Any additions will be here.  I know Walz’s back story better than most, from many years in Minnesota, a lifetime in the rural midwest as the son of career pubic school teachers, a teacher myself, a teacher’s union representative for many years, and father of a school principal and a school teacher, and grandfather of public school kids.  Any issues anyone has, ask me.  I can give an informed opinion.  (BTW Tim was not the person I thought Kamala Harris would choose for VP.  That did not relate in any way to my feelings about Walz, the person.  It strictly related to political practicalities Harris faced.  Also, BTW, the only front page ‘news’ about Walz that I did not include below was a front page piece a few days ago about a 30 years ago DUI incident in Nebraska.  I didn’t feel it was worth the time to comment about.  It was half a life-time ago for Walz, and he learned his lesson from an experience many of us share.  On with life.

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Original Post: Tim Walz is a common guy.  I’m sure he’d be okay with Wikipedia’s description of him.  There is plenty of detail.  There will be endless additional analyses.  I always like Heather Cox Richardson’s descriptions.  Here’s her post about Tuesday and Walz.  Here’s another from Jay Kuo.  I have lived in Walz’s state for many years, and disinformation will be abundant.  If you have any questions about anything, please ask.  I am happy to research and respond honestly.

I have been a resident of Minnesota for all but one of the last 61 years, 53 of those in the metropolitan Twin Cities, and I’m politically aware.  My formative years – all of them – were in small town North Dakota, son of school teachers, precisely the same kind of environment from which Tim Walz springs, in his case rural Nebraska.  Like Walz, my background is in public education, as a junior high teacher and mostly teacher union staff.  He taught geography, so did I.

My opinion: Tim Walz is a superb choice as candidate for Vice-President of the United States.

Everything about his background is readily available, including the items heading this piece.

Vice-Presidents are not useless window dressing.  At least two of them in my lifetime, Harry Truman and Lyndon Johnson, were called to serve after Franklin Delano Roosevelt and John Kennedy died (see endnote).  Tim Walz reminds me of Harry Truman.  It surprised me to note that Harry Truman became President at age 60, the same age as Tim Walz is now.  Tim is about a month younger than my oldest son.  Ouch!)

The first time I actually met Tim Walz was probably in the summer of 2006, when he was running for Congress for the first time.  I was invited to a fundraiser in St. Paul.  He was running for Congress in another District than mine.  He made a positive impression, though he was obviously a rookie.  This was 18 years ago, before the first of his 12 years in Congress and nearing 6 years as Governor of Minnesota, 8 times elected.  In each assignment he has faithfully served and represented his constituents – the people who elected him.  We have benefitted from his experience.  Our state has 5 .7 million people, over half of those in the twin cities area,  We are a state of great variety and resulting great diversity.

Governor Walz wouldn’t know who I am.  I’m a constituent like anyone else.  I say this only to indicate that I have been very satisfied with how he has approached the very complex job of governing our great state.  The below photos are the ones I have of other personal ‘sightings’  over the years.  The first was at a picnic of senior Democrats.  The second was at a pre-2022 election event in Minneapolis which I seem to recall was for Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan, featuring Vice-President Kamala Harris.  It was a deliberately small and very good event.  Peggy is Native American, currently the highest ranking Native American in elective executive office.  The third photo is a screen shot I took on August 6.

Few outside of Minnesota know Tim Walz.  I sense that will change quickly, and positively in coming weeks.

August 13, 2017 DFL Senior Caucus picnic (photo Dick Bernard)

October 22, 2022. Gov. Tim Walz, Vice-President Kamala Harris; Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan. (photo Dick Bernard)

August 6, 2024

Here are the first comments (all in a.m. August 6) that came my way when Kamala Harris announced Tim had been tapped as her VP choice:

from Norm 8:32 a.m.:  The decision by Harris to go with Waltz as her VP choice is not at all surprising given his background as a former member of Congress, a veteran and a governor even though Minnesota is often consider to be a flyover state in terms of presidential politics.  To be fair, however, Donnie and the Emster and other followers and defenders of the man child who would be king claim that the Gopher State is in play in 2024.

Being the “super patriot” as the ignorant, insecure, arrogant, narcissistic, five-time draft dodger who always wraps himself in the flag is will make it hard for Donnie to characterize Waltz as sucker and loser as he has all men and women who have served, been wounded or captured or killing when in the military service of our country and not risk losing support from  many veterans.

Doing so during the campaign will or at least should be offensive as all hell to most veterans and families of veterans save for the leaders of the VFW and the American Legion who always have their lips solidly attached to Donnie’s behind no matter how much he has insulted veterans with such characterizations.

Again, a good and an obvious best choice for VP made by Harris.

from Brad, 9:25 a.m.: Great Day Dick, Looks like St. Paul is buzzing this morning!  I am so pleased that a leader with his background is a candidate for Veep.

from Mark, 9:30 a.m.: The choice of Tim Walz as VP candidate is a massive gift to Republicans.

from Evonne, 10:25 a.m.: Wow!  Good choice!

from SAK Aug 9: Just search on “weird as hell” 😊! Mr Walz has a point.  The BBC profiled JD Vance: here

from Rich Aug 9: Regarding the selection of Tim Walz: It seems the degree of anti-semitism in the US, and continuing instability in the Gaza-Israel conflict, may have played into Harris’ decision favoring Walz. To keep the eye on the prize, (defeating Donald Trump), Harris may have been inclined to turn towards Walz, thus avoiding any focus on the personal faith of Josh Shapiro and his personal views on the Middle East.

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END NOTE:  There were other succession dilemmas in addition to the deaths of FDR and JFK.  Nixon resigned the presidency, succeeded by Gerald Ford, who had earlier replaced Vice-President Spiro Agnew who had resigned.  Lyndon Johnson completed JFK’s first term without a Vice-President.  Ronald Reagan had a near miss with death by assassination very early in his first term.  There are other earlier history examples, and of course life itself carries its own surprises that affect even the youngest among us.

END NOTE 2, August 9: Heather Cox Richardson’s column in this morning’s mailbox remembers President Nixon’s resignation from the presidency this day in 1974.  Do you remember?  I sure do, including where I was when he spoke to the nation about resigning…at St. Benedict’s College in Minnesota at my unions summer leadership conference.   We were a somber bunch watching the TV in Mary Commons.

Piling on.   Of course, politics is a ‘blood sport’ for too many.  The morning after the Walz nomination was announced, his Congressional District successor Brad Finseth was quoted on NPR news about Walz, that “he’s changed”.  That was about the extent of the quote.  Maybe Walz has changed.  Maybe the district has changed.  Change is normal.  Finseth is in his second year in Congress.  He succeeded Jim Hagedorn, who had died earlier in 2022, and who was one of two Minnesota Congresspersons who were certified election deniers in 2021 (the other was Michelle Fischbach).

But my favorite, hard to top, was at the Minnesota State Fair in August, 2022.  I was walking down the street near the Education Building and along came a teenager with someone who seemed like his Dad.  The kid was wearing a simple sandwich board sign, which I remember was probably nothing more than an 8 1/2×11 piece of paper on which was written in large letters “Walz Failed”.  I always have a camera along, and it would have been a perfect photo, but the kid looked humiliated enough as it was, and I wasn’t at the Fair to get in an argument.  But it is cemented in my memory.  Walz won reelection easily three months later….

at Minnesota State Fair August 29, 2022. from Juliann: Great smile which he is displaying on the campaign trail as well.

from James, August 14 12:30 a.m.: [Dick, 9 a.m.: I will be responding to this a little later at end of this letter.  See August 19, below].

Well, once again, I tried to add a reply to your blog, this time to the Tim Walz essay, and got back an error message.  I’ve gotten to where I just expect that my software and yours will not play nice together, so I copied my contribution before sending, and did not try to send a second time (because sometimes it has actually “taken” both times, even though I get the error messages).

So, in case it’s not there, here is what I submitted:

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Well, I agree, at least, that Walz, in person, seems to be a great guy.  I met him when I attended what I believe may have been the first Twin Cities fund raiser for his first Gubernatorial campaign, at a private home in the tony lakes region of my city, Minneapolis.  He seemed like the “adult in the room” “from Central Casting”, if I may mix two metaphors.  I took an immediate liking to him and was very glad when he won.
However, I am not normally a “vibes” voter, nor am I even a “values voter”.  I am a policy-and-performance voter, and Walz has been something quite a bit worse than just a disappointment to me.
Most significantly, he dithered while my Mpls. neighborhood burned in 2020, and blamed my Mayor for allegedly not requesting the deployment of the National Guard properly.  Mayor Frey is saying all the “correct” and loyal things, today, but things he said, texted to others, and emailed AT THE TIME betray that Walz simply declined to do his job when Frey asked him to.  That the Mayor didn’t “do the paperwork” correctly in a moment of crisis is either true or false.  If false, Walz’ using that as an excuse is reprehensible.  If true, as the senior official and the one tasked with actually deciding whether or not to deploy the Guard, and how, it was WALZ’s job to TELL Jacob what “more” he needed – not to end the communication with no decision.  So, true or false – either way – it’s inexcusable.  We in Mpls. are still paying the price.  My Police Precinct still operates out of a different part of town, miles away – the blackened burnt out hulk of the Precinct Station still stands, partly surrounded by the still-empty lots from other buildings that also burned, but were not of such sturdy and modern structure for their skeletons to survive.  Many other empty lots still exist up and down the length of Lake Street.  Drive it yourself and see.  The scenes were and still are similar up and down University Avenue in St. Paul.  A drug store six blocks from my house, to the NNW, burned.  A GAS STATION six blocks to the ESE burned.  Yes, the mobs were torching gas stations!  And that was 2-1/2 miles from Lake Street.  This has not to this day been adequately reported.  Walz needed “paperwork”, but couldn’t be bothered to tell the Mayor what he needed.  His standard explanation has included things that, frankly, I can’t imagine a Mayor being able to provide, things that would have been the job of the Governor and the uniformed leaders of the Guard to have decided, after asking the Mayor and his people some questions.  But Walz dithered.  Pretty much until Trump threatened to intervene, I’m afraid.  Much is being made of Trump having said at the time that Walz did a good job.  If you read the quotes objectively, what Trump said, in his usual bombastic self-important way, is that Walz did a good job of jumping when Trump threatened, and… Look! What I told him to do worked within hours.  That “spin” is not actually false.  It is more or less how it DID play out.
And Walz dithered on the Feed Our Future scandal costing somewhere between a quarter and a third of a BILLION dollars.
As we are just now learning, he ALSO dithered on almost half a billion of other Covid-era government funding fraud.
On the other hand, he did not dither on issuing edicts during Covid.  He just made mind-bogglingly bad decisions while issuing them.  Closing entire small town business districts, enabling the Walmarts and Targets to further damage those places.  Closing schools and keeping them closed way too long.  Keeping people out of their churches, even for funerals (as an agnostic, I shouldn’t care, but as the child and sibling of Christians – both Catholics and Lutherans – well, somehow I do), while Walz himself attended a Memorial Service with an attendance of 500.  Setting up a hotline so folks could rat out their neighbors.  Yikes.
There’s more, as I’m sure you are hearing in the news, but, most of the rest of it speaks to his character, not policy and performance.  And I’m a policy and performance voter, so I don’t really care about his National Guard sergeant escapades, although, having a nephew who is an Air Force F15-E fighter pilot about to be deployed for the third time to the Middle East, I would not be surprised if it didn’t sit well with HIM that Walz implied combat experience he did not have, and ducked out when it became obvious he was about to actually have some.
One of my Chicago cousins, also a Democrat, texted me just after Harris named Walz as her pick and asked me what I thought – expecting a response somewhere between “good!” and “great!”.  My one-sentence response, summing up years of exposure to our Governor, was that I found him “a well-intentioned, affable, bumbling, utter incompetent.”  I am giving benefit-of-the-doubt, that I’m not 100% sure he deserves, with “well-intentioned”.
I cannot vote for him.

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I’m sorry I can’t share your enthusiasm about Walz – I really am.  But, well… the above pretty much says what I have to say.

Response from Dick, 9 a.m.:  Jim and I are good friends, and he has commented on other things from time to time at this space.  The above letter came from him via e-mail, and was intended by him for publication here.  I am sending him a letter in response, today, and later will reprint the letter here [bracketing any amendments].  I’ll do that later.

A little earlier, a couple of correspondents suggested that Gov. Walz was somehow in cahoots on the big financial fraud case relating to a fraudulent food program funded by USDA during the Covid years.  Of course, it is easy to blame the Governor for anything that happened on his watch, even if this was a federal program.  In the federal food fraud case, which has been highly publicized here, the facts are hidden from view by persons out to damage Walz.  Here’s the latest information I have about the food case.  You’ll note it is a federal case, ongoing, many found guilty so far, and continuing….

This year I applied and qualified for election judge in my county.  I asked to be on the reserve list, which they accommodated, and I did and passed the mandatory training program.  I did not have to serve in the primary election yesterday, and remain on the list for the general election.  I have been highly impressed by the manner in which my voluntary service has been received and acknowledged.

August 19, 2024:  I responded to James (above) with a two-page U.S.mail letter on August 14.  Much of my response related to James criticism of the handling of the chaos following the murder of George Floyd on May 25.  I blog, and my posts for May 27, 29, 30 and 31 directly relate to the insanity facing us all in that terrible time.  Specifically I noted the following below the Crisis Sequence graphic at May 29, “A City Burning”: The Minnesota Governors briefing and update late this morning was very useful in identifying the very complex nature of taking action in a crisis of the sort we witnessed overnight, including the opportunistic involvement of anarchists and looters (two specific and not necessarily related ‘groups’ who are unverifiable, and thus potentially ‘false flags’ by those seeking to blame someone).  The Governor, who himself served 24 years in the Minnesota National Guard, and who was backed by people like the State Patrol and Minnesota National Guard and others, talked about assorted chains of authority and responsibility in a civil society, from local police and sheriff, to mayors, on and on and on.  Nothing is ever as simple as it appears to be in a tweet, or a complaint.  Yes, there were mistakes, and there will always be mistakes, but not willful.

Personally, I was witness to this kind of complexity very often in my day to day job years ago.  What was initially presented as an absolute right/wrong dichotomy, etc., was never so clear, the closer one got to the actual situation, and actors.  I’d simply advise everyone to be  careful about a rush to judgement, and assessing blame, though it is very tempting.

I also responded to James comments about military service (I served two years in the Army and come from a family with a lot of military history), and about Covid (like everyone else, we dodged Covid-19 as best we could.  I’ve had all the vaccinations, and will get the booster when it comes available.  So far we’ve escaped Covid-19, and we know many people who have had it, both initially and in later editions.

“Regardless of where you live, please visit and share this website: VOTE.GOV”.

Today is the opening of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.  From now through August 11 we can experience the world’s finest athletes.

Merci to my friend, Christine, in Paris, for this gift. I believe Christine is volunteering at the Olympic Games. Here is the source of the gift.

I basically walk every day at the local indoor soccer field – 4 1/2 rounds to a mile.  (I generally do 11 rounds.)  Thursday morning I passed Jack, one of my fellow walkers, who is 90,  and we jawed a bit, as acquaintances do.  For Jack, the walking is apparently essential to save his legs – doctors order: move those legs or lose them.

Truth be told, that for each of us at that walking place each day, just showing up and finishing our self-imposed goal, is winning.  Sometimes it’s boring; sometimes, you just don’t feel up to it…you know the drill.  But, as habits go, there could be worse. For me, the usual these days is a 19 minute mile; four years ago it was 17.  There are colleagues much swifter, and others much slower.  No matter.

Some of the walkers are running; others go about ten yards and have to rest.  On and on.  The perimeter of that soccer field is our ‘track’.  From 7-10 a.m. there’s a little community in that space: a small flock of us after 7 a.m; another coming about 8 and so on.  Varying ages.  Mostly in the senior category.

This time of year there are assorted other activities going on.

Thursday, there also was a gaggle of toddlers with their parents – probably two or three year olds,  ‘practicing’ soccer.  Discipline is not their strong suit.  The instructor was working at enticing them to play along for maybe ten minutes, then they could have ten minutes to run around.  A tyke wanted to go home; a couple of others were headed somewhere, randomly; another was closely inspecting one of the marker cones in their corner of the field.   Of course, at their age, kindergarteners are mature!

Towards the other end of the field were a bunch of kids who appeared to be middle school age doing some kind of. conditioning for something or other.  They mostly seemed task oriented.

Outside were some youngsters coming in with huge duffel bags – the ice hockey neophytes.

None of those youngsters could relate to we old-timers; all of we old-timers have some vague memories of what it was like to be a little kid!  The beat goes on.

And of course we cannot forget those, old and young, too,  who cannot even walk for assorted reasons.

As I was finishing my walk this morning, about 8 a.m., the background music came across the Public Address.  It’s one of my all-time favorite songs, and indeed I had been thinking of calling it up before my walk today.

Here it is.  Take the time to listen and make it part of your day, today and every day.

POSTNOTE: As I prepare to click ‘publish’ on this comes the news about the disruptions in France preceding the opening of the games later today.  This is a story just developing, so I will not get into any of the argument.

There have been three additional posts this week: Yesterday (July 23); Joe’s Speech (July 24); Learning from an anniversary (July 25).

I will be offline Saturday through July 30.  My next commentary on politics will follow the Democratic Convention later in August.

4 p.m. CDT Sunday, August 11, 2024: Just watched the closing ceremony in Paris.  It has been a spectacular games.  Hope that it can be replicated in our national and international conversations going forward.  Congratulation, France and Paris!

A look back: a couple of snapshots by my brother-in-law Mike Lund in 1972, at the Munich Olympics and at the Eiffel Tower in Paris.  Mike died in 2006.  Here is video of lighting the Olympic Flame at Munich in 1972.

Munich Olympics 1972 (photo Mike Lund)

Eiffel Tower Paris 1972 (Mike Lund)

Paris July 26, 2024 (screen shot opening of summer Olympics)

“Regardless of where you live, please visit and share this website: VOTE.GOV”.

We watched Joe Biden’s 12 minute or so speech from the Oval Office tonight.  I don’t plan to add anything to the hours of analysis.  Joe contributed immensely to this country in his over 50 years of public service; and his greatest contribution was that of being a positive role model.  He has about six months left in his term and will make good use of his time.

Joe Biden July 24, 2024

It was my privilege to see him speak in person, twice, in the twin cities.  Both were during his time as Vice-President, in 2010 and 2012.

Thanks, Joe, for what you’ve done and will continue to do.

POSTNOTE; Overnight, Heather Cox Richardson summarized the President’s speech as any I will see.  Here is her Letter From An American.

I have followed but seldom watched the Trump Coronation festivities in Milwaukee, since there has been four years of campaigning already.  There was no package to unwrap, so to speak.  We know the positioning.  In a little over 100 days we’ll know about the vote.  As is always true, we will get exactly what we deserve, by our vote, throw away vote, or non-vote.  Everyone eligible to vote is ‘counted’ one way or another.

Here is an important commentary filed by Heather Cox Richardson on Thursday night, the end of the Convention.

I’ll click publish on this on Friday morning, July 19, and there’s a lot of chatter swirling around in this rough draft of history.  Trump has made his speech, the billionaires are lining up to donate their millions, we Democrats have our own dilemma, and our own convention is a month from now.  There is the usual cacophony masquerading as wisdom, soon forgotten.  I am very mindful that traditionally campaigning begins in earnest after the conventions and about Labor Day.  I do not recall ever a circumstance where campaigning has gone on continuously, as it has since 2020.

Earlier this week I saw a cartoon that pretty accurately reflects Democrats and Republicans as I’ve come to see them.  Actually, I’ve thought the same for a long time, and like it.  Democrats reflect the real and often messy world of the vast majority of the population.  I see that as a strength, not a weakness.  Democrats have to work things out.  Autocrats don’t.  Here’s the cartoon:

from Reform Austin July 8, 2024

Here’s how the last post began: “Regardless of where you live, please visit and share this website: VOTE.GOV”.  That will be my mantra beginning every post between now and Nov. 5.

Thursday morning I made a list of events, and activities by myself, in the week preceding.

Last Saturday it began with the near miss of assassinating the former president at Butler PA.  At the end of the July 12 post, are my own comments at the time.

(See “SOME QUICK….”  below for some personal memories I’ve added today about security as I’ve seen it evolve, personally).

I’m saving my newspapers and look each day for whatever is said about the shooting.  The story is evolving, as are all the political stories.

Thursday’s paper reports that President Biden has come down with Covid, so this will be another piece of fodder.  Last week I wrote a brief letter to the lawmakers in my orbit who will have some say in the final outcome of who the Democrats endorse for President in August.  I said: “I remain a strong supporter of Biden/Harris.  If the decision is made to change course, I think it is time for the Democrats to consider actively a “Team of Rivals” approach which was apparently Abraham Lincoln’s strategy to deal with division.”   Here’s my current MN Lawmakers list: MN Lawmakers Roster (2) July 9, 2024

I don’t invest my life in this political decision, I’ve done what I can.  In my opinion, President Biden has done a great job, and history will verify that.

I did look back at the Minnesota Presidential Primary on March 5, in which I voted for Joe Biden.  Here’s the result of that “Super Tuesday” vote in Minnesota: MN Presidential Primary March 2024.  People seem to have forgotten about that election, which was official, with lots of notice.  (There is another Minnesota Primary on August 13.  I’ve qualified to be an election judge if needed for that election.  No assignment yet – I asked to be on alternate status.  Here are the candidates on my ballot: MN Primary August 13, 2024).

In the end analysis, each and every one of us is personally accountable for the results of any election.  That’s the bottom line.  There is still over 100 days to show up.

A BIT OF PERSPECTIVE IF YOU’VE GOT THIS FAR: There are about 1,000 billionaires in the United States, some of these mega-billionaires.  They aren’t all Republican, though many are, and for them, a million dollars is chump change.  Against them are over 244,000,000 potential voters on November 5.  The richest billionaire and the poorest citizen each possess a single vote….  All is not lost, unless you give up.

POSTNOTE: Here’s an interesting commentary from Ruth Ben-Ghiat on the political usefulness of crises by authoritarians.  I believe that autocracy is a looming threat to everyone of us.

FINALLY,  SOME QUICK PERSONAL MEMORIES ON SECURITY FOR VIP’S:

Unfortunately, to be in politics has always been a risky business, though most especially now, in the time where ordinary people can be armed and extremely dangerous.

I did a quick list Thursday and was surprised at the number of high level political folks I’ve been in the same room with at one time or another.  It’s been more than a dozen.  Here are four of the most memorable.

1.  Dwight Eisenhower. I was probably between 7th and 8th grade in 1953, and we were in Minot ND the day President Eisenhower flew in on then-Air Force One on business probably relating to the under construction Minot Air Force Base.  We were standing on the sidewalk outside the then brand new Empire Theater, and the President came by in an open convertible, in my memory like John Kennedy in Dallas ten years later.  I don’t recall any nervousness at all around us.  Just an important guy in a convertible.

2.  Gerald Ford.  Probably in the summer of 1975 I took my 11 year old son and a couple of his friends to see Gerald Ford when he came to Minneapolis for some event.  There was a meet and greet across a rope line at the Marriott in Bloomington (a single strand rope if I recall correctly).  There was Secret Service, but we were very close to the President.  Below is the picture I took.  My sons hair is barely visible in this photo, which I took.  President Ford is surrounded by three Secret Service.

Gerald Ford Aug. 19, 1975, Bloomington MN.

3.  In June of 1990 Mikhail and Raisa Gorbachev came to the Twin Cities for a day, and I raced around to catch a glimpse, which was a success.  My best photo was when they took off from the Twin Cities airport in the Russian Air Force One.  I was easily able to take photos close to Gorbachev at two other locations during the day.  This is not to suggest there was lack of security – at the same time, it was not oppressive.

Gorbachev’s leaving Minneapolis June 4, 1990

4.  George W Bush.  Sometime, probably the summer of 2005 or 2006, I heard President Bush was coming to town and would be arriving at Twin Cities airport in later morning.  I thought maybe I’d have a chance at a photo of Air Force One landing, and got my gear together, went out to Ft. Snelling, and walked towards the fence on the north edge of the airport.  I was by myself, and just had my camera bag.  I noticed a helicopter overhead, didn’t pay much attention to it, and soon a police car came up and told me I couldn’t stay there.  I’m sure the folks in the chopper were secret service or police.  I walked back to the car, and as I was driving out, in the rear view mirror, Air Force One roared by, landing.

I could list at least several other similar happenings.  I was a completely benign observer every time I went to these events, and so were any others I saw.  But this is not always true, and that is why there is so much sensitivity to security at events like the one at Butler Farm last Saturday.  Somehow there was a major breakdown in communication at the event.  Maybe some day there will be a more complete story.  An innocent bystander was killed, and others injured, so it was not a victimless event.  We need to learn from this.  Though there will never be a risk free environment for anyone in public, especially these days.

THE OTHER VIP’S WITH WHOM I’VE AT LEAST HAD A CLOSE CALL, TO THE BEST OF MY MEMORY: Nelson Rockefeller, Valley City ND 1960; Jimmy Carter, Minneapolis, 1978; John Kerry, Minneapolis 2004; also John Edwards; Barack (twice) and Michelle Obama (once) ca 2008; Joe Biden, twice, Minneapolis and St. Paul, post 2009; Kamala Harris, Minneapolis 2022; Bill Clinton, Minneapolis 1996; Al Gore, Eagan 2000; Walter Mondale, rural St. Paul, early 2000s.  With each there is a story, well remembered.  Maybe some other time..!

COMMENTS (more at end):

from Michelle: Thank you Dick

from Rich: Hey, Dick, I wanted to share that I was also near the Empire Theater on that day. President Truman also visited Minot, probably for the same reason. On the ceremonial side of it all, my father’s college band was present on both visits to greet the president. This was “a beginning” for Minot. In the days of our youth the Cold War was a reality.

from Brian:  Interesting your comments about security for VIPs!  Reminds me of when I worked with WOCCU in Bolivia and one time  First Lady Hillary Clinton came down to see what we were doing.  (Helping credit unions help poor indigenous people.)

Louisa was asked to be Hillary’s personal escort in La Paz and nearby.   That was interesting!    At La Paz airport our plane was right next to hers!    When she left we had a “wheels up party”, meaning since all went well, the wheels of her plane’s landing gear got sucked into the body and she was gone–whew!

Thanks for sharing!

from Brian, 1996, photo does not include Hillary, but from the same time as mentioned..

response to Brian from Dick: Your comment reminds me of a comment by Nelson Rockefeller in Valley City ND in June, 1960.  Here’s the newspaper account: Politics 1960 vs 1996001.  See the top of the second column.  I had an actual copy of the newspaper article, and my recollection was the incident happened in Venezuela, the motorcade being egged or such at some point.  I no longer have the newspaper account, from the Fargo Forum, but official archival material suggests that my account and Gov. Rockefellers, relates to a visit by Eisenhower to Latin America in Feb. 1960. Here.  [POSTNOTE July 31, 2024]: I’m reading Doris Kearns Goodwin’s, excellent  An Unfinished Love Story, about the 1960s, and on page 104 she comments on a planned trip by JFK to Caracas and Bogota in December, 1961: “During a goodwill mission to Venezuela [in 1958], Vice President Richard Nixon’s motorcade had been attacked by a crowd shouting anti-American slogans.  Before the motorcade made it safely to the embassy, Nixon’s car was rocked back and forth, its windows smashed.  The prospective trip, the State Department officials and the Secret Service warned, was too dangerous.”

from Christine in Europe:  I read with much interest your last note. I am very much interested in politics over the world, as you know.

Just for saying, I also had some unexpected opportunities to meet some US candidates over the years

– Bill Clinton in London

– Barack Obama in Paris

– Al Gore in Copenhagen

And not a candidate but an important person,

– Nancy Pelosi in Copenhagen with Will Steger

Today, I am having training for the Olympics where I will be working from Saturday morning (27th July)

from Dick: Christine, and Brian, and infinite others we all know, remind us that we are part of the world, not apart from that world.