How Convenient For Him That He’s Not Running Again For Governor
Posted by Phoenix Woman on March 13, 2010
Otherwise, this little boo-boo of Smilin’ Tim’s probably would have been on the front page instead of buried in the Metro section of the Strib’s print version:
When Minnesota motorists paid out $30 apiece for “Support Our Troops” license plates, it’s a good bet they had no idea they were supporting Lee Buckley, a political appointee of Gov. Tim Pawlenty.
Last year $30,000 from the license-plate fund was used to pay a portion of Buckley’s salary. Buckley worked in Pawlenty’s office as a $92,000 a year special adviser on faith and community services.
During budget hearings on Pawlenty’s office budget this week, Sens. Steve Murphy, Don Betzold and other legislators were furious over what they saw as a siphoning off of the money and a deception to those who bought the plates thinking they were directly helping veterans organizations. By state law, money from the plates is split between the Department of Military Affairs for family members of deployed service members and the Department of Veterans Affairs for grants for homeless and needy veterans.
“For money that was supposed to go to fund things for veterans going to fund people in the governor’s office, it’s outrageous,” said Murphy, DFL-Red Wing, a Marine veteran. “The governor runs around telling everyone he’s cutting all these budgets, and then he back-door fills in his own department. I’m just disgusted with this.”
If Rudy Perpich or Jesse Ventura had tried this, Republicans would be on all the local TV and radio stations calling for impeachment. But I suspect that most Minnesotans will never know about this little Friday news dump. It will disappear without a ripple, and Governor Gutshot will have once again artfully dodged his day of political reckoning as he tries to fail upwards into a spot on the 2012 Republican presidential ticket.
9 Responses to “How Convenient For Him That He’s Not Running Again For Governor”
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Mercury Rising 鳯女 
Roberta in Texas said
How much longer is PawPaw in office? I’m moving back to Minnesota so I’m wondering if I want to register to vote. LOL. Texas has gone by the wayside. I’m glad I don;t have children to raise in this state. But my Grandkids will be here. Thank God my Daughter in law home schools.
Charles II said
Yep. The Texas public schools are a textbook illustration for why we need national standards for textbooks and curricula.
Not to mention mental capacity.
jo6pac said
Yep
another WTF.
Phoenix Woman said
Does Texas want to make sure none of its kids can get into an accredited college?
As for Pawlenty, he’s gone after January of next year. He’s running for president — or thinks he is.
Ambrose Charpentier said
The headlines in the Strib didn’t mention the governor either. It’s shameful they didn’t print the story on the front page with T-Paw’s name in the headline. They also quoted some sympathetic Veteran’s Affairs official, without mentioning whether or not he’s a Pawlenty appointee too. He probably is – or at least dependent on T-Paw’s pleasure for his continued paycheck.
brantl said
I wonder who the pubs will have left that isn’t a complete joke by 2012?
Charles II said
Who did they have who wasn’t a complete joke by 2000?
Paul said
I saw this in the Strib over the weekend. Pisses me off.
We Minnesotans will be stuck cleaning up his TP’d mess long after he’s gone from office. Another smug self-important political diva, Though he’ll never out Palin Palin, should give up trying to be Palin-ty.
Phoenix Woman said
“Palin-ty”! Love it!
Photoshop him with her hair, glasses and lipstick.