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BREAKING NEWS: SENATE REPUBLICAN CAUCUS WON’T SUPPORT MARK OLSON IN PRIMARY; OLSON WON’T “BE WELCOMED” AS MEMBER OF CAUCUS SHOULD HE WIN ELECTION
By Michael B. Brodkorb | August 14, 2008
In a post published 24 hours ago Minnesota Democrats Exposed, I asked the leadership of the Senate Republican Caucus to comment on the endorsement of Representative Mark Olson. Moments ago, I received the statement below from Senator Dave Senjem, Senator Michelle Fischbach, Senator Joe Gimse, Senator David Hann, Senator Amy Koch, and Senator Geoff Michel.
According to the statement, the Senate Republican Caucus will be not be supporting the Republican-endorsed candidate, Representative Mark Olson, in the primary election in SD 16. The Senate Republican Caucus will instead be supporting Allison Krueger. Should Olson win the election, Olson will “not be welcomed as a member” of the Senate Republican Caucus.
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Over the last few years, too many Republican office holders, especially in Washington, were given a free pass for personal misconduct because they “voted right.â€Â We could all recite the names. Well, it’s time we go back to holding people accountable.
While we respect our endorsing process in the Republican Party, some things rise far above process and party in terms of importance. The integrity and character of our candidates and elected officials are two of those things.
In Senate District 16, Mark Olson won the endorsement.  That said, we are all well aware that Mark Olson’s criminal conviction caused him to be kicked out of the House Republican Caucus as well as cost him the party’s endorsement for his House seat.
It is our intention that Mark Olson, if elected, would not be welcome as a member of our Senate Republican Caucus. This is not a matter of philosophy; it is a matter of personal conduct.
For the past six years, the Senate Republican Caucus and the State of Minnesota have been the beneficiaries of exceptionally strong legislative leadership provided by former Senator Betsy Wergin. We see in Alison Krueger an outstanding alternative candidate who, like Senator Wergin, combines excellent conservative credentials with a high degree of personal integrity and character. Accordingly, the Senate Republican Caucus will be throwing its full support behind Alison Krueger and encouraging Republicans in SD 16 to vote for her in the September 9th primary.
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46 Responses to “BREAKING NEWS: SENATE REPUBLICAN CAUCUS WON’T SUPPORT MARK OLSON IN PRIMARY; OLSON WON’T “BE WELCOMED” AS MEMBER OF CAUCUS SHOULD HE WIN ELECTION”
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August 14th, 2008 at 6:54 AM
Good. It’s good to see Republicans take a stand. Too bad DFLers won’t do the same thing.
August 14th, 2008 at 7:33 AM
[...] Luckily the Senate Caucus is going to support the other person in the Primary. Â [...]
August 14th, 2008 at 7:37 AM
I guess he will have to switch parties. The DFL will be more than happy to have him – if he agrees to vote as they tell him to. I’m not surprised to see the Republicans taking care of this problem. Unlike the DFL we hold our members accountable.
August 14th, 2008 at 7:57 AM
He’ll make an excellent Democrat.
August 14th, 2008 at 7:57 AM
So there is a silver lining. That is very heartening.
Michael, do you know if there are any lit drops or phone banks coming up for Krueger?
Republicans need to step up and help get her through the primary.
August 14th, 2008 at 8:24 AM
I applaud the Senate GOP leadership for taking this position. It’s time we said “NO MORE.” I wasn’t as restrained as Michael & Andy. I complained immediately about the SD-16′s endorsement of a convicted criminal.
I haven’t been bashful in saying that Alison Krueger should win the Sept. 9 primary.
I’ve met Alison Krueger & was impressed with her common sense, the intensity with which she believes things & her intellect.
That’s why SD-16 Republicans can vote against Mark Olson AND vote for Alison Krueger.
August 14th, 2008 at 9:11 AM
We can encourage SD 16 Republicans all we want, but they were stupid enough to endorse him so I’m not holding my breath.
August 14th, 2008 at 10:09 AM
So, if the endorsement process is this irrelevant to the workings of the state party, why do they even bother pretending they care what the voters of SD16 or any other district think?
Maybe Ron Carey should just hand select which candidates are going to be on the ballot, and where.
And seriously, doesn’t this call the competency of Allison Kruger into question when she is unable to best a convicted wife beater in the endorsing process?
August 14th, 2008 at 10:21 AM
thank god someone has the fortitude to “overturn” a few renegade gop-ers.
August 14th, 2008 at 10:23 AM
And seriously, doesn’t this call the competency of Allison Kruger into question when she is unable to best a convicted wife beater in the endorsing process?
Doesn’t it call into question the competency of the DFL for nominating an admitted tax cheat, one who endangered his employees for not paying workers comp (and admitting his violation of the law by paying a $25,000 fine), and one who over and over again joked about raping women?
August 14th, 2008 at 10:33 AM
Good work Senate GOP. It is an open secret that 10 to 15 elected Republicans were going to have a press conference announcing they would oppose Olson in the election. This is good news.
I’d like to think the DFL would do the same thing if they found one of their members had done what Olson did.
August 14th, 2008 at 10:37 AM
“So, if the endorsement process is this irrelevant to the workings of the state party, why do they even bother pretending they care what the voters of SD16 or any other district think?
Maybe Ron Carey should just hand select which candidates are going to be on the ballot, and where. ”
Leroy I couldn’t have said it better! Why have BPOU’s anymore just let Ron and the Republican Caucus decide for everyone.
August 14th, 2008 at 10:47 AM
“So, if the endorsement process is this irrelevant to the workings of the state party, why do they even bother pretending they care what the voters of SD16 or any other district think?”
Just because the District Republicans endoresed that ass clown, doesn’t mean the State-wide GOP must support him.
BTW, Leroy, the “voters” didn’t select Olson. A few activists in the District GOP did. (kinda like the voters haven’t selected Al Franken yet… just a handful of activists at the endorsing convention did.)
The voters will have their say in a few weeks. And the State GOP will encourage the voters to select differently than the few at the endorsing convention.
So what.
“Maybe Ron Carey should just hand select which candidates are going to be on the ballot, and where.â€
Nobody’s hand selecting anyone, and the action is by the Senate GOP Caucus, not the party at large, you ignorant shit.
The voters will decide in a couple weeks. And hopefully, they’ll reject Olson.
Hey Leroy, are you this stupid naturally? Or do you practice with a squad?
August 14th, 2008 at 11:24 AM
I’m not saying the party had to take an active role supporting Olson, but to reject his candidacy like they have, they are telling the BPOU that their opinions do not matter.
If I lived in SD16, and dedicated my time and money to supporting the party only to have it reject the will of 2/3 of the delegates, the likelyhood of me voting for any of their other candidates would rapidly decline.
If Allison Kruger is allowed to be hand selected by Ron Carey for this slot, the good people of SD16 should step aside and allow Ron Carey to turn out the voters necessary to get her elected as well.
August 14th, 2008 at 11:26 AM
The unemployment figures for the previous month were just announced. Minnesota has an unemployment rate of 5.8%, with 160,000 out of work. This is the higest rate in 2 decades.
Hey Leroy or Flounder, please explain how great the DFL led House and Senate are doing here in MN, and what they plan on doing to rectify the situation. They have already proven that higher taxes kill jobs, so now what are they going to do?
If the MN Republicans are smart, they would hammer this issue to death in the next couple of months. It’s about the economy stupid!
August 14th, 2008 at 11:27 AM
http://www.dumpmarkolson.blogspot.com
August 14th, 2008 at 11:48 AM
I cannot believe they actually wrote this. Have they ever met Alison Krueger? Why is everyone so confident she would be a great senator? She came as an intriguing option to the convention, but after hearing no substance, folks decided it was time to give Mark Olson a second chance. They voted for the qualified, experienced, conservative, and honest candidate. How could they possibly defy our endorsement process? They are endorsing Alison Krueger… what a joke. This is a perfect example of how the state party continues to get their nose stuck where it doesn’t belong. Mark Olson is the ENDORSED REPUBLICAN, and the Senate Republican Caucus is telling all of the delegates at our convention that they are too stupid an incompetent to choose for themselves who will be endorsed. This is truly disgusting and a slap in the face of everyone in SD16. The Senate Caucus should be ashamed for trampling a successful grassroots process. In fact, I would be open to the idea of these senators being expelled from the caucus over this.
These senators are part of the same Republican Party that endorses candidates on most all levels of government. They should be required to respect this endorsement the same way we respect their endorsement, even if maybe there was someone who didn’t get it that we liked instead. This makes no sense. This will not help get a Republican into the SD16 seat. I think this has more to do with an independent thinker, a guy who tries to do the right thing no matter the cost, now moving into the tight buddy-buddy world of the senate. Senators don’t like Mark Olson’s brand of unabashed bold conservatism, but the folks of SD16 do. This is disgraceful on the part of everyone having to do with this letter. Our people made their choice, we don’t need big whigs telling us we’re incompetent. We in SD16 decided Mark Olson, and the State Party and senators from OUTSIDE our district can just deal with it.
August 14th, 2008 at 11:55 AM
Cestnut-
“BTW, Leroy, the “voters†didn’t select Olson. A few activists in the District GOP did.”
You don’t know anything obviously. “A few activists?” Hahahaha!!!!!! Have you EVER even been to a convention?! It was a heck of a lot of ordinary folks who made their decision to endorse Mark Olson.
To the admins- I request Chestnut’s vulgar posts be removed. Such vulgarity soils this entire blog.
August 14th, 2008 at 11:58 AM
“I’m not saying the party had to take an active role supporting Olson, but to reject his candidacy like they have, they are telling the BPOU that their opinions do not matter.”
Which part of the difference between the state party and the Senate Caucus don’t you understand? Though frankly, I think the state party should reject that idiot too.
I hope the voters will.
“If I lived in SD16, and dedicated my time and money to supporting the party only to have it reject the will of 2/3 of the delegates, the likelyhood of me voting for any of their other candidates would rapidly decline.”
Well, I guess that’s the beauty of the voters of SD 16 not able to vote for any of the other GOP Senate Caucus members.
Besides, you take for granted that those at the endorsing convention (who are not “delegates”) reflect the will of the voters of SD 16. We’ll find out in a few weeks.
“If Allison Kruger is allowed to be hand selected by Ron Carey for this slot, the good people of SD16 should step aside and allow Ron Carey to turn out the voters necessary to get her elected as well.”
You really are dumb as a bag of shit, aren’t you.
August 14th, 2008 at 12:01 PM
Actually, I shouldn’t be surprised by this reaction from Leroy. It’s consistent with his stupid logic that because a handful of DFL activists endorsed a tax cheating hate monger for Senate at its convention that nobody else should challenge Al Franken in the Primary.
For Leroy, elections are a waste of time so long as you have the Party’s endorsement. Thou shalt not challenge the “activists.”
August 14th, 2008 at 12:02 PM
Cestnut- “BTW, Leroy, the “voters†didn’t select Olson. A few activists in the District GOP did.”
You don’t know anything obviously. “A few activists?” Hahahaha!!!!!! Have you EVER even been to a convention?! It was a heck of a lot of ordinary folks who made their decision to endorse Mark Olson.
To the admins- I request Chestnut’s vulgar posts be removed. Such vulgarity soils this entire blog.
August 14th, 2008 at 12:55 PM
So…for all you excuse makers for the MORONIC endorsement of Marky Olson…please answer the following question:
Was candidate Alison Krueger WORSE than a convicted wife beater? What did she say or do that made her a WORSE candidate than a CONVICTED WIFE BEATER? Was she found to be a collie molester? Burned flags? Wore a “Franken for Senate” sticker? Had bad breath?
What could POSSIBLY make her WORSE than a CONVICTED WIFE BEATER!
BTW: The convention had a THIRD option. Not to endorse. If Krueger was so bad, let the primary decide it. But not the idiots in SD16.
August 14th, 2008 at 2:12 PM
MARK OLSON WAS NEVER EVER CONVICTED OF BEATING HIS WIFE.
He was acquitted of any such charges. He was only charged with some sappy “intent to cause fear in double jeopardy” which is bogus legally anyway. Besides, how many times has someone as a husband yelled at their wife? It happens all the time. He was acquitted, period. He is NOT a wife beater. All such false accusations should cease immediately as they are simply false to the core.
Also, stop insulting the folks of SD16. They are smart folks with some guts. All of you folks pushing Krueger have no idea what you are really doing. If you were here at the convention, you be much less enthusiastic I assure you.
Also, Alison must not run in this primary or be encouraged to do so. The pledge signed by Alison Krueger and Mark Olson read as follows:
“I _____, as a candidate seeking endorsement from the Republican Party of Senate District 16 to run as an endorsed Republican candidate for the SD16 seat in the fall of 2008, hereby agree to abide by the decision of the Republican Party Senate District 16 2008 Endorsing Convention. I will not run against the Republican endorsed candidate for the SD16 seat should the aforementioned convention decide not to endorse me.”
It was read in front of the entire convention. This pledge clearly promises that the signer will abide by the endorsement decision and not run for the SD16 seat. Mark Olson, one of the best State Reps anyone could ask for, achieved a clear victory at the convention. His support was very strong, and will only continue to strengthen as he continues his campaign.
August 14th, 2008 at 2:19 PM
let’s hope olson flames out in the primary. at least most of the elected gop officials that i have seen realize they do not want to make the same mistake that the dfl politicians have made in endorsing franken.
August 14th, 2008 at 2:21 PM
Just imagine the head-ache the Senate Republican Caucus could have averted if they would have come out with an official stance on Olson the day the he filed. Do you think that would have had an impact on delegates at the convention?
No, they wrote him off like everyone else, thinking they easily had it in the bag.
Now, a solid week after an overwhelming endorsement for Olson, they mention they will have nothing to do with him and will be supporting his opponent in the primary.
Hindsight is 20-20, but you think this could have been handled much better.
August 14th, 2008 at 4:20 PM
“Last July, a Sherburne County jury found Olson guilty of one count of misdemeanor assault against his wife.” MPR website.
“The jury of five men and one woman, which deliberated for about three hours, convicted Olson of domestic assault by intending to cause fear of bodily harm or death.” WCCO
Chris, you can spin this anyway you want. YOU IDIOTS IN SD16 ARE TRULY THE BOTTOM OF THE BARREL AND YOU, SIR, ARE SCUM.
Olson was not convicted of whispering sweet nothings in his wife’s ear. A county attorney and a jury of six listen to the testimony and deemed it ASSAULT. He threatened his wife with bodily harm.
IS THIS A GUY YOU WANT IN THE STATE LEGISLATURE? IS THIS A LEADER? A GUY WHO THREATENS HIS WIFE?
Olson has had an anger management problem for YEARS. YOU CLOWNS IN SD16 SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELVES.
Next State Convention, I hope to scream at you personally. IDIOTS.
August 14th, 2008 at 4:27 PM
Ok, so he didn’t beat his wife. I’ll grant you that. He just threatened to kill her. I guess threatening to kill your wife in some graphic and violent manner is no big deal.
Olson has been the laughing stock of the House for years. If he wins the primary, hope we lose the seat. You idiots in SD16 don’t deserve Republican representation in the Senate. You deserve all the bile the Party can muster.
August 14th, 2008 at 5:10 PM
If what Mark Olson did was classified as “assault,” than your responses to me and my fellow citizens of SD16 would also certainly follow under the same category. If what Mark Olson said could be classified as a misdemeanor (not a CRIME), than I should be able to charge D and Chestnut here with the same and have you two do 12 weeks of counseling. Does that seem reasonable? Are you 2 not fit for office now because of your insults thrown at me and other citizens of my district? What if you apologized and did go through counseling and we ended up becoming best friends? Do you still think this should black ball you for all public office and earn you constant scorn? Preposterous should be your answer, of course it shouldn’t be held against you so maliciously. The same is true of Mark Olson’s case- preposterous. If he had the money, his record would be clean- and that’s a fact too by the way.
To the admins and all posters- If there is no action taken against abusive postings and the unbridled, hateful verbal attacks, than I will not return to this blog to read or comment. I would encourage other readers to do the same as name calling is the behavior expected of grade schoolers. NAME CALLING AND ABUSE SHOULD NOT BE PERMITTED, no less fact twisting. I will not return here until I receive email confirmation that some action is being taken to keep this blog clean. It is irresponsible to let posters be verbally abused.
August 14th, 2008 at 5:26 PM
Chris: Mark Olson is soiled goods. He is not electable, and was convicted in the court of public opinion.
No one likes you, Chris, and no one wants to hear from you again. Mark Olson is going down, you’re going to go down with him, and nothing is going to stop that.
Now I suggest you shut up, get back into the kitchen, and make me a sammich like the lilly-livered coward you are.
August 14th, 2008 at 5:59 PM
[...] BREAKING NEWS: SENATE REPUBLICAN CAUCUS WON’T SUPPORT MARK OLSON IN PRIMARY; OLSON WON’T… | Home | SENATOR NORM COLEMAN ISSUES STATEMENT ON REPRESENTATIVE OLSON’S ENDORSEMENT BY THE [...]
August 14th, 2008 at 6:06 PM
From my understanding this “caucus decision” was not made by the “caucus” and many senators found out about it on the news. Beware BPOU’s across the state who you choose as a candidate to represent you – The senate caucus (all 21 now?)and the mighty Michael Brodkorp might object!
August 14th, 2008 at 6:08 PM
Chris,
I can’t believe this. I suppose you’ll be defending Larry Craig and Mark Foley next. After all, they were conservative Republicans. Or maybe you won’t because it’s worse to be gay or whatever than to beat up your wife??? Don’t you know there are 80,000 people in your district? Not just a handfull of delegates. For eight years Republicans talked about how much character and integrity mattered when it came to Bill Clinton. I don’t know how many times I argued with friends and colleagues saying how bad it was for our country to have someone in the Oval Office who had no character or integrity even though he was somewhat competent in running the country. I guess people like you don’t care about those qualities anymore. All you care about is ideology. I don’t want to be part of your ideology if you tolerate someone with no character or integrity.
August 14th, 2008 at 7:27 PM
Doesn’t this call the competency of Allison Kruger into question when she is unable to best a convicted wife beater in the endorsing process?
All it shows is that Olson got alot of his cronies into the endorsing convention. Olson’s cronies have disgraced themselves.
August 14th, 2008 at 9:27 PM
A large majority overwhelmingly endorsed Mark Olson as the endorsed candidate. Alison signed a pledge not to continue in the race. If we toss out the rules we are living on our own whim and we have total chaos if we make up rules as we go along.
August 14th, 2008 at 9:49 PM
Chris K is an idiot as well:
“It was a heck of a lot of ordinary folks who made their decision to endorse Mark Olson.”
Yeah, 90+… that’s a heck of a lot of folks who selected Olson. Fuck you.
August 14th, 2008 at 9:53 PM
Chris Cumpula supports wife beaters.
August 14th, 2008 at 11:26 PM
Gary Gross Says:
August 14th, 2008 at 7:27 pm
Doesn’t this call the competency of Allison Kruger into question when she is unable to best a convicted wife beater in the endorsing process?
All it shows is that Olson got alot of his cronies into the endorsing convention. Olson’s cronies have disgraced themselves.
EY: That’s the problem. Why didn’t Allison Krueger get her buddies into the caucus? If she couldn’t do that, how is she going to get her voters out to the polls this September – especially after she promised not to actively campaign against the endorsed candidate?
IR informed is absolutely right – the Senate Republican caucus is too little, too late on this one.
August 15th, 2008 at 8:17 AM
The reason I rarely read blogs is because there is very little truth told in them. This blog is no different. Drew Emmer had several inaccurate statements in his comments. This is very sad to read because truth is truth, no matter how it effects your position. Our problems should never have been exploited to the level that they have been. It is more difficult to stay married in this situation than anyone can imagine, but that is what we are doing. We are trying to work out what happened to cause our problems and with good counseling, are seeing some things that we never knew about each other. We are commited to staying the course and not negatively campaign. There are issues that are not being addressed properly and I think the Senate would benefit from Mark being there, as do the other delegates who attended the convention.
August 15th, 2008 at 11:41 AM
Well after a couple of hours pondering the whole situation last night, I have made the decision to be completely done with MDE.
I will not miss the vulgarity and flagrant name-calling that Michael allows on his site. Besides, How is Swiftee, Chestnut, Abraxia, and the rest of their foul ilk going to persuade people who read this blog to change their minds when they quite frequently use potty language and derogatory titles. I can guarantee that they are not going to win any Senate District 16 voters over by calling the people who endorsed Olson “Idiots”, “Morons”, and so on. They are more likely to do the opposite by urging them to fight harder for the candidate they support.
Secondly, I could care less what Norm Coleman thinks about the Senate District 16 endorsing convention! I have had it up to here with his lousy voting record and wishy-washy stances on issues (not to mention his lame bowling commercials). I would have respected his position on Olson if it would have been done weeks ago when Olson filed (according to Gary Gross a “Personna Non Grata who has no chance of winning”). But now that the game is over and his team lost, he has to pile on with the rest of the Monday morning crowd. No more money, door knocking, or voting for him.
Also, by leaving this site for good, I will no longer have to be berated for not being “A Man In The Arena” when I do not feel compelled to door-knock for mushy moderates with an R behind their name. I am sure I am not alone in this camp alone either!
Lastly, I hope the Republican Party of Minnesota learns their lesson on this. They know full well the climate they are dealing with in SD 16. Krueger (a candidate I have met and think highly of) gave a less than convincing speech and (probably because she was confident that she would easily do away with Olson) signed a pledge to not actively run in the primary. Call a contingent of delegates extreme (heck they called Senator Wergin “liberal” and I think the world of Wergin as a person and a politician), but they alone can’t topple Olson in the endorsing convention. Would I have rather had Krueger win? Yes, but don’t blame Olson, the endorsing process, or his supporters.
Take Care and God Bless America!
I.R. Informed
August 15th, 2008 at 11:45 AM
I.R.,
You mentioned door knocking and I’m wondering if you just knock on delegates’ doors or if you knock on the doors of the voters too? I thought only delegates mattered in an election. The fact that you can only talk about what people say in speeches instead of how they conduct themselves in their personal lives says a lot. It says that the delegates don’t care about anything other than talk. Talk’s cheap, it takes money to buy oats.
August 15th, 2008 at 1:47 PM
Chris Kumpula wrote:
“Mark Olson is the ENDORSED REPUBLICAN, and the Senate Republican Caucus is telling all of the delegates at our convention that they are too stupid an incompetent to choose for themselves who will be endorsed.”
My response:
If that is indeed what they saying then they are correct. If you endorse a wife beater to be the standard bearer of your local party, you are stupid and you are incompetent.
I’m just wondering — For those of you that just shrug, “aw shucks… he paid his debt to society” — do you have any limits? What if the man was a child rapist. Would you still support him?
Stupid. Incompetent. Yes, thank you, that pretty much sums it up.
August 15th, 2008 at 2:10 PM
Don’t let the door hit you on the way out, sellout.
August 15th, 2008 at 3:19 PM
For a more intelligent and civilized discussion:
http://whattherepubliccando.blogspot.com/
August 15th, 2008 at 8:16 PM
So, Mark, when did you stop beating your wife? Sheesh!
August 16th, 2008 at 1:13 AM
Chris,
There is nothing intelligent or civilized about domestic assault. I’ve never supported a Democrat before, but I’d actually considering giving the Dem money if Mark Olson should win the primary. After spending eight years of being disgusted by Bill Clinton’s dispicable personal behavior and lecturing my Democrat friends about Clinton, I cannot in good conscience support a Republican who doesn’t have character and integrity.
August 17th, 2008 at 5:05 PM
[...] as Chris Kumpula comments on Brodkorb’s site: This is disgraceful on the part of everyone having to do with this letter. Our people made their [...]