Let me set the record straight about two recent statements that have
incorrectly been attributed to the "DFL Party."
First, Kristine Harley wrote, "It disturbs me that the DFL refers to
the possible election of Samuels as a 'disaster' (STrib) for the Democratic
Party, when the percentage of people in Ward Three who do not vote is not
similarly considered to be a disaster, not for the DLF, not for the city,
not for the state, nor for the nation. . . . Now I wonder if the Mpls DFL
even believes in equality anymore."
The DFL Party has not made any such statement. Here is what the
StarTribune reported in this morning's newspaper: "Brian Rice, a lawyer,
DFLer and longtime observer of Minneapolis politics, said he expects the
race to be decided by relatively few voters. He said that the race is
Moore's to lose and that if he does, it will be 'an unmitigated disaster'
for the DFL." Brian F. Rice is an attorney with the law firm Rice, Michels &
Johnson LLP, whose website identifies him as general counsel to the
Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board. Mr. Rice holds no office or other title
in the DFL Party, does not speak for the DFL Party, and is not connected
with the DFL Party in any way other than being a "DFLer." I don't know
whether Mr. Rice even lives in Minneapolis; my records show that he did not
attend any DFL precinct caucus in Minneapolis in 2002, and the only
Minneapolis listing for any Brian Rice in the QwestDex white pages is a
downtown office listing. To be fair to Mr. Rice, it does not appear from the
Strib article that he was holding himself out as speaking for anyone but
himself, and I have no idea why the Strib quoted him.
For the record, the DFL Party does not agree that Don Samuels
getting elected would be a "disaster" of any kind. The DFL Party has
endorsed Olin Moore, and hopes that the voters will concur with its
recommendation. But if the voters elect Don Samuels instead of Olin Moore,
then they will simply have chosen one DFLer over another, and from my
viewpoint a choice between two DFLers is the best of all worlds for the
Party. The DFL Party's endorsement says something positive about Olin Moore;
it says nothing negative about Don Samuels.
Second, on Saturday, Jonathan Palmer wrote, "The only downside of
the whole day was hearing about the pressure being exerted by high-level
party leaders to discourage people from endorsing Don or worse to get people
who have supported Don to withdraw that support." Eric Mitchell later
challenged Jonathan's statement, writing, "Another accusation of a man
behind the curtain. Who, Jonathan, is pressuring who to withdraw support?
This is getting ridiculous, please name names . . . . What 'high level party
leader' is discouraging people from endorsing Don? From where I sit, (near
Party leadership), there are two DFLers running. The goal is to maintain as
many DFLers in this party and process as possible. One race is not worth
turning people away. So, outside of vigorous campaigning, who's flexing on
who? I beleive it was made clear, and now it's been demostrated, DFLers are
free to support whomever they want, only those who ask to be party officers
are agreeing to support the endorsed candidate." Eva Young then wrote on the
mpls-3rdWard list, "Eric, the pressure was coming from Brian Beale to Barb
Johnson. Brian Beale isn't from the DFL, he's from Labor. . . . I got the
story from Dennis Plante, who mentioned that Barb Johnson was pressured by
the DFL. I later found out that it was Brian Beale, not the DFL -- something
I was more likely to believe."
For the record, I am unaware of any such "pressure being exerted" by
anyone in the DFL Party's leadership. I hope that Jonathan will explain what
he was referring to and, if the "pressure" was coming from somewhere outside
the DFL Party, that he will correct himself. I don't know anything about the
information that Eva presented, except that Brian Biele is an employee of
the Minneapolis Building & Construction Trades Council, and that he holds no
office or other title in the DFL Party and does not speak for the DFL Party.
The Minneapolis DFL Party is a large and diverse community. It
includes Olin Moore, it includes Don Samuels, and it includes many good
members who support each candidate. Not every DFLer who speaks about this
election is necessarily speaking for the DFL Party and, unless a Party
officer identifies himself or herself by title or otherwise claims that he
or she is speaking for the Party, you should assume that any such member is
speaking only for himself or herself.
BRM
Brian Melendez, Chair,
Minneapolis DFL Party
Downtown
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