Peter McLaughlin and his waivering about the County smoking ban has made me feel sad. He could have been something and now he's just going to be Mayor of Minneapolis. Gary Dombouy Whittier -----Original Message----- From: List manager <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [email protected] Sent: Wed, 3 Aug 2005 15:43:04 -0500 Subject: [Mpls] Rybak campaign: McLaughlin sold vote
The fur is now officially flying in the Mpls Mayor's race. This came from R.T. Rybak's campaign this afternoon. Hard-hitting or overly harsh? Comments to the list. ? David Brauer, list manager Contact: John Blackshaw Phone: 612-871-3044 Mobile: 612-816-0990 August 3, 2005 Peter McLaughlin Flip-Flops on Smoking Ban and Sells Vote for Campaign Dollars Hennepin County Commissioner Peter McLaughlin once again has demonstrated his old guard style of politics by selling his vote to a special interest group. According to a Minneapolis Star Tribune article dated August 3, 2005, last week, in a matter of hours, Mr. McLaughlin withdrew his support for the Hennepin County smoking ban and then attended a fundraiser as the guest of honor hosted by the very group that would directly benefit from his flip flop. ?This is the worst kind of politics,? said John Blackshaw Mayor Rybak?s campaign manager. ?Changing a vote in order to gain the financial support of a special interest group is the very thing that voters dislike about politicians. He calls it a ?coincidence?. I call it a sellout.? The smoking ban opponents have no doubt that Mr. McLaughlin has joined their ranks. Just a few hours after they testified at the county board meeting against the ban they lined up to write checks for Mr. McLaughlin at the fundraiser. Moreover, they bragged about it as well. Sue Jeffers, a smoking ban opponent gloated by stating, "I had so much fun," she said. "A lot of the talk was about the smoking ban," Jeffers added. " (Star Tribune, August 3, 2005) . In addition, on August 2, 2005, in a county board meeting dominated by opponents of the smoking ban, Mr. McLaughlin left no doubt about his flip flop by joining in the attack of Dr. Michael Belzer, the medical director for the Hennepin County Medical Center, who pleaded with Commissioners not to change their positions on the smoking ban. Further, the opponents of the smoking ban, specifically the Minneapolis Hospitality Association - a group organized specifically to overturn the bans ? openly acknowledges the political nature of Mr. McLaughlin?s flip flop. The group?s president stated that by using its political clout his group ?could get Peter McLaughlin elected?. (Star Tribune, August 3, 2005) ?What is almost as bad as trading a vote for cash?, continued Blackshaw, ?is that Mr. McLaughlin seems to be saying to the public, ?your health is for sale so that I can get elected?. He is using a public health issue strictly for his own personal political gain?. ###REMINDERS: 1. Be civil! Please read the NEW RULES at http://www.e-democracy.org/rules. If you think a member is in violation, contact the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[email protected] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls REMINDERS: 1. Be civil! Please read the NEW RULES at http://www.e-democracy.org/rules. If you think a member is in violation, contact the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[email protected] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
