Mark Kennedy: Get a Clue

As an educated political observer, I’m amused by Mark Kennedy’s outlandish commercials. Is there anything this guy won’t say to get elected? Does he have a conscience?

All at once Kennedy manages to lie, patronize, and offend. He leans on the tried and true Republican cry of “Democrats = higher taxes.” He claims that Amy Klobuchar wants to ration drugs, has handed out plea bargains willy-nilly, and she is somehow responsible for a rise in the Minneapolis crime rate. He generally comes across as a smarmy smartass. (Please forgive the personal attack, but am I wrong?)

First off, for anyone not familiar with the legal process, plea bargains are a normal part of the legal system. They improve efficiency, reduce costs (save taxpayer $, reducing the need for new taxes), and can protect families from painful trials. Like any tool, they can be abused, but they should not be considered “bad” in and of themselves.

Second, health care costs are rising at unsustainable rates. It is completely irrational to think that we can continue along our current path without denying the less fortunate among us some of the most basic medical care. It is unpleasant to think that economic concerns may reduce our treatment options, but that could soon be a reality. The Republicans have been in control of all three branches for six years, and have done nothing but create a complex medicare drug program. Kennedy, and other Republicans, should avoid talking about healthcare policy like the plague. They have done nothing to get a handle on the upward spiraling costs.

Finally, how much influence does a county prosecutor have on the Minneapolis crime rate? None, zip, zilch. All a prosecutor can do is punish crimes after the fact. I doubt that the madmen firing guns into downtown crowds even know what a county prosecutor is until they sit across from them in court. I guess Mark Kennedy thinks that Ms. Klobechar should have packed some heat and patrolled the streets of Minneapolis herself.

In his most recent ad, Kennedy makes the case for “staying the course” in Iraq. At the end of the ad he states, “I approve this message, even though it may not be what you want to hear.” For once he’s right. We don’t want to hear it you patronizing clown. Go home and review your adult children’s allowance requests, and leave the politics to someone who "gets it."