Although former Representative Tim Penny hasn't been a Democrat since 2002 (when he ran as the Independence Party gubernatorial candidate), Penny and McCain's campaign are partying like it's 1993 in Denver. It may well be for John McCain.
The crack team at the PiPress's Political Animal was certainly impressed enough to post about Penny's presence twice.
The IP stalwart has been trotted out to demonstrate that something in Denver is a mile high and an inch deep. Something certainly seemed an inch deep alright, especially in one awkward moment:
. . . the conference provided a few awkward moments. While Penny praised McCain's decision-making ability, he also said the Vietnam veteran could make a better decision than to tap Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty as his right hand man. By most accounts, Pawlenty is on McCain's short list of vice presidential candidates.
"I don't think he has had a very remarkable record as governor," explained Penny, who challenged Pawlenty in the 2002 gubernatorial election. "This is a step up, and I'm not sure he is as well prepared as others for this step up."
There's some awkwardness closer to home as well. As we noted back in July, Tim Penny's son Marcus staffed the DFL booth at the Waseca County Fair on Obama's behalf. The Waseca County News reported in Fair game for campaigns:
Penny said he’s a Democrat because he grew up as a Democrat. Even though his dad, former Democratic congressman Tim Penny, changed his views, Marcus Penny said he stays with “what I grew up knowing and believing.”
This year, the added excitement for Penny and Mullen comes from presidential candidate Barack Obama. They believe he has done a lot of good for the Democratic Party, drawing new voters and disenfranchised and independent voters by bringing a new tone to politics.
Penny said, “I absolutely think he can win.” . . .
A correspondent also sent us a note about yard signs in the district on August 12. After remarking about the paucity of lawns for either major party presidential candidate, he wrote:
Oh, one last thing from my Waseca County Fair trip, I did see two Presidential signs ... both on the same yard ... one for McCain and one for Obama ... the yard belonged to Tim Penny . . .
We summarized that information in a post, and informed our friend about the household split.
Note: As snarky as the above post is, Penny isn't always an inch deep; one interesting project he's involved in is the Energy Literacy Advocates. His recent work at the Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation is also a sophisticated response to rural economic development.
Photo: Tim Penny being an inch deep in Denver; photo from Post Bulletin article.
Penny has been on the McCain bandwagon for a very long time … longer than Norm Coleman or John Kline ( I’m sure your readers will recall Bachmann’s comments at Sherburne County Convention that McCain was not her choice).
Penny and McCain served in the House together … but I don’t know if they served on any committees together.
Penny is a fiscal conservative and opposes abortion so that would appeal to the Republican base. In fact, Penny and John Kasich (ex-Congressman (R) from Ohio and a classmate of mine) worked together on some alternative budget bills during the Clinton years, so Tim knows the value in working across party lines.
Yet, Penny’s big issue has been the national debt and the impact of Social Security and Medicare. McCain has been far from clear as to what he would do about SS … one minute he opposes raising taxable rates … and then “everything is on the table.”
But worst is McCain’s overall tax proposals. Keeping the Bush Tax cuts and cutting Corporate Taxes will not get us to a balanced budget nor impact the national debt. When working families start hearing about his plans, they will reject McCain.
In some ways its as if Penny would rather not embrace his “old Party” since that would diminish his Independence Party … but you gotta like the Pawlenty comment … and he’s made those types of comments before.
Posted by: MinnesotaCentral | August 25, 2008 at 07:25 PM