The Duluth News Tribune released its annual list of the top 10 northern Minnesota news stories for 2010. I don’t argue with the top story, the Republican gains and defeat of Jim Oberstar in Minnesota’s Eighth District. That was easy, though. The editorial decisions made after that are dubious, in my opinion. I wasn’t going to say anything about the bear story making the list, until I saw that the bear story placed ahead of a bar fire. Only some of these stories seem fixed to the time and place of northern Minnesota in 2010. And DNT, you’d be doing yourself some favors up north if you mentioned something outside the Twin Ports.
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Bigger news is Oberstar has not called or contacted Cravaack yet!!!! That’s not the worst of it. Oberstar also destroyed ALL citizen letters sent to his office by us, the people he represents. Rather than have a simple transfer of requests and complaints he’s received, he shredded them, complicating the whole process. Class act Jim.
I haven’t seen this much agony over a non-phone call since I was 16 and “Jim Oberstar” was a pretty girl.
As for the files, shredding is SOP especially when there is sensitive information in the files. It’s been done by Republicans and Democrats. There have been other times files were transferred outright, but that was with permission and/or when the information was less sensitive. Bear in mind that this was not a planned transition and there were 36 years of files. I’m not saying this is what I would have done, but keep the outrage in perspective. At some point all this Oberstar anger is going to have to be replaced with governance.
Aaron I understand you are an apologist for Oberstar, but come on. It’s not SOP to destroy files of your constituents that are meaningful, it’s called a transition period with a transition team for a reason. The letters that complain your neighbors cat is bothering you get tossed, the letters that are legit get passed on because YOU WORK FOR THE FOLKS THAT WROTE THE LETTERS. That is why he lost, he’s above the common folk. Not a planned transition???? Did he not read the op/eds and hear the people up here ask to be heard? He must have watched MSNBC too much. Progressive Elite that Jim is, had to go.
I think constituent services are understood to be important by all involved. The issue is the procedure during the transition. It is a partisan universe in federal intervention and this isn’t that uncommon. Again, not what I personally would have recommended but then again I’m not the one aware of the files and what’s in them. I don’t know if you are official or recreational in your posting anonymous comments but this is a manufactured story. At some point Cravaack needs to focus on governance, is my point. I hope he does.
Yes, we should all switch over from MSNBC to Fox, all 9,000 regular MSNBC viewers. That’d solve everything. Fox’s puffed up elites are soooo much better than the others.
Maybe instead we could just bring it down a notch and stop saying th same things every time I write the word Oberstar in a post.
Wow, just admit he’s wrong and it’s childish. That can’t hurt that much. The good news is you won’t have to write Oberstar’s name anymore. Good news for you great news for us in District 8.
Hey Aaron,
Anonymous is right. Oberstar has no authority to destroy ALL files. Most are property of the government office. He had a bad attitude at the debates and is a sore loser. Now he’s going to go to the U of M and take more of our taxpayer dollars as a guest lecturer. Interestingly enough, he’ll also be collecting his government pension. Isn’t that double dipping? Sadly, he calls this “public service”. How in the world is collecting a paycheck to be a lecturer considered “service”? The guy is – and always has been- a fraud to the 8th district. Linda Smith
Lots in that reply, Linda. I’m not Jim Oberstar’s press agent, so I’m just speaking for myself and I’ve spoken. A lot of government retirees were census workers this past year and they weren’t double dipping. A job is a job. But we could go on and on down this road. Governance and policy are my concerns.
The way Oberstar ended his reign was summed up by an American author years ago –
“It has been the political career of this man to begin with hypocrisy, proceed with arrogance, and finish with contempt” – Thomas Paine
I now know why I love Thomas Paine.