Two of Minneapolis’ most prominent “leaders,” Congressman Keith Ellison and Minneapolis Mayor RT Rybak, are out of town this week, hanging in Charlotte for the Democratic National Convention.
Rybak got some love from the Legacy Media this weekend, with a nice write up in Politico about the rise of the Democrat Mayor:
Part of that engagement, according to Rybak, comes from a sense that mayors represent “the last functioning form of government in the country” — a world apart from Washington gridlock — where Democratic politicians can showcase their party’s values by protecting social welfare and economic growth programs even in a climate of austerity.
“We have achievement gaps, we have bridges and other pieces of infrastructure collapsing, we [are] trying to move forward increasingly diverse communities. We have to put police and firemen on the streets. All this in the midst of having dramatically less money,” said Rybak, who is also president of the National Conference of Democratic Mayors. “What’s really happened is, this is part of an ongoing, four-year effort that’s now really paying off. Mayors are finally prominent.”
What an interesting statement. You certainly have an achievement gap Mr. Mayor. In fact, it’s among the worst in the country. You also have an unemployment gap. On that measurement, you rank the worst.
So while the citizens of Minneapolis are dealing with the reality of an undereducated and underemployed population, and living in the 10th most dangerous city in America, Rybak is the President of the National Conference of Democratic Mayors, and jetting off to enjoy the national spotlight.
And he loves the national spotlight:
Right now, Mayor Rybak is extremely busy with his full-time job, and then he spends a lot of time stumping for President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign. Rybak is the first Minneapolis Mayor to be named Vice-Chair of the Democratic National Committee. He has spent a lot of time volunteering at that job criss-crossing the country and the national television airwaves. Mayor Rybak tells 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS “some people hunt and fish for hobbies, my hobby is campaigning.”
Keith Ellison is another Minneapolis “leader” who is addicted to the national spotlight. While some of his peers are skipping the DNC this year, Ellison went early.
Just three of the six DFL members of Congress are expected to be in Charlotte this week. Rep. Keith Ellison is already in town hobnobbing with delegates and others. He has a full speaking schedule over the course of the week.
Ellison’s excuse for being in Charlotte- going to the convention will help him with voter outreach, or something.
Ellison added that his campaign has been working to identify DFL voters to turn out on Election Day. He said going to the convention will help with that grassroots work.
The problems in Minneapolis, which is the heart of Ellison’s district, are huge. To actually begin to solve them would take hard work, dedication and focus. National speaking slots and fancy sounding titles won’t fix the unemployment gap in Minneapolis.
Both Ellison and Rybak claim to care about Minneapolis, and both would tell you their number one focus is jobs.
But if you judge them by their actions instead of their rhetoric, it’s clear that the only jobs that Keith Ellison and RT Rybak really care about are their own.
