People sometimes wonder why I have such an interest in politics, given that my views are frequently orthogonal to the mainstream, and why I have no personal desire to be directly involved.
Well, that’s because the dance, the strategizing involved in political maneuvering is just absolutely fascinating to me. Consider this story from today’s Courant:
Should Gov. M. Jodi Rell accept deeply discounted heating oil for Connecticut’s poor if it comes - via a gubernatorial rival - from the government of Venezuela’s socialist president, Hugo Chavez?
It is a delicate question that Rell soon must answer thanks to a deal arranged by one of her Democratic opponents, New Haven Mayor John DeStefano Jr.[...]
If she endorses the oil deal, Rell is setting up DeStefano to claim credit for securing 4.8 million gallons of oil that would help 24,000 families each save a couple hundred dollars this heating season.
A negative response would leave Rell open to criticism that she kept aid from the poor, perhaps for fear of insulting Bush.
The article mentions that she’s soliciting an opinion from (Democratic) Attorney General Richard Blumenthal.
This is an entertaining lose-lose situation for the Governor. There is, of course, only one acceptable answer — to accept the oil if it is deemed legal to do so — but in doing so, she elevates her potential (probable?) opponent in this year’s gubernatorial election.
It’ll be interesting to see if she has the political skill to come out on top, to side-step the little boost given to DeStefano, or to just take the political licks as they’re dealt and to move on.
Lest there be a misunderstanding, I am inclined to like Governor Rell. She’s not a crook, like her predecessor was, for one thing (or if she is a crook, at least she doesn’t seem any more crooked than most politicians). It’s nice to have an example that there are still many moderate, reasonable GOP’ers out there (even if they do sometimes get lost in the froth emanating from the wacknuts). And I admire her ability to stick to her guns on issues she feels strongly about, yet she can find ways to reach compromises without getting stuck in the political swamp. (E.g., vetoing a spending bill because of some offensive-to-her provisions, but enacting the rest of the bill via executive order, thereby saving some of what was sought both in the capitol and at the governor’s mansion.)
True, I don’t always agree with her on some issues…but there aren’t many (any?) politicians I would wholeheartedly agree with.
It’s not hard to understand why her approval rating is so high in the state.