DFL gubernatorial candidate Margaret Anderson Kelliher has a new pitch: I stay and fight.
The pitch appears to be a subtle jab at rivals Mark Dayton, who left the Senate after one term, and Matt Entenza, who left the Minnesota House to run for Attorney General in 2006 and then quit the AG race when controversy overtook his candidacy.
After Kelliher promoted her staying power in a pre-taped public television debate, reporters asked her about the new line:
Reporter I: "Isn't this a criticism of Sen. Dayton and Entenza? I mean, aren't your trying to flush out that they both left the..."
Kelliher: "This is going to be a tough job, being the next governor of this state. It is a bad budget situation. There are a lot of pressures on that budget and I think people want to know what kind of person you are. And I've stayed in the arena. I've stood. I've fought. I've fought on behalf of Minnesotans."
Reporter II: "Do you think they left the arena when they should have kept fighting?"
Kelliher: "I think that is a question for them."
Reporter: "It's a question for you, too."
