Folks, there’s a change a-coming across this nation of ours and it’s going to be a political thirst for the leadership of someone who is plain-speaking, stands out and above the dirty-money, wishy-washy, triangulated, corporate-funded, sock puppet career politicians who currently populate far too many government positions of power nationwide.
Here’s my choice for a breath of fresh air.
From the Boise Weekly comes this collection of Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer quotes:
The Quotable Schweitzer
BY NICHOLAS COLLIAS
DECEMBER 7, 2005
The Boise Weekly
On open government: “We have not only open government, but open door. On the first day in office, I invited the press in, I showed them the key to my office, and I threw it away. I told them, ‘This door will never be closed.'”
On biodiesel: It just doesn’t make sense for farmers to produce wheat, being subsidized by the federal government, shipping that wheat to the Middle East and everywhere else, and meeting boats on the high seas delivering oil.”
On the Iraq War: “After Every one of those [soldier’s funerals, I recommit myself that we will not buy oil from sheiks and dictators and rats and crooks from all over the world. It’s time for us to be energy self-reliant.”
On being governor: “There are very few other jobs where you are expected to know for an entire state what’s biting, where they’re biting and what they’re biting on. But I do.”
On Plame-gate: “‘Scooter?’ What kind of a name is ‘Scooter’ for a man in the White House? Of course he can’t keep a secret!”
On coal burning energy: “Here’s what you do: Crush it, ignite it, and then you create high pressure steam which turns a turbine. Then, here’s the secret: You build a stack, really high, high enough that all the mercury and the sulfur and the carbon dioxide that you can put up that stack goes to somebody else’s community.”
On the deficit: “I’d like you to look over at your spouse and see if there’s a little twinkle in the eye. Because we need more children to pay this thing off. A lot of them.”
On the rationale for Iraq: “Democracy in the Middle East? Let me tell you something: You know who our allies are there? Saudi Arabia: king. Kuwait: king. Jordan: king. Amman: king. Bahrain: king. The list goes on. All kings.”
On China: “They have coal, and if they burn that coal in the old technology like they want to do right here in the Magic Valley, they will destroy the planet with both mercury and CO2. If we get clean-coal technology right, and we get them that technology, we might be able to save their country and our planet.
Did someone mean “Oman”? Amman is Jordan’s capital.
Otherwise, very interesting quotes.
I love him. Thanks for continuing to remind us about him.
Was it you who told us the story about how one day he walked into his own office and there were two tourists eating at his conference table. They had literally walked through his “open door,” and sat down, thinking it was the cafeteria.
I heard that story — he had quite a nice chat with them before one of them asked him what his job was…
I really like this guy. We need a couple dozen more like him… all over the country and in the White House.
Damn!!!! Almost wish that I lived in Montana. But I love MI, despite the fact that that DINO Graholm is governor.
That explains it. Bush is buddies with the Saudi, Jordanian, and (inherited from his daddy) the Kuwaiti royal houses, and the Barhaini royals let him put a shiny new base on their kingdom’s soil.
So, I guess Fearless Leader’s having delusions of blue blood in his veins — trying to keep up with the Royal Jonses — as he behaves more and more like a Middle Eastern despot.
This clinches it — I’m moving to Montana.
and will be on another reconnaisance mission 🙂 within the month.
I want to live somewhere less urbanized, where people are more comfy living with less, adn more used to helping each other out.
Again. Have lived like that before, liked it.
Politicians who understand the concept of clean and honest government…Tom DeLay should be taking notes.