Paul Tosto
That didn’t take long.
Just a day or so after Jason Lewis won a crucial GOP primary in Minnesota’s 2nd Congressional District, left-leaning national media are showing a deeper interest in the past comments and writings of the former conservative radio talk show host.
Like him or not, there’s no doubt that with his win, Lewis has graduated to a new level of political scrutiny.
On Tuesday, for instance, Mother Jones magazine showed a strong interest in Lewis’ thoughts on the Civil War, slavery and women, writing:
Lewis’ past comments have been a gold mine for critics. In his 2011 book, “Power Divided Is Power Checked: The Argument for States’ Rights,” he questioned the wisdom of the Civil War, arguing that it had been fought over states rights, not slavery, and changed the nation’s constitutional framework for the worse.
In his book, he proposed a constitutional amendment that would help restore what he believed had been lost, by allowing any state to leave the Union peaceably.
Today, Esquire Magazine political writer Charles Pierce gives a shout out to the Mother Jones piece as he gets in a dig or two, first on Wisconsin, then Minnesota:
Skipping across the St. Croix River, we discover that some nice folks in Minnesota have nominated themselves quite a character for Congress in that state’s Second District. It is always a very bad sign when you see a major-party candidate described as a “former talk-show host” because you just know that the person is the Comstock Lode of oppo research.
Lewis faces Democratic nominee Angie Craig for a seat Republicans have long held. But with retirement of GOP Rep. John Kline, the race to replace him is expected to be expensive and fierce.
Given that the Minnesota 2nd is among the districts that could be a difference-maker in deciding which party controls the U.S. House, we’re expecting a lot more people from out of state, national press credentials swinging from their necks, to show up, drive to a coffee shop, then plumb the depths of voter discontent from Prior Lake to Plainview.