Smackdown: Ventura set to run

by Rich Broderick • June 3, 2008 • As if the U.S. Senate race in Minnesota weren’t murky enough, sources close to former Governor Jesse Ventura confirm that he is all but certain to throw his hat into the ring in the not-too-distant future. Ventura’s motivations appear to be a general (and widely shared) dissatisfaction with the state of the country, the partisan bickering between the GOP and the Democratic Party, and, closer to home, the likely pairing of Norman Coleman and Al Franken as the two major party alternatives. That Ventura also has a new book out on the stands may be another factor egging him on. As discussed here and elsewhere, his participation in the race could be decisive. More than a few observers, including yours truly, think he’d have a more than even-chance of winning election in a three-way race pitting him against Coleman – whom he beat in the 1998 gubernatorial race (and for whom he has little respect, if public comments he’s made lately are any guide) -- and comedian-turned-candidate Al Franken. Buckle your seatbelts. Looks like we're in for a bumpy ride.