A bully in the Senate?

“You may fool all the people some of the time, you can even fool some of the people all of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all the time.”

Abraham Lincoln American 16th US President (1861-65)


There has been a lot going on around the area that had me more than a little exasperated. I haven't blogged for a while because my mom always used to tell me if I didn't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all.

Well, I guess that hasn't stopped me much before, so I can't let it stop me now.

I don't often voice my political views. I like to think I am not a democrat, nor a republican, nor an independent, nor green, nor any other party affiliation. I don't vote for a party -- I vote for a person.

So, here is a major quandary in the Republican party -- at least in the Senate District 16.

Sen. Betsy Wergin resigned her position to take a different job on the Public Utilities Commission. I like Betsy. While I didn't agree 100% with everything she did (I don't often agree 100% on anything) I think she tried to do a good job.

So now Mark Olson is running for a seat in the state Senate on the republican ticket. This is rather alarming to me.

He was representing district 16B in the House of Representatives since 1992 and then expelled -- kicked out -- by the House Republican caucus in December 2006.

He was asked to leave the party.

Why?

Apparently a jury of 12 of his peers agreed with the County Attorney that Olson assaulted his wife. He was found guilty of domestic assault. Although he was convicted of a misdemeanor and not a felony, the cause should set off some alarms in people's brains. He assaulted his wife.

He was convicted of one count of misdemeanor domestic assault by intending to cause fear of bodily harm. He was acquitted of intentionally inflicting or attempting to inflict bodily harm.

He said he didn't intentionally hurt his wife. That he merely grabbed her by the shoulders and placed her on the ground.

On Nov. 12, 2006 Olson's wife, Heidi, called the sheriff's office. She told deputies that her husband pushed her to the ground three times. Apparently in her words he pushed her to the ground -- "placed" her on the ground in his words -- so hard that he left bruises. Deputies noted the bruises in the initial call report.

Mrs. Olson testified in court July 2007 that she feared for her life during the confrontation. She also said he pushed her down and that he told her she ruined his life.

The incident occurred when Heidi challenged his point of view about the treatment of her 13-year-old autistic son, according to the Elk River Star, August 2007. Heidi has five children from a previous marriage.

Here you have a couple in an argument. Couples argue. That is they way it is. Apparently, this couple does not see eye-to-eye on parenting techniques. That happens, too. But, when Mark was challenged by his wife, a woman, and the mother of children that are not his biological children, and one of those children is autistic, he got angry.

Anger happens.

But he didn't stop at anger. He used his hands to hurt another person -- his wife. He used his hands to reinforce his thought process.

I take issue with any man who takes his anger to another level and hurts a woman or a child.

And get this, in the trial, his attorney tried to say that HE was the abused spouse. Heidi hit him several times in two years, the attorney said. If that was really the case, why had he not reported it? Perhaps because he was not afraid of his wife. He was not afraid that she could physically hurt him.

She did admit in court that she hit him once in the chest. Most likely a defensive action.

Olson was quoted in the Aug. 27 issue of the Messenger saying, "If I believed that I assaulted my wife, I would have resigned from the Legislature."

Hmmm.... dictionary.com says:

as·assault –noun
1. a sudden, violent attack; onslaught: an assault on tradition.
2. Law. an unlawful physical attack upon another; an attempt or offer to do violence to another, with or without battery, as by holding a stone or club in a threatening manner.
3. Military. the stage of close combat in an attack.
4. rape1.
–verb (used with object)
5. to make an assault upon; attack; assail.


He hurt his wife. She said so. She said he hurt her and that he scared her so that she feared for her life. The deputies saw bruising on her body.

He was convicted of causing fear.

He believes his conviction is unconstitutional. He doesn't believe that our court system actually helps families. He doesn't believe that we should have laws that convict people for getting angry.

He believes that couples involved in an investigation of abuse or whatever, should be allowed to be together while giving statements to law enforcement. (Perhaps so that one can continuing threatening the other?)

Apparently the defining word for Mark Olson is what he believes.
I am not sure what color the sky is in his world, but it is blue in mine.

What matters on election day is what you believe.

There are other issues on his list of positions Olson outlined in his newsletter to which I do not agree. Fortunately for him, I am not a constituent in district 16. But if I were, I wouldn't vote for him on his positions regarding abortion and global warming alone. But physical abuse is never OK. Causing someone fear for their life is never OK.

But the main issue is he is a hot head who resorts to violence when he is angry. He is a bully by definition.

Do you want that in the Senate?

Do you want that guy making laws for you?

Peace.