Jef-Jack Dinner

After a perfect Saturday in Sausalito it was get up early and fly back to Michigan for the Jefferson Jackson Democratic Party Fundraiser at Cobo Hall.  I arrived just in time.  There were more people on the dais than I have ever seen at a dinner and the speeches started with the salad and we were all done with coffee when the 'guest speaker' started.  I am sure that some were thinking - I'm out of here - but Brian Schweitzer the democratic governor of Montana was worth the wait.  Below are a couple of things I remember  - I have obviously paraphrased them.

He was in rancher, 'business casual' and  wore jeans and a bolero tie. He evidently takes his dog to work every day and said that often he has been as nervous as a long tailed cat at a rocking chair convention. 

He told a story about how everyone in Montana has dogs and there is always one dog on every ranch who decides that he is going to chase pickup trucks.  He chases them again and again and again and you know that he is never going to catch the truck but they just keep on chasing.  He went on to say - I am like one of those dogs and ... Damn if I didn't catch the truck!  :-) Running as a Democrat in Montana was pretty much a as crazy as chasing trucks.  

In talking about the differences between Democrats and Republicans, he played to the Michigan crowd starting off with - you all here - you get it because you make cars -  and you know when you get into a car and you want to go FORWARD you take that there shifter and you shift into D .. and if you want to go BACKWARDS ... you shift into R!  

Everyone at my table started out wondering why the heck the Governor from Montana was our guest speaker and left saying - that was awesome - he can come back any time!