Robert Donachie on June 5, 2018
Democratic Rep. Keith Ellison of Minnesota is expected to announce both his retirement from Congress Tuesday and a bid to become the next attorney general of the state of Minnesota.
“I will make a decision tomorrow because it’s the filling deadline,” Ellison told Politico Tuesday.
The far left Democrat, a member of the Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont wing of the party, has served in Congress since 2007. He’s also served as the deputy chair of the Democratic National Committee since 2017.
Lack of power and decision making have left Ellison wanting more. Serving in the minority party in the House hasn’t been easy for the past two years and he is number two at the DNC, taking orders from chairman Tom Perez. Becoming AG would give Ellison more power and allow him to help move the Democratic party towards what he wants: One that is resisting President Donald Trump’s every move.
Ellison reportedly withheld a potential bid earlier in the year when it looked like Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson was going to forgo a campaign for governor. Swanson was unable to swing enough support for her own reelection as AG and has since thrown her name in gubernatorial race.
The Minnesota representative harbors many of the same views as the far left-wing of the Democratic party, like open borders and creating a maximum wage(which would equate to taxing earnings after a certain amount 100 percent).
He also has a personal relationship with a known, avid anti-Semite. It hasn’t hindered Ellison before or after he got elected to Congress and it is unclear if it will in his campaign for AG, but the Minnesota representative has a long-history of working with notorious anti-Semite and Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan.
What is interesting about Ellison’s relationship with Farrakhan is that he has repeatedly denied there is one while serving in Congress, despite having at least three meetings with Farrakhan–including one at the Muslim leader’s private hotel room–since he took office in 2007.
Ellison isn’t alone in his relationship with Farrakhan. At least seven House Democrats have direct ties to the anti-Semitic leader.
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