The GOP leaning Let Freedom Ring blog in the second half of a posting about Elwyn Tinklenberg analyzes and links to a MnDOT Newsline web posting which notes among other news of the time the legislative auditor's 2000-2001 oversight of MnDOT's own internal auditing and practices. The GOP blog quotes:
In response to a recent department internal audit, Mn/DOT will improve project oversight to ensure that contractors and public agencies working under department supervision meet state and federal regulations.
The audit, which covered the fiscal year ending June 30, 2001, was part of Mn/DOT’s annual review of its financial statements and federal programs. The department forwards the results of its internal audit to the Office of the Legislative Auditor each year for review. The legislative auditor publicly released its report about Mn/DOT’s findings on March 26.
“Our internal audit findings indicate we have areas in which we need to improve,” Commissioner Elwyn Tinklenberg said. “Fortunately, we have already defined processes to make us more efficient and accountable and are taking measures to address all of the concerns raised.”
The audit identified seven areas of concern, including suggesting that MnDOT did not provide adequate oversight to Hennepin County engineers in properly disposing of lead paint residue removed from the Washington Avenue bridge in Minneapolis. According to the original audit report, the Hennepin County contractor improperly disposed of 117 tons of bridge lead paint blasting residue at a landfill instead of disposing it at a hazardous waste treatment facility.
[emphasis added] This looks to be cutting corners, and gambling with the health of others. This is too similar a thing to the taconite tailings situation where the prudence of the precautionary principle was overridden by intent to do things a decided way, risk be damned, and with both instances evidencing an environmental unawareness and affront which are things that should be hard for voters to reconcile with a candidate suggesting he represents a more capable and sagacious choice than his admittedly problematic opponent.
Yes, there is little doubt Michele Bachmann is indeed an off the wall zealot who has done little positive for the District. But she never dumped 117 tons of toxic waste wrongly, there is that she can say for herself. Nor did she look the other way when others were up to such cost cutting mischief. She did not have both responsibility and a blind eye, her record is clear of that sort of blemish.
And this is the GOP pointing things out.
We all know the story, Gov. Pawlenty seeing the little girl with the kittens in a box, her telling him they are Republican kittens, then two weeks later seeing her again and asking how the Republican kittens are doing. And she says, "They're DFL kittens now. Their eyes have opened."
Jokes aside, how should voters weigh this recent reinvestigation into aspects of the Tinklenberg attitude toward environmental safety, especially in light of ongoing worry over taconite tailings being used in paving?
It's there. It''s a problem Tinklenberg should face and explain.
Before November will there be more of the same called again to our attention? Will that sort of thing hurt the balance of the DFL ticket in the Sixth District?