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Reality Check: Why Jesse Ventura Isn't Running

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Jul 15, 2008 11:10 pm US/Central

Reality Check: Why Jesse Ventura Isn't Running

Reporting
Pat Kessler

Former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura's reasons not to run for U.S. Senate aren't really surprising. It's something we've heard before -- he says the media will attack his family and the system is unfair to third party candidates.

However, what he says in public is different from the nuts and bolts. Ventura consulted extensively with a small group of trusted friends and advisers about a Senate run, and his "on the air" reasons for NOT running don't match what they discussed in private.

"God's never spoken to me once. Never," said Ventura when he announced that he would not run on CNN's Larry King Live show on Monday night.

IN FACT…

Ventura placed himself at a serious competitive disadvantage promising to spend no more on a campaign than he would earn in the Senate which is about $978,000.

Already, Democratic candidate Al Franken and Incumbent Republican Norm Coleman have raised a combined $22 million.

And there's MORE that could have been problematic.

Ventura believes in a 9/11 conspiracy . He believes the U.S. government may have engineered the attacks to gain control of Mideast oil.

But that's NOT THE WHOLE STORY.

Most of Ventura's reasons for not running are personal. He doesn't like the frequent air travel between Washington, D.C. and Minnesota. In fact, he flies as little as possible because of a medical history of blood clots.

Here's the BOTTOM LINE...

Ventura may not have been willing to put in the time required to serve. He looked at a 2008 Senate schedule and it would have prevented Ventura from spending as much time in Mexico as he would like. And that's important to him.

"The ocean doesn't lie to you," said Ventura. "The waves don't lie to you.  My government does lie to me today."

It's TRUE...

Ventura lives only part of the year in his suburban Twin Cities home. He said he spends more than half of the year in Mexico, raising questions about his Minnesota residency. And it's a well-to-do and comfortable lifestyle he's unwilling to give up.

That's Reality Check.

To check the resources for this Reality Check click on the links below.
2008 Congressional Race In Minnesota Spending
YouTube: Ventura On Howard Stern On Government And 9/11
YouTube: Jesse Ventura on 9/11 with Alex Jones 2008
CNN: Ventura Hospitalized With Blood Clot In Lung
Newsweek: Jesse Ventura's 'Body' Politics

 

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