From all the buzz you’d think our President talks big and accomplishes little, but this is simply not the case. The fact is, President Obama has already done more for the American people than W bothered to check up on during his entire 8 years.

The credit card reforms he spearheaded are taking effect, to the relief of debtors across the nation. Job recovery is well underway — plus a jobs bill just passed the Senate! Who says you can’t get anything through there these days?

So while it may have been a slow start, the overall tone and quality of leadership from the new White House has been steadily improving. The bolder Barack Obama we have seen this year has come just in time for the GOP to have whiplash over the midterms.

Representative Corey Mock (DNPL-Grand Forks) is doing the rounds today, announcing his candidacy for Secretary of State.

I’ve had opportunities to visit with Mr. Mock over the years, and can see he’s a rising star in North Dakota politics.  At 25, he’s leading a new generation of leadership for our state — leadership that looks increasingly progressive.

I don’t believe I’d rather have anyone else count my vote. I look forward to hearing his platform.

I’ll say this right off:  I’ve met John Hoeven.  He’s a nice person.  He is far more level-headed than pretty much any other Republican you can name in this state.

Will that make any difference once his vote is available at the crack of the GOP Senate Whip?  I’d say if they can whip John McCain, they can break anybody.

After being elected to serve as the Governor for longer than any other person, does he really plan in the end to only equal Governor Guy’s record 10 years?

What else has John Hoeven done for this state that will merit recognition 20 years down the road?

I can recall exactly one success of leadership during the Hoeven administration: raising teacher pay from 50th to 49th in the nation.  It was the only time I can recall when the Governor of North Dakota actually called the legislature back to finish the job.

Since then, he’s shown no sign of being able to do that again.

Maybe most of his biggest successes were soft power, backroom deals, that moderated the worst of the right-wing attack dogs in the state legislature.  But that’s not something to run on, even if it was true.

So just what is Governor Hoeven’s legacy?  And what, if anything, could a Senator Hoeven do that would make up for so many years of sitting at his desk quietly?

I had to come out of hiatus for this.

Byron Dorgan, longtime U.S. Senator from our fair state, has decided against running in 2010.  This is exactly the kind of break John Hoeven was looking for during his months of meandering maybes on the question of running for the Senate.  But if the Governor expects to abandon his post and move to Washington by acclamation, he’s sorely mistaken.

Aspiring Dem-NPLers now have a platform to show themselves off, and the best of them will win the nomination to continue Byron’s tradition of progressive leadership.