Floyd B. Olson

A Balloon Juice reader sent in this picture to their site from a rally in St. Paul on Saturday in support of the Wisconsin public sector workers.  I was struck by the length of the quote on the sign, but also that the quote was from Floyd B. Olson, Governor of Minnesota from 1931-1936, representing the Farmer-Labor Party (later merged with the Democratic Party to create the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, or DFL)  It is an interesting quote, but it also should be a reminder to business interests how lucky they are that the government stepped in to "interfere" with the "free market" in 2008 to prevent a recurrence of the Great Depression.  Governor Olsen played a pivotal role as one of the close-to-socialist politicians who dealt with the fallout at that time.  Businesses today can't even imagine what plans were considered then to deal with the crisis.

A little history after the jump (including the origin of the Floyd of Rosedale trophy)
From Wikipedia
Prior to becoming governor:

In 1923, Olson brought a case against the leaders of the Minnesota Citizens Alliance, a conservative business organization dedicated to preserving right-to-work laws, after they hired a hitman to dynamite the home of a union leader. Olson's vigorous pursuit of the Citizens Alliance made him a hero to the local labor movement, which encouraged him to run for the Minnesota Farmer-Labor Party's gubernatorial nomination.

After the start of the Great Depression, Olsen was elected governor:

At the time Olson assumed his office, Minnesota's legislature was officially nonpartisan, but was, in reality, dominated by conservative Republicans who opposed most of what Olson stood for.
Nevertheless, Olson soon proved himself skilled at the art of politics and he managed to fulfill the vast majority of his campaign promises. During his three terms as governor, Olson proposed, and the legislature passed, bills that instituted a progressive income tax, created a social security program for the elderly, expanded the state's environmental conservation programs, guaranteed equal pay for women and the right to collective bargaining, and instituted a minimum wage and a system of unemployment insurance.
Despite these changes, the thing that Olson wanted the most, a bill that would have put Minnesota's electric utilities, iron mines, oil fields, grain elevators, and meatpacking plants under state ownership, never saw the light of day, as the legislature balked at what they saw as socialism and Olson insisted was "cooperativism."
As the platform of his party grew successively more radical, Olson's support amongst the middle class gradually began to erode. His support with labor and agriculture, however, remained undiminished and he was easily re-elected in 1932 and 1934.
In its April 24, 1933, issue, Time magazine quoted Olson speaking from the steps of the state capitol:
"I am making a last appeal to the Legislature. If the Senate does not make provision for the sufferers in the State and the Federal Government refuses to aid, I shall invoke the powers I hold and shall declare martial law. ... A lot of people who are now fighting [relief] measures because they happen to possess considerable wealth will be brought in by provost guard and be obliged to give up more than they would now. There is not going to be misery in this State if I can humanly prevent it. . . Unless the Federal and State governments act to insure against recurrence of the present situation, I hope the present system of government goes right down to hell."

That "cooperativism" is a million times more socialist than anything Barack Obama ever dreamed of.  Yet, the Tea Party paints him as a cross between Hitler and Stalin. 

Anyway, on to the Floyd of Rosedale trophy, which goes to the winner of the Iowa-Minnesota football game each year.

Again, from Wikipedia:

The following year, Coach Bernie Bierman’s Gophers were 5-0, and Coach Ossie Solem’s Hawkeyes were 4-0-1. Before the 1935 Iowa-Minnesota contest in Iowa City, Bierman received a flood of threatening letters from Iowa fans. He requested and received special police protection for the team when it detrained in Iowa a couple days before the contest.^[2]
The day before the game, Iowa Governor Clyde Herring told reporters, "If the officials stand for any rough tactics like Minnesota used last year, I'm sure the crowd won't."^[3] Herring’s message was clear. “What he was saying was, ‘If you treat Ozzie like you treated him last year, we’re coming out of the stands,’” Simmons said.^[4]
The news quickly reached Minnesota. Coach Bierman threatened to break off athletic relations. Minnesota Attorney General Harry Peterson practically accused the Iowa governor of thuggery. "Your remark that the crowd at the Iowa-Minnesota game will not stand for any rough tactics is calculated to incite a riot," said Peterson. "It is a breach of your duty as governor, and evidences an unsportsmanlike, cowardly and contemptible frame of mind."^[5]
To lighten the mood, Minnesota Governor Floyd Olson sent a telegram to Governor Herring on game-day morning, which read, "Minnesota folks are excited about your statement about the Iowa crowd lynching the Minnesota football team. I have assured them that you are a law abiding gentleman only trying to get our goat...I will bet you a Minnesota prize hog against an Iowa prize hog that Minnesota wins."^[6]
The Iowa governor accepted, and word of the bet reached Iowa City as the crowd gathered at the stadium. Things calmed down and the game was untroubled. Minnesota won 13-6, and Iowa star Ozzie Simmons played an injury-free game. Afterwards, the Minnesota players went out of their way to compliment Simmons, and Simmons praised the Gophers for their clean, hard-fought play. Minnesota went on to win their second straight national championship.
Governor Herring obtained an award-winning prize pig which had been donated by Allen Loomis, the owner of Rosedale Farms near Fort Dodge, Iowa. Dubbed Floyd after Minnesota Governor Olson, the pig was the brother of BlueBoy from Will Rogers' movie State Fair. A few days later, Governor Herring collected "Floyd of Rosedale" and personally walked him into Governor Olson’s carpeted office.^[7]
Iowa social crusader Virgil Case swore out a criminal warrant in Des Moines against Governor Herring, alleging that the bet violated Iowa gambling laws.^[8] Herring jokingly stated that he had retained Governor Olson as his attorney, who argued that it was not a true bet because Herring did not have a chance of winning it.^[8] However, an assistant Iowa attorney general convinced a judge to dismiss on jurisdictional grounds because the bet had been made in Minnesota and Iowa City, beyond the local court's jurisdiction.^[8] Case also argued that the governors were guilty of violating federal gambling laws because the pig had been placed into interstate commerce when Herring made good on the bet, but the U.S. Attorneys declined to prosecute.^[8] President Franklin Roosevelt's former son-in-law, Curtis Dall, who attended the 1935 game as a guest of the governors, suggested that they name the pig "New Deal."^[9] Herring vetoed that proposal.^[9].

Governor Olson later offered Floyd up as the grand prize in a state-wide essay-writing contest, which was won by 14-year old Robert Jones. A few years later, Floyd of Rosedale caught cholera and died.^[10]
Since the two schools could not continue wagering a live pig, Governor Olson commissioned Saint Paul sculptor Charles Brioscho to capture Floyd's image. The result was a bronze pig trophy 53cm (21 inches) long and 38cm (15 inches) high. Iowa and Minnesota have played for the Floyd of Rosedale trophy every year since then. The winner of the annual Iowa-Minnesota football game is entitled to keep the trophy until the following year's contest.