http://www.grandforks.com/mld/grandforks/n...ate/8985270.htmAP Enterprise: Papers pull back curtain on Ventura years
BRIAN BAKST
A*ociated Press
ST. PAUL - For three days, as Gov. Jesse Ventura agonized over a bill imposing a 24-hour waiting period and information requirement on abortions, the unsolicited advice rolled in.
During that week in April 2000, his office switchboard lit up with 13,260 calls and his mailbox bulged with hundreds of letters. The outpouring and the decision itself were like none other in his four years as governor.
Missing, though, was the formal staff recommendation Ventura had come to expect when considering the fate of legislation. In its place was a simple, one-sentence memo.
"Out of respect for your words that the final decision on this bill is yours and yours alone, this legislation is forwarded for consideration without a staff recommendation," two policy advisers wrote.
Ventura vetoed the bill, confessing that he had learned "there is no middle ground" on abortion.
Nearly 18 months after Ventura slipped back into private life, the Minnesota Historical Society has finished organizing internal papers that offer a behind-the-scenes glimpse on the abortion issue and other significant events in his administration.
An A*ociated Press review of more than five dozen boxes of official documents, private letters, photos and news clippings found no bombshells - few of the papers can be traced to Ventura's own hand - but more than a few interesting nuggets.
Among them:
_As Ventura's autobiography was about to come out in May 1999, a publicist urged the media darling governor to lay low until the book came out so he could make the biggest splash.
_His office tracked Ventura's frequent tangles with the media, including coverage that irritated him.
_Sending items for a gubernatorial autograph was a non-starter. Nobody, not even Bart Starr, got more than a form letter denying their request.
The contents of the papers also ranged from the personally revealing (Ventura's favorite recipe for pan-roasted walleye with apple/cranberry crust) to the previously undisclosed (the state paid $11,783 to settle a lawsuit after Lt. Gov. Mae Schunk collided with another motorist in her state vehicle).
The collection was of great concern to Ventura's staff, which began planning for the handover just over a year into his term. As Chief of Staff Steven Bosacker put it in a memo to top administration officials: "All that we have endeavored and achieved together will be studied. None of us want the newspapers to create the record. We want the records themselves to speak for the administration."
That thinking might explain why the papers seem somewhat sanitized. The incoming correspondence on file is almost entirely laudatory.
Several files relate to Ventura's moneymaking activities, which over the years included book deals, wrestling events and football announcing.
While they tried to build a wall between his public duties and private enterprises, his staff made sure to clip newspaper articles pertaining to both, sock away videotapes of his appearances and stay abreast of the celebrity demands that caused the governor's attention to drift from the Capitol.
Documenting a governor's media appearances isn't unusual, but Ventura, as a former professional wrestler, was in predictably high demand. According to one memo, he did 477 one-on-one interviews and 107 news conferences during his first 555 days in office, some with reporters as far away as Sweden and South Korea.
For Brian McLendon, charged with promoting Ventura's autobigraphy for Villard Books, that much exposure wasn't entirely good.
"If it is at all possible to avoid feature pieces not connected with the news of the day or your gubernatorial role, then our way will be considerably smoother when it comes to publication time," McLendon wrote in March 1999 to Ventura and spokesman John Wodele. "Previous `overexposure' could significantly cut into interest in the book."
Since Ventura frequently referred to "media jackals," it's little surprise that the files hold a document titled "Gov. Ventura's High Profile Media Run-ins." It lists headlines that bugged him, reporters whom he felt crossed the line and columnists/radio hosts who called him unflattering names, like "Gov. Turnbuckle."
Not all reporters drew Ventura's ire. During the tour to promote his first book, he hosted an invitation-only event at a Washington, D.C., steakhouse with a guest list that included big-name media types like CBS's Bob Schieffer, NBC's Tim Russert, ABC's Cokie Roberts and CNN's Wolf Blitzer and Larry King.
Ventura often rubbed elbows with political and social giants. The files mention golf with actor Clint Eastwood and pro golfer Greg Norman. He and former Vice President Al Gore sat on the terrace of the Minnesota governor's mansion until 1 a.m. smoking cigars and drinking port, despite a 5:55 a.m. wakeup call for a morning campaign event in 2000.
The files include some personal correspondence with President Clinton, whom Ventura grew chummy with over the years. Clinton mailed him a card for his 50th birthday, telling him, "Have cigars, will golf!"
Another time, the former president sent Ventura a crossword puzzle he completed in which "Jesse" was the answer for 55-down, "Gov. Ventura of Minnesota." A handwritten note read: "Gov., here is more evidence of your rising visibility, even among nonathletic couch potatoes who love crosswords. Bill Clinton."
Ventura was sparing with his own signature. His no-autograph policy even extended to Starr, the Hall of Fame quarterback, who sent a football he hoped Ventura would sign for a charity auction to benefit cancer research.
Ventura didn't seek a second term in 2002. After leaving office, he briefly hosted a cable television talk show and he recently wrapped up a semester teaching fellowship at Harvard.