Governor Mark Dayton leaves Mayo Clinic today after an extended stay of over a month due to complications from back surgery. But there’s controversy about whether the public was fully notified of Dayton’s status while he was hospitalized.
Some reporters question why the governor’s staff was not more pro-active in notifying them about Dayton remaining at Mayo Clinic longer than expected. His daily itineraries stated he was in private meetings with commissioners and staff — which presumably were by phone from the hospital. Dayton contends there were ample indications. “Suddenly I’m not doing a press avail once or twice a week, as I have been for seven-and-a-half years. It should have occurred to somebody that…[that] meant something.”
The governor cites reporters’ “lack of probing interest” because they were consumed — as he says they should have been — with the election and the new administration.
Excerpt from Dayton’s Tuesday conference call with reporters: