A trio of gubernatorial hopefuls — and Jamie Foxx’s bus

Three DFLers who hope to be sitting in the Minnesota governor’s office two years from now got together this morning to praise new legislation intended to stem youth violence.

And it was all to the benefit of actor-singer Jamie Foxx’s bus driver.

Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak, state Sen. John Marty (DFL-Roseville) and state Rep. Paul Thissen (DFL-Minneapolis) attended a press conference at the Cookie Cart on West Broadway in Minneapolis to tout the youth violence prevention legislation, which is modeled after a similar city initiative in Minneapolis and which goes into effect Aug. 1.

But before the press conference got under way, Rybak, ever the consummate politician, observed that Foxx’s bus was parked in front of the Cookie Cart (a nonprofit organization that seeks to help youth find and keep jobs through a commercial bakery), and he stepped up to the counter and ordered a dozen assorted cookies for Foxx’s bus driver. (Foxx himself, who has a gig tomorrow night at the Target Center, was nowhere to be seen.)

The three DFLers, soon to become political opponents as they seek the party’s endorsement to run for the job being vacated by Republican Tim Pawlenty, seemed more like allies this morning. Rybak spoke first, praising the city program, then introduced the two lawmakers who were the chief authors of the legislation.

Both men stepped up to the microphone simultaneously, but Thissen — who plans to declare his candidacy tomorrow and thus become the second of the three to be a formal candidate — deferred to Marty and allowed him to speak first.

At the end of the press conference, all three stayed for a few more minutes to press the flesh. And Marty placed his own order at the counter, making sure that he got the last peanut-butter chocolate-chip cookie in the display case.