Politics in Minnesota: The Weekly Report, Vol. 4, Issue 4 - 7/18/2008
New "Infocenter" Rocks
Kudos to the Star Tribune for launching a new online section, infoCenter, "a single destination for our readers to access some of the information and data we collect as a news organization." While last week we questioned the value of the newspaper institutional editorial in the age of the Internet, this new amalgamator of massive, searchable amounts of information is exactly the kind of thing our state's largest newspaper can contribute to our civic conversation.
Of particular interest to political junkies are two databases. The first is "The Money Race In Minnesota," which shows -- via interactive Google maps -- where the presidential candidates are raising money. So, for example, you can learn that, to date, U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) has raised $82,118 in zip code 55403 (Lowry Hill and Kenwood) to U.S. Sen. John McCain's (R-AZ) (expected) paltry $10,250.
The second is "Government Salaries," and we trust PIM readers will find it of great interest. A couple of observations after half an hour of unabashed prurient interest-surfing on the part of the PIM team. When you review all the government salaries posted from various units of government, Governor Tim Pawlenty's salary of $119,850 seems strikingly low. Comparing salaries of staff at the Metropolitan Council to comparable jobs in state agencies, one finds that staff salaries are significantly higher for the Met Council jobs. And salaries for staff jobs at the University of Minnesota (here and here ) might be in sync with higher ed institutions across the country, but they are seriously out of whack with comparable jobs in other units of government.
We trust that legislators sitting in committees with their laptops will make good use of the Star Tribune's government salary database while various people on these lists are testifying before those committees.
MCCL Sees Only One Pro-Lifer In The CD6 race... And It's Not Tinklenberg
Last week we wrote that Sixth Congressional District DFL candidate Elwyn Tinklenberg is pro-life, which is what his campaign told us. We quickly heard from Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life executive director Scott Fischbach, who said, "You can call yourself whatever you want. We'll make sure voters know in detail where he stands."
To Fischbach, the Tinklenberg campaign's claim that their guy is pro-life is misleading because Tinklenberg won't restore protection of the unborn by addressing Roe v. Wade.
"Tinklenberg put out rhetoric he knows will play in the district, without committing to life," Fischbach said. Fischbach concedes that Tinklenberg might understand abortion isn't good; however, that's not enough to earn a pro-life label in his book. MCCL's mission is to "restore protection for unborn children and their mothers," and to Fischbach, that requires a commitment to support work that will overturn Roe v. Wade, something Tinklenberg is on record as opposing.
Tinklenberg disagreed with Fischbach's definition of pro-life, describing this limited definition of pro-life as a "punitive, legalistic approach," that has resulted in little progress for children and pregnant women. He considers himself pro-life, and said it is his goal to reduce the number of abortions in the country.
"It is not my mission to eliminate the protection provided in Roe, or criminalize the relationship between a woman and her doctor," Tinklenberg said. To him, there is more to being pro-life than overturning Roe v. Wade. A broader definition is more productive, he said, pointing out that part of protecting the unborn is providing assurance of economic security in the areas of housing, health care and employment, as well as providing quality education on pregnancy prevention.
"I want to end inefficient polarizing debates and start working towards solutions we all can agree on," Tinklenberg said.
Fischbach said Tinklenberg was in a tough spot: To win, he needs to be pro-life; but if he were truly pro-life, support from state and national DFL party groups would diminish.
Tinklenberg again disagreed with Fischbach, saying, "I have no problem sticking up for what I believe. I'm too old to try and impress anybody." He said he aligns himself with the DFL pro-life voices of U.S. Rep. Jim Oberstar (MN8) and U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson (MN7). Oberstar currently has a 71% rating on the National Right to Life scorecard, while Peterson garnered 85%. Tinklenberg's opponent, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann (MN6) has a 100% rating.
Tinklenberg has not completed any MCCL candidate questionnaires because he considers MCCL's definition of pro-life to be too narrow. Fischbach said it's because he doesn't want to make a commitment.
"His campaign may try to mislead pro-life voters in the sixth district, but our federal PAC will do what it has to do to make sure pro-life voters know Michelle Bachmann is pro-life and Tinklenberg is not," Fischbach promised.
The Western Fringe: Minnesota's 7th Congressional District
Continuing our series of who's who in this year's major campaigns, we check out the Seventh Congressional District.
Minnesota's most rural district, the Seventh has been represented by U.S. Rep Collin Peterson (MN7) since 1991, when he upset then-seven-term incumbent Arlan Stangeland. Comprised of nearly all of western and northwestern Minnesota, it is the largest congressional district in the United States (besides those that are entire states). In 2006, Peterson handily beat Republican challenger Mike Barrett with almost 70% of the vote. Peterson's fundraising numbers are sound with over $825,000 raised to date.
Peterson's GOP challenger is yet to be officially named. A GOP primary looms this fall between endorsed candidate Glen Menze and Alan Roebke. Roebke pursued endorsement, but failed to be reported out of the nominating committee screening process, perhaps due to his prior felony conviction (PDF). Gina Countryman, state GOP communications director, said, "We are very confident that Glen will win the primary and be our candidate in November."
Heading up the Peterson for Congress campaign is Cyndi Anderson, who considers it "an honor and a privilege to have the opportunity" to work on behalf of Congressman Peterson. Anderson runs her own consulting business which specializes in grant writing, strategic development, program development and evaluation, and has contracted with Peterson since 2001. She enjoys talking with professional media people - who are usually pleasantly surprised to find the same person on staff year after year - about the campaign's advertising plan.
Prior to consulting, she spent 14 years as the executive director for Lakes Crisis and Resource Center. While she lacks professional campaign management experience, she has been an active volunteer for many Democratic campaigns over the years.
Anderson credits the civil rights movement for her initial interest in politics. "Much of my earlier political involvement has been centered on issues for which I’ve had a passion," she told PIM, adding, "It wasn't until Ronald Reagan was president that I clearly knew that I was a Democrat, and I've been active in one way or another ever since."
The campaign staff is small, and Anderson does not foresee expansion. Peterson will be busy this summer, as he plans to participate in an event in each of the district's 35 counties. He is also planning to help his fellow DFLers when he can during the upcoming election season. While the campaign season promises to be busy, Anderson remains confident about Peterson's chances for victory, "Congressman Peterson fits the 7th District very well and has served it effectively. While he never takes anything for granted, I am confident that Congressman Peterson is in a strong position to win re-election in November."
"It is a joy to work on behalf of the Peterson for Congress campaign," Anderson said. "By working to keep him in office I believe that I am doing my part to see that the people of the 7th District are well served."
One Peterson challenger, Roebke, a self-proclaimed "Lincoln Republican," is running to restore an ideal that is absent in the modern-day political process: "a government of the people, by the people and for the people." His first hurdle is to win the primary against GOP-endorsed Menze. As Roebke is on a shoestring budget, he is running many facets of the campaign himself, including all duties normally assigned to a campaign manager. Roebke currently sees "no need for the position."
The campaign trail ran into some problems early on when he was not allowed to speak at the district's GOP endorsing convention. To him, the irony was the previous speech by Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R), which called for a more inclusive Republican party.
Roebke plans to travel the district in his Ford F-150, which he says is symbolic of his outlook on life. Despite traveling over 240,000 miles, the truck has never given him a problem, something he attributes to good maintenance and foreseeing problems before they occur. Referencing one of Minnesota's more romantic political images, he envisions himself and his pickup becoming something of a 2008 version of the Wellstone bus, touring the district as he speaks one-on-one with the constituency.
Roebke is concerned with the direction the country is heading, saying four dollar gas and out-of-hand farm subsidies are ruining the area.
"If a position has gotten to the point where we are sending huge checks to multimillionaire farmers then the system is broke," Roebke said. His maverick campaign website, congressionalchange.com, has links showing which farms in the district are receiving government subsidies. While campaigning against farm subsidies in the rural 7th is a bit tenuous, Roebke isn't afraid to speak his mind.
GOP-endorsed candidate Menze, who ran in 2000 against Peterson, is currently between campaign managers. Look for that profile in a future PIM issue.
The DFL Field In 2010
As the Tim Pawlenty-for-VP rollercoaster gossip ride seems to have slowed down in the local and national media, Minnesota Democrats are starting to salivate. If Pawlenty is not tapped by U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), or if he is but Barack Obama wins and Pawlenty comes back to St. Paul, the Democrats think they can bank on the "curse of the third term."
Pawlenty would certainly be expected to at least consider another run for governor—Minnesota has no term limits for that office. Historically, though, third-term governors are very unpopular. Can you chalk it up to the toll that such a public office takes on a person? Maybe it's voter fatigue, the need for a fresh face. Recently, the GOP's popular Arne Carlson chose not to risk a third run, perhaps looking back to his victory over the DFL's Rudy Perpich, who lost attempting to serve a third. We bet Pawlenty is going to have a tough decision to make: He was elected for a second term by a narrow margin, but won during a disastrous year for Republicans nationwide. Can he win a third? Does he want to?
PIM's already predicted a GOP front-runner in the case that Pawlenty doesn't run—Brian Sullivan. MPR assembles another list of GOP maybes, but it's pretty speculative: House Minority Leader Marty Seifert (R-Marshall), Congresswoman Michele Bachmann (R-MN6), Rep. Laura Brod (R-New Prague) (interesting), and so on.
Meanwhile, in the DFL camp, the 2010 race is already on. As we reported from the DFL state convention in Rochester, a number of DFL power-players have entered the race... some in fact and some just in the chatter of the blogs.
The ones we mentioned included former U.S. Sen. Mark Dayton, Sen. Tom Bakk (DFL-Cook), and Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner (all definitely in, Gaertner's website is already up). Additionally, DFL-oriented blog MNPublius calls Speaker of the House Margaret Anderson Kelliher (DFL-Minneapolis) a 'tier one' option for gubernatorial candidate. Kelliher hasn't commented yet on the possibility. With Sen. Tarryl Clark (DFL-St. Cloud) (who PIM didn't hear much of in Rochester) the DFL has three strong female candidates along with the men. Clark, however, told the St. Cloud Times in early July that she hasn't made any decisions, and isn't job-hunting right now. Her credentials are good—Senate Majority Leader Larry Pogemiller (DFL-Minneapolis) calls her 'the face of the caucus' in the SC Times story—but she doesn't seem to have strong ambitions for the house on Summit Avenue at this time.
Dave Mindeman at the mnpACT! blog (recently profiled in The Weekly Report) wrote this week on the DFL's obstacles to victory. Mindeman outlines the DFL's "inherent problems," issues related to fundraising and organizing that he feels could be the party's Achilles heel in future elections. The DFL should take these issues to heart, but they must believe that they're already in a strong position with a wealth of candidates for 2010.
Look out, Al and Norm: Former Independent U.S. Sen. Dean Barkley has retained the formidable outside-the-box services of venerable ad man Bill Hillsman, renowned in particular for his Jesse Ventura and Paul Wellstone television spots. (Ventura will serve as "honorary chairperson" of Barkley's campaign, according to the press release from Hillsman's North Woods Advertising). Hillsman seems to have that "magic touch" for producing quirky, Minnesota-nice messages. Barkley razzed Hillsman for adding he was "The Most Effective Senator in Minnesota History" on his new official campaign website, SenatorBarkley.com. Barkley told the Strib that Hillsman was quoting Ventura, who said that "Measured minute by minute, Dean Barkley is the most effective senator in Minnesota history." That might be true, since in his two month tenure, he played a quick round of centrist, U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman-style (I-CT) politics, parlaying a vote in favor of creating the Department of Homeland Security to preserve Minnesota's welfare-to-work program. PIM observed Barkley with some interest as he twirled a soggy cigar during the statewide Independence Party of Minnesota convention that merged them into the new Independence Party of America. He didn't rock a stogie down at the Secretary of State's office, though.The Citizens League and 89.3 The Current are at it again: Policy and a Pint: The Big Sort is coming up next Thursday at MPR's UBS Forum, as author Bill Bishop and moderator Steve Seel talk about Bishop's book, "The Big Sort: Why the Clustering of Like-Minded America is Tearing Us Apart." For further pints there will be an after-party at Fuji-Ya down the street. More info online.
The House Republican Caucus looks to make Minnesota a red state in 2008, and to further the cause they're holding a special reception at Canterbury Park on July 17th. Join the Caucus in the Long Shots Room with special guest "Benchwarmer" Bob Lurtsema from 6:30-8:30. To attend, RSVP to Joey Gerdin at 651-231-2772 or email gerdin.joey@gmail.com. (The under-30 PIM staff has no idea who Benchwarmer Bob is!)
August 1st will mark the one year anniversary of the collapse of the I-35W Bridge. To mark the day Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) and Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak (DFL) will be attending an Interfaith Prayer and Memorial service at the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis, set to begin at 11 a.m. Following the service a Outdoor Memorial Ceremony will be held in Gold Medal Park. The Ceremony will begin at 4:30 p.m. followed by a procession at 5:30 p.m. led by first responders and community officers to the Stone Arch Bridge. At 6:05 p.m., the time the bridge collapsed, a moment of silence will be observed, ending with the ringing of bells all across the city. Both events are open to the public.
Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) announced there will be special elections on November 4th to fill the two vacant State Senate seats in SD16 and SD63. The vacancies were created when Sen. Betsy Wergin (R-Princeton) was appointed to the Public Utilities Commission and Sen. Dan Larson (DFL-Bloomington) resigned. Anyone interested in running for office must file an affidavit and a petition of candidacy with the Secretary of State from Tuesday, July 15th to Monday, July 21st.
The Minneapolis Saint Paul 2008 Host Committee has named Robert Wood "Woody" Johnson IV to serve as their national finance chair, where he'll round up some cash to cover RNC convention expenses. He's the chairman and CEO of The Johnson Company and the New York Jets.
Next Monday, DFL Sixth CD candidate El Tinklenberg and U.S. Rep. Jim Oberstar (MN8) will hold a press conference at the downtown Minneapolis light rail station next to the Hennepin County Government Center to announce a transportation and environmental infrastructure investment program.
Also next Monday, DFL Third CD candidate Ashwin Madia will have an open house at their new campaign headquarters at 10200 73rd Avenue in Maple Grove, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. It's free and there will be refreshments. Contact info@madiaforcongress.com or call 763-544-3813 for more info. Madia's campaign is quite happy that they managed to outrun GOP opponent Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-Eden Prairie) in the Q2 fundraising game by more than $70,000.
On Friday, July 25th, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg will be headlining a fundraiser for the Independence Party of Minnesota at Historic Nicollet Island Pavillion. Reservations for the 7:30 a.m. breakfast are $100, and there will be a speech at 8:30 a.m. Get tickets at mnip.com. Independence Third CD candidate David Dillon is also supporting the event.
In more appointment news, Steven Schwab, Albert Lea City Attorney, was appointed to the third judicial trial court bench vacancy in the city of Albert Lea in Freeborn County and Nancy Bostrack, assistant Winona County Attorney, was appointed to the third judicial trial court bench in the city of Winona in Winona County.
Minnesota reportedly gained 3,400 jobs in June, according to the Department of Employment and Economic Development, and they say that the state has added a net 1,900 jobs over the first half of the year (compared to a net national loss of 438,000 jobs). Commissioner Dan McElroy says that electronics manufacturing and computers are doing well, with 1,300 manufacturing jobs created during June. DEED reports manufactured exports are up almost 10% this year. See PositivelyMinnesota.com press release for more. DEED has just opened a new Office of Science and Technology, which will promote partnerships between industry, academia and government, leading to more in-state R&D and "new programs by leveraging state and federal funding." Helping start-ups obtain federal grants via the Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs is another major goal.
The Office on the Economic Status of Women has released a brief, "Women and Poverty in Minnesota" (PDF). See their website for more info.
The Minnesota Women's Building Partnership and Women's Art Registry of Minnesota are presenting an exhibit of stitched paintings by Faye Hoch and mixed media paintings by Patricia Dunn-Walker from July 28th to September 20th. The art is at the Women's Building at 550 Rice Street in St. Paul, and the aesthetic improvement will surely be appreciated by the political organizations housed there, including the League of Women Voters, Minnesota Women's Consortium and the Women's Political Caucus.
State Auditor Rebecca Otto (DFL) is getting a new communications director, Jim Levi. Levi has won awards working with the Nickelodeon TV network, and has written for various media outlets. He also taught writing at the U of M, St. Cloud State University and Minneapolis' Loft Literary Center. The Auditor's latest report on city finances can be found here.
Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak has a new notch in his green belt: they're saying he's the first mayor in America to use a plug-in hybrid car as the official mayoral vehicle. Rybak, Rep. Frank Hornstein (DFL-Minneapolis) and the decidedly rebranded auto dealer Denny Hecker announced the Minneapolis - St. Paul Green Initiative, "A Cooperative Between The Denny Hecker Automotive Group & The Minneapolis Mayor's Office," which would set up hybrid plug-in conversions in north Minneapolis, as part of the mayor's "green collar jobs" push. Hornstein helped get a state plug-in grant set up, which will help reduce the conversion cost by 30%. Here's more info about the Hymotion L5 Plug-in Conversion Modules for the Toyota Prius, which can purportedly get the vehicles up to 100+ mpg for 30 to 40 miles (though we'll see how effective it is in winter!). For more information, you may contact the initiative's service director, Shelley Peterson, at 651-357-1719.
At least one activist from the Minnesota chapter of the group "We Are Change" got detained by the Secret Service at U.S. Sen. John McCain's (R-AZ) recent appearance in Hudson, Wisconsin. Chapters of the group pop up at political rallies and ask politicians to investigate 9/11, which sometimes miffs handlers. MinnesotaChange has released a number of videos on YouTube, confronting U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN), U.S. Rep. John Conyers (D-MI14) former U.S. Sen. Trent Lott (MS), U.S. Rep. Jim Ramstad (R-MN3), and several FOX9 reporters. On the second YouTube video about the Hudson incident, one member of the group claims the Secret Service told them that they are now on the ever-growing terrorist watch-list. They also claimed the Secret Service confiscated their press passes and claimed that they weren't "real." On the other hand, last June the activists actually got GOP Gov. Tim Pawlenty, of all people, to snap a friendly group photo with McCain, though they claimed TPaw didn't push the shutter button (check out this video @ 5 minutes - freezeframe at right)!DFL candidate for Senate Al Franken was endorsed by ACORN, a member driven community organization dedicated to providing housing services to low- and middle-income Minnesotans.
The rather tongue-in-cheek group Minnesotans for Global Warming released a video, "Imagine there's no global warming," spoofing the John Lennon song "Imagine" and "made it politically incorrect," getting featured on newsbusters.org and plenty of hits.
The U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) campaign is opening up new offices, and interestingly enough they are going to open one in Wayzata at 15700 Wayzata Boulevard. Really?!
ArtsLab, a collaboration of major arts-backing foundations, announced they have selected 17 nonprofit arts organizations to join a three-year training and development program, which should help strengthen the organizations' operations, fundraising abilities and engagement with the community. The organizations are the Ancient Traders Gallery, the Bedlam Theatre, the Bemidji Community Art Center, the Bemidji Symphony Orchestra, the Center for Hmong Arts and Talent, the Edge Center for the Arts, Forecast Public Art, the Great River Arts Association, the Lake Agassiz Arts Council, the Mask and Rose Women's Theatre Collective, Mizna, Nordic Culture Clubs, One Voice Mixed Chorus, Red Eye Collaboration, Springboard for the Arts, Theatre B and TU Dance. The funding comes from the Bush Foundation, the F.R. Bigelow Foundation, the Mardag Foundation, the McKnight Foundation and the Saint Paul Foundation. See ArtsMidwest.org for more info.
Lobbyist Watch
From the Minnesota Campaign Finance & Public Disclosure Board:
Setting The Record Straight
Last week, we said the 2006 north Minneapolis House campaign of Justin Adams was affiliated with the Independence Party of Minnesota. However, in that race, Adams was a completely unaffiliated, independent candidate, as he informed us on our website.
Morning Reports
