Tracking Minnesota Politics Since 2005
Allow me to supply some missing examples [of Franken quotes], but let this be fair warning: Abandon Sunday School sensibilities, all Ye who click here.
I can just see the smirk on his face as he wrote that little line.
The fact is that the Star Tribune is not prepared to publish some of this U.S. Senate candidate’s statements
A couple of days ago Mr. Flash over at Centrisity reported that Prior to the public entrance of Al Franken into the Senate race I had said on several occasions that Franken’s presence would almost guarantee the entrance of a legislator. While Franken has much to offer delegates in return for their vote (including an impressive fund-raising machine), he simply cannot meet the bar for experience that many people demand (that, and he makes a lot of people very nervous). So, there is a strong push among some sectors of the DFL party to root out and field a local politician who can present an experience grounded alternative to the Franken machine. For better or worse, there’s a market for an anti-Franken candidate in the race for the endorsement and Speaker Kelliher fits those shoes pretty nicely. Join me below the fold for an explanation as to why.
Continue reading ‘Speaker Kelliher or Senator Kelliher?’
In a state that prides itself on its economic prowess, we’re looking oh, so ordinary.
Minnesotans, accustomed to finishing near the top of various quality-of-life rankings, landed at No. 46 for growth in personal income last year, according to numbers released Tuesday by the U.S. Commerce Department.
That’s below states like Oklahoma, Mississippi and Louisiana. And it trails New Jersey and Wisconsin - among others - where incomes are similar to Minnesota. For the U.S., personal income grew 5.2 percent in 2006 compared with the previous year. In Wisconsin, it was 4.3 percent. Minnesota, ahem, was 3.8 percent.
But wait, I thought we were OUT of the top ten in taxes!!! Didn’t business get the memo? We’re supposed to be doing BETTER now that we not held back by those onerous taxes.
CJ at the Star Tribune has a troubling report about the state of Norm Coleman’s physical appearance (read the whole thing if you have the time):
“[Coleman] was going into, I think it was, Starbucks and I followed him in there. I overheard him say his wife, Laurie, was shopping somewhere and he’d have to go find her. I asked him if he would mind taking a picture with my daughter. He said it would be his honor and was very friendly and kissed my baby’s hand and did just what a politician should do, I guess.”
This is where things turned stranger than Coleman may have realized.
“I told him our prayers are with him,” Castro said. He seemed touched and said this meant a lot to him.
“It wasn’t about anything politically related.
I just thought he look rather sick. He looked super skinny , like skeletal and he’s got those fake teeth, those veneers. They are like horses’ teeth.”I hate those choppers!
Coleman was so much cuter with his diastema, but nooo, he had to undergo some dental procedure to remove his gap . “I’d rather see the gap,” Castro said.Now, whenever I see him all I can do is focus on his mouth. That’s probably why his leanness belatedly caught my attention. But it wasn’t just the teeth, for Castro. “He looked very tired and the hair needed a cut.
Start a website,” joked Castro, “SaveNorm.com .”
The message goes on to explain why he was asking for money. It is explained in very simple terms how they will spend the money. I think this email is great. Since the first fundraising reporting deadline is the end of this month, I have received tons of emails asking for money. This is the only one I remembered. Why?
Because Al Franken spoke to me like a human and not some fundraising machine. The tone was light, he explained how he would spend the money, and he treated me with respect. The email didn’t drown on and on, but was a highly interesting read. Do you think most politicians would include this quote
I had the same thoughts when I read the e-mail but wasn’t going to post anything on it until I saw Tim’s take. I think Tim’s most interesting insight is the comment that Franken treats the reader with respect. From what I’ve seen so far I think that’s a theme of his whole campaign: treat the voter with respect. You can say a lot of things about Al Franken’s candidacy, but you can’t say that it isn’t refreshing in its own way.
Update: The letter made it into the AP today.
You can read the unusually entertaining mailing below the fold (warning, big screenshot images).
Continue reading ‘An entertaining fundraising e-mail…?’
That being said, I am a bit intrigued by the Mayor candidacy of Duluth City Councilman Don Ness.
Ness is 33, and was first elected to the city council at 25. He was Jim Oberstar’s campaign manager for nearly a decade and he met his wife while she was a field staffer for Paul Wellstone. Check out this bit from the bio on his website:
Don “Donny” Ness was born to Don and Mary Ness on January 9, 1974 a date noted primarily for its exceptionally cold temperatures - 30 degrees below zero. Barely into his twenties, Don Sr. was a pastor for a small non-denominational Christian church and did odd jobs around town to provide for his young family. For the first year of Donny’s life, the family lived in a tiny home that had no indoor plumbing. As an infant, Donny slept in a carefully lined sock drawer. Don and Mary affectionately called this home the “happiness house.”
Now that’s a good bio for a DFLer. As for the really important stuff, (where he is on those pesky issues, etc…) I have no idea. This post isn’t an endorsement, its actually a request for more information.
Anyone know anything about Ness or how the Duluth mayoral race is shaping up?
For a second time this month, someone has broken into DFL Headquarters in St. Paul. Indications are that the intruder broke into the office of Andrew O’Leary, the DFL’s executive director, stealing a computer that was not visible from outside of the building and going through materials in his desk.
Two weekends ago, an intruder smashed a window and stole a laptop from the office of Nick Kimball, the DFL’s Interim Communications Director. The DFL has no official statement on this latest incident.
Hard votes cost politicians friends.
And, for the moment at least, U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison has lost a lot of his closest allies because of the vote he cast Friday to end the war in Iraq. After days of anguish, Ellison voted to support a bill that would require all U.S. combat troops out of Iraq by Aug. 31, 2008.
That’s not nearly soon enough for many who worked passionately to elect Ellison in November. They want the troops out now. And this afternoon, his office will be “occupied” with people who believe Ellison violated promises he had made to call for an immediate end to the war.
Last week the U.S. House voted to end the war in Iraq. It was a historic victory for those of us who oppose the war. But, as is all too often the case, the fringe left decided to declare defeat in the face of victory.
I am so tired of this nonsense.
With staggeringly wide DFL majorities in both the State House and the State Senate, the GOP leadership has found itself in the tricky position of being forced to talk about substantive issues. Unlike his predecessor, the new House Majority leader, Rep. Tony Sertich, seems to be determined to forge a legislative path that closely follows the desires of Minnesotans.
Healthcare, education, property tax relief, and the environment
If anyone else is noticing site bugs, let me know in the comments.
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