• Clark’s total fundraising to date: “more than $600,000 from a grassroots network of more than 5,000 individual donors in just 22 weeks.”
• Q4: “$293,953 from an incredible 2906 donors – including 2622 new donors.”
• Cash on hand: $389,000

No matter how you look at those numbers, they’re pretty stunning.  This is an off-year, people are hurting, Dems are in a bit of mud nationally, and yet Senator Clark has managed to energize supporters across the country.  Sure, this speaks to the dislike of Rep. Bachmann, but it also clearly indicates the Clark Campaign’s fundraising prowess.

Similar to the Gubernatorial campaigns, one has to look at the field as a whole to see the true breadth of support for Dems in this race.  Sure, there are 2, not 12, potential DFL candidates here, but one has to look at both to see the whole impact.  Maureen Reed, also vying for the DFL endorsement, recently posted her numbers:

• $574,600 total in 2009
• $207,800 in Q4 2009
• $388,000 cash on hand.

The numbers coming out of either of these campaigns are impressive on their own, but combined they send a strong message that there is national interest in this race and DFLers aren’t going to let it slide by without a fight.  Don’t get complacent though, because this will be a fight.  There’s been an unfortunate attitude in the last couple CD6 cycles among Democrats:  Bachmann is nuts, how could we possibly lose?  Well, nuts or not, she’s won the last two with decent margins and this is not going to be a friendly year for us nationally. So, we need to dig our heels in, get out the boxing gloves, and duke this one out every inch of the way—don’t get complacent or cynical about this one!

And as one last addendum:  Please, please, please, someone keep the IP party out of CD6; I am SO sick of them ruining this.  I promise that the average IP voter will be happier with the DFL candidate than with Bachmann, and that’s the reality.  An IP candidate WILL NOT WIN in CD6; all they will do is make Bachmann win.  </ end rant>

To be fair, only 11% of the Republicans surveyed picked Bachmann, but to be tied with Beck and Palin is still and achievement.

These moves shed some light on a question I’ve been wondering about for a month now.  When Chris Coleman bowed out of the gubernatorial field, I wrote:

There is a lot of political talent on the market right now.  Chris Coleman had a great campaign team assembled (in my opinion, the best among the 2010 contenders) and I’m really curious where those people will go now.

As noted above, Beecham was a Coleman staffer.  I’ve also been told that Rodvold was going to be joining the Coleman campaign before the Mayor pulled the plug.  It seems that Tarryl Clark, and not any of the other gubernatorial hopefuls, is the major beneficiary of Coleman’s departure in the staff wars (at least so far).  There is a lot of talent still sitting in St. Paul, it will be interesting to see where they go next.

The full Clark release is after the jump.

CLARK ANNOUNCES CAMPAIGN TEAM

Team has deep Minnesota roots, experience, and record of unseating incumbents.

St. Cloud, MN — State Senator Tarryl Clark today announced key members of her campaign team, who bring a wealth of Minnesota experience and a record of unseating incumbents to Clark’s campaign for Congress in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District against Michele Bachmann.

“This is a winning team, with years of experience in the 6th District and in high-profile, competitive campaigns across Minnesota and across the country,” said Clark. “I look forward to working with them to build a true grassroots campaign as we address the issues that really matter to Minnesota’s families: creating jobs and rebuilding the economy, making healthcare more affordable, investing in transportation and infrastructure, and ensuring fiscal responsibility in Washington.”

Clark’s campaign team includes:

Zach Rodvold is serving as Campaign Manager. Rodvold joins the campaign from the office of U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar, where he served as State Director. Rodvold led Klobuchar’s field operation during her 2006 campaign for Senate, winning the 6th Congressional District with over 50% of the vote, and defeating 6th District Congressman Mark Kennedy in his own district. Rodvold has also served as GOTV Director for the Obama-Biden campaign in Minnesota; 6th District Field Director and, later, State Director for Americans United to Protect Social Security; and on a variety of political and issue campaigns in Minnesota and beyond, beginning with the 2002 campaign of the late Senator Paul Wellstone.

Lauren Beecham will join the campaign as Finance Director, having most recently served in the same capacity for Chris Coleman’s landslide victory in the Saint Paul Mayor’s race this year. Prior to leading Coleman’s fundraising efforts, Beecham was Deputy Finance Director for Senator Al Franken’s campaign.

Rounding out the Clark campaign staff: Nicole Wittig-Geske, who previously served as Deputy 6th Congressional District Field Director for the DFL’s 2008 Coordinated campaign; Stacey Springer, a former Chair of the St. Cloud State College Democrats; and policy adviser Emily Lawrence, who previously served as Legislative Director for Congresswoman Betty McCollum and as Leadership Assistant to Minnesota Senate Majority Leader Roger Moe.

Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research (GQRR) has been chosen as the campaign’s pollsters. GQRR has a long history of working with Minnesota candidates and organizations, including Vice President Walter Mondale, Senator Amy Klobuchar, Minneapolis Mayor RT Rybak, State Senator Ted Mondale, the Minnesota DFL Party, Education Minnesota, the Humphrey Institute at the University of Minnesota and Growth and Justice. GQRR is a Democratic polling firm that provides research and strategic advice, with experience in over 80 countries and a list of clients that includes President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and South African President Nelson Mandela.

Leading the research and strategic consulting effort is firm President Al Quinlan, who has advised a broad range of political candidates and elected officials, including Vice President Walter Mondale and Senators Amy Klobuchar, Tim Johnson, Tom Daschle, Mary Landrieu, Chris Dodd, and Jeff Bingaman. Quinlan also provides strategic guidance to Governors Bill Richardson, Ed Rendell, John Lynch and David Paterson. In the 2008 cycle, Quinlan advised several winning candidates, including Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Tom Udall, and Representatives John Adler and Gary Peters.

Laguens Kully Klose Partners will serve as the campaign’s media consultants. LKK Partners are veterans of nearly a dozen Minnesota campaigns, including: the ballot initiative campaign to pass the historic Minnesota Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment, which won the 6th Congressional District in 2008; Minneapolis Mayor RT Rybak; and the Minnesota DFL House Caucus’ 2006 and 2008 efforts that increased the DFL majority by more than 20 seats. LKK Partners has a particular specialty in beating Republican incumbents, having helped elect Senators Jon Tester (MT) and Debbie Stabenow (MI) and Congressmen Walt Minnick (ID), Jim Himes (CT), Tom Udall (NM), and Dennis Moore (KS), all over sitting Republicans. The firm has won more than 25 “Pollie” awards for its efforts, including more awards in 2008 for online video communications than any other Democratic media firm.

The Southpaw Group, led by Justin Buoen, continues to advise the campaign’s fundraising efforts. Buoen served as Midwest Finance Director for John Edwards for President and as Deputy Finance Director for Senator Amy Klobuchar, where he led her Minnesota fundraising efforts. Justin has worked on numerous campaigns, including as 6th District Field Director for the Kerry/Edwards campaign in 2004. In Clark’s first quarter of fundraising, Buoen led the campaign’s efforts to raise more than $308,000 in just nine weeks, making Clark one of the top fundraising challengers in the nation.

###

I’m not quite ready to take the position that Reed needs to drop out… yet. After all, the election is over a year away. But the CD6 race is already presenting a question that is a perennial problem for DFLers: Is it better to have an endorsement battle — and possibly a primary — to find the best candidate for the general election, or would it be better to have a single candidate as early as possible so she can raise money and build name recognition?

To me, one of the big problems is Minnesota’s insanely late primary. If there were more time for a general election campaign, I would tend to say that the primary would benefit the party by weeding out weaker candidates. But with a primary in September, all a primary does is play into the Republicans’ hands — which is why Tim Pawlenty vetoed a bill that would have moved the primary to August.

Can we afford to have a contest for the DFL nomination in CD6? We can for a while, but we don’t stand a chance in this race if we have to hold a primary. One thing is for certain — Reed needs to stop wavering and tell us unequivocally if she will abide by the DFL endorsement.

___

* “One of the first” is my wishy-washy way of not definitively saying he broke the story, as I don’t really want to get into an argument about who was first to report it.

Wow, just wow:

State Sen. Tarryl Clark of St. Cloud said this morning she has raised more than $300,000 since announcing her run for Congress nine weeks ago.

Clark said she raised $308,000 since starting her campaign July 28. She said she has 2,412 donors with an average of $107 per donation. [via St. Cloud Times]

State Senator Clark is competing for the DFL endorsement and nomination in CD6 against Maureen Reed, who has yet to report her numbers for the quarter. Meanwhile, Rep. Bachmann (R-Crazy) had reported more thank $600K before this quarter. Still, Clark’s numbers are extremely impressive due to how early in the race we are, the fact that this is still contested on the DFL side, and the fact that this wasn’t even a full quarter of fundraising for her. When Reed’s numbers come out it will be interesting to see if Clark has sucked all the air (read: money) out of the room, or if she’s still able to raise credible amounts after Clark’s entrance.

Either way, Clark’s worth every dollar if she can rid Minnesota of one moon-bat come November ‘10.

UPDATE 1 (12:27): BREAKING NEWS: Dr. Maureen Reed has released her numbers:

Reed announced that she raised over $130,000 in the 3rd Quarter for a total of $360,000 raised to date and has over $300,000 on hand. Reed’s continued success displays the ability to remain competitive in this race. [Press Release]

It’s clear that Reed’s campaign is trying to emphasize the $300K on hand in light of Clark’s $300K of fundraising this quarter. And while $300K on hand is indeed very impressive, the numbers to compare here is Clark’s $308K in 9 weeks and Reed’s $130K in 13 weeks. It’s early enough that there’s still room for two candidates, and Dr. Reed’s record of service to Minnesota is unimpeachable, but it will be interesting to see how long the fundraising circuit can sustain two DFLers.

So, to return to the question I posed this morning, did Clark suck the air out of the room? I’ll let you draw your own conclusions.

Originally posted at 10:30 AM, promoted to top at 1:30 pm

Photo: Matt Schmoeckel, Flickr

From the Regulations on the Use of the Congressional Frank by Members of the House of Representatives, Rule XLVI, 4:

A Member may not send any mass mailing outside the congressional district from which the Member was elected.

Considering Bachmann has an unusually high number of staffers dedicated to media, why is it that her press office is guilty of repeated violations of misusing taxpayer dollars and the congressional frank?

And in case you’re not already, you should be reading Dusty’s blog — it’s a must-read on the Minnesota inter-tubes.

In the email, Bachmann says she is the second-most hated conservative woman after Sarah Palin, and a target for liberal attacks. She helpfully defines “Palinize”:

To smear or mock someone using falsehoods, baseless accusations or unsubstantiated character assassinations for the purpose of blocking them from achieving a goal. To exaggerate the truth or lie by omission. To attack a person for his or her conservative values by focusing an inordinate amount of attention on a single example of that person falling short (or being perceived as falling short) of the values they espouse. [Via Polinaut]

I’ve got another definition: To show complete contempt for the truth in your public statements. To obsess over the national political spotlight while ignoring the needs of your own constituents. To show a disturbing willingness to use your own children as political weapons.

Bachmann demonstrates her disregard for the truth and her willingness to draw her children into the fray with this whopper, taken from the same email:

But just as they did with Sarah Palin, the more I talk about the issues, the more they attack with below-the-belt personal hits. In fact, yesterday, a Minnesota paper gave a full column to a hit piece on one of my kids!

Is that so? You can read the column here. As David Brauer of MinnPost points out, it has nothing but glowing things to say about Bachmann’s son Harrison. For example:

Harrison must be a smart kid, a caring kid. Must have been raised well.

Thank you, Harrison, for your service. Here’s hoping you inspire kids to dream, and get inspired in the process.

If you think I’m pulling these lines out of context, feel free to read the column.

The column, however, does attack Bachmann herself, pointing out that she went on a tirade on this program that’s solely dedicated to doing good:

…it has to sting right now for Rep. Michele Bachmann.

Here’s what Bachmann said about President Obama’s plan to expand AmeriCorps, a program that puts young adults to work making the world a better place by teaching disadvantaged kids and helping the poor:

“[It’s] under the guise of quote, volunteerism, but it’s not volunteers at all,” she said on the Sue Jeffers radio show in April. “It’s paying people to do work on behalf of government. There are provisions for what I would call re-education camps for young people, where young people get trained in the philosophy the government puts forward and then they have to go work in these politically correct forums.

“As a parent, I would have a very, very difficult time seeing my children do this.”

Michele Bachmann is a Congresswoman. As such, she’s fair game for newspaper columnists. Didn’t she know what she was getting into when she took the job?

That’s another way that Michele Bachmann is like Sarah Palin. For a politician who’s made her name by making outrageous accusations and personal attacks, she has a remarkably thin skin. The column was pretty innocuous as political columns go, and even had a lot of nice things to say about Bachmann’s son. But Bachmann is seething with pretend rage, declaring that she and her children have been viciously attacked. Maybe she didn’t actually read it.

As so many have already commented, maybe Bachmann will take after Palin in yet another way. If we’re lucky, maybe she’ll abruptly resign.

MINNESOTA BLOGGERS FILE ETHICS COMPLAINT AGAINST REP. MICHELE BACHMANN FOR PARTISAN USE OF TAXPAYER DOLLARS

ST. PAUL, MINN – Jul. 29, 2009 – Minnesota bloggers Dusty Trice, Brian Falldin, and Aaron Landry filed an ethics complaint with the House Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) requesting an investigation into whether Rep. Michele Bachmann’s office has violated House franking rules pertaining to proper e-mail usage.

The complaint points out that an e-mail sent by Representative Bachmann’s office on May 26, 2009, advocates for the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA), a political organization, which is in violation of the House Franking Rules.

Aaron Landry, who first began investigating the story said, “Michele Bachmann is no stranger to NADA, they’ve been a strong donor to her congressional campaign committee.” According to campaignmoney.com, Rep. Bachmann has received approximately $13,000 from NADA since 2006. Thus, Rep. Bachmann’s ties to the organization establish a potential quid-pro-quo scenario.

Brian Falldin, who began looking into filing the ethics complaint said: “While Michele Bachmann tends to moonlight on national news shows, she apparently spends little time following the rules of the road while at her day job, which is unfortunate for the 6th District and America.”

Dusty Trice, who is well known in Democratic circles for his firebrand commentary, stated: “It’s clear that Michele Bachmann cares about one thing – and that’s making sure she rewards those who give her the most money, regardless of the rules she needs to break in the process.”

Aaron Landry summed up the reasons for filing the complaint best: “There’s a reason why ethics rules exist: to keep our representatives ethical. I believe the Office of Congressional Ethics will continue to protect the taxpayers of Minnesota against the kind of activity Representative Bachmann’s office participates in.”

Dusty Trice, Brian Falldin, and Aaron Landry are well-known writers in the Minnesota political community. For more information or press inquiries, please visit www.dustytrice.com, www.brianfalldin.com, www.s4xton.com or call 612-234-5614.

# # #

As she has three people in communications, at least one should really brush up on the Rules of the House of Representatives, read the “Involvement With Outside Activities and Entities” section from the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, browse the “Red Book,” or what’s otherwise known as the Regulations on the Use of the Congressional Frank by Members of the House of Representatives and lastly read the Member’s Handbook from the Committee on House Administration. If they read just one of those documents, they would have realized they’ve been making some huge errors — some of which may put Michele Bachmann in trouble.

1. Bachmann is helping and endorsing outside organizations using taxpayer communications. Here’s an excerpt from an email from Bachmann.Bulletin@mail.house.gov, Tue, May 26, 2009, sent to constituents:

My staff and I have been in close contact with the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA), which represents auto dealers’ interests in Washington.  NADA has hired a firm to represent the legal interests of those auto dealers that have been chosen by the Task Force to close.  Any such auto dealer should call 703-821-7000 for more information.

Michele Bachmann’s office violated House Franking Rules by using taxpayer resources to tell constituents to call the National Automobile Dealer’s Association. House offices can’t even encourage people to donate blood, let alone ask them to call a national organization to get legal representation. Unsurprisingly, Bachmann has received $13,000 from that very same organization in 2006 and 2008.

Regulations on the use of the Congressional Frank prohibits the helping or endorsing an outside organization with official communications (see the bottom of page 16).

2. Bachmann is improperly linking from her federally-funded house.gov site to the highly-partisan Townhall.com.

It’s taxpayer dollars pushing people to a right-wing propaganda portal run by the Salem Web Network. It is deceptive as it is integrated as part of the navigation of the page and with the use of the RSS icon — a symbol used to indicate a feed related to the page you’re currently on.

3. Bachmann’s house.gov site deceives visitors when they are leaving the official government website and entering a third-party site. From the Committee on House Administration, a House website will:

…display an exit notice stating that users are leaving the House of Representatives prior to linking to a non-House of Representatives Web site. The exit notice will include a disclaimer that neither Members nor the House are responsible for the content of linked sites. Member offices maintaining their sites on the Public web server are required to incorporate the exit notice into their external links.

Sure, it’s legal for Bachmann to have a blog on a partisan site but she is not allowed to seamlessly integrate it with her non-campaign, taxpayer-funded site. Especially for constituents that are less familiar with the Internet, this is incredibly dishonest and misleading for them.

From the Committee on House Administration’s rule on this as of October 2008:

The official content of any material posted by the Member on any Web site must be in compliance with Federal law and House Rules and Regulations applicable to official communications and germane to the conduct of the Member’s official and representational duties.

When a link to a Web site outside the Member’s official cite is imbedded on the Member’s official site, the Member’s site must include an exit notice advising the visitor when they are leaving the House. This exit notice must also include a disclaimer that neither the Member nor the House is responsible for the content of the linked site(s).

This is extremely important, and easy for their webmaster to implement (see page 113). So why did they not do this? One thing is certain: it diminishes the line between what is government, taxpayer-funded and what in this case, is incredibly partisan and certainly not government-sponsored.

(Note to SEO nerds: in addition, do you know what kind of impact you get when you’re direct linked from a dot gov? Yeah. Uh hum.)

Maybe handling situations like this is why she has three press people.