Bob Anderson, a name that this blog has never uttered once until today, made a serious impact on the results in CD6 yesterday:
BOB ANDERSON 40642 10.04%
MICHELE BACHMANN 187805 46.41%
EL TINKLENBERG 175784 43.44%
Who are these people that voted Bob Anderson? The IP endorsed El Tinklenberg! MPR’s Bob Collins:
Who is Bob Anderson? Michele Bachmann’s best friend.
Bob [Collins]’s theory of politics in Minnesota is if you put an Independence Party candidate not named Jesse Ventura on a ballot, Republicans win.
Independence Party fans hate me for saying that but for the most part, it’s true.
They can logically point to Al Franken’s Senate race tonight — so far — as proof the theory doesn’t stand up.
And I’ll counter with Bob Anderson, a veritable unknown who is clearly pulling votes from Elwyn Tinklenberg tonight, paving the way — again, so far — for Michele Bachmann.
Anderson – who had no money and only one issue (health insurance coverage for mental health problems) – managed to get 10 percent of the vote running as the Independence Party candidate.
Funny thing, though. Anderson really wasn’t the IP’s candidate. Tinklenberg was. In fact, the IP hierarchy – such as it is – is offended by Anderson, who is seen as a gadfly.
But when the IPs endorsed Tinklenberg, Anderson grabbed a golden opportunity. He ran, unopposed, in the primary as the IP representative. He won the IP spot on Tuesday’s ballot and, coupled with that comfortable Minnesota name, managed to win thousands of independent votes.
Here’s the kicker:
It could also be that nobody offered to give him anything. No matter, Anderson said he spent less than $200 on his campaign, which begs the question: If he’d spent $300, could he have won 15 percent of the 6th District vote?
Earlier today, Michele Bachmann called Barack Obama “anti-American” and called for an inquisition into which members of Congress are “pro-American” and which are “anti-American.” If you are reminded of Joe McCarthy, you aren’t the only one.
The video of Bachmann’s tirade now has over 9,000 views on youtube and El Tinklenberg has raised $26,000 on Act Blue alone.
I really don’t understand Michele Bachmann. Poll after poll shows her numbers plummeting into dangerous territory for an incumbent, but she seems hell-bent on making the rounds on cable television. Not just that, Bachmann isn’t using her TV time to promote her own candidacy but rather to demagogue about dangerous, “Anti-American” liberals. Watch this truly disgusting segment from MSNBC’s Hardball:
I love the part where she encourages the media to “take a great look at the views of the people in Congress and find out are they pro-America or anti-America.” Bachmann wants the media to resurrect Joe McCarthy’s Committee. Just despicable.
Bachmann actually called Obama “anti-American.” Even the head wing-nut, Sarah Palin, won’t go that far.She told reporters today “I don’t question at all Barack Obama’s love for this great country.”
UPDATE: In case you thought my McCarthy parallel was over the top, check this out:
So what would Bachmann suggest Congress call the panel conducting an examination of such anti-American behavior?
How about: House Un-American Activities Committee, The Sequel.
That analogy is brought to you by the nonpartisan Hotline On Call, a publication of the National Journal (the same publication that conservatives like Bachmann reference - as she did in the clip above - when they call Obama the most liberal member of the U.S. Senate).
UPDATE 2: Help retire the McCarthy-wannabe by helping El Tinklenberg. Donate. Volunteer.
“If the presidency would somehow go to Barack Obama, I would welcome him to the 6th District as well,” she said after the debate. “As a matter of fact, I would put my hand on his shoulder and give him a kiss if he wanted to.”
Then Bachmann tried to say that El Tinklenberg was closer aligned with George Bush than she was.
“He is more in line with President Bush’s policies than I am,” said Bachmann, ticking off issues where she has disagreed with Bush…
El Tinklenberg released their fundraising numbers this morning:
The campaign’s FEC report said he has raised $1,000,065 this cycle, with $356,721 cash on hand. Tinklenberg raised over $469,000 in the third quarter.
With three weeks until Election Day, campaign manager Anna Richey said Tinklenberg is in a winning position.“We’ve been keeping a lot of our work under the radar, but our momentum is quickly becoming evident in the district. And while it’s fun to surprise people, our strength at this point is no accident. People are seeing the results of months of careful planning and execution, and the dedication of a candidate we are all proud to work for.”
Tinklenberg is endorsed by the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, the Minnesota Independence Party, the Democratic Blue Dog Coalition, and 34 labor groups.
Tinklenberg argues that Bachmann has taken such a conservative stand during her first term that her votes actually go against many constituents’ best interests. Tinklenberg said she has voted against transportation spending, veterans’ benefits, agriculture legislation, mental health policies and congressional ethics reform – all Democratic proposals he would have supported.
“She has proven herself to be out of step with the district,” Tinklenberg said.
The Democrat is trying to woo voters by talking about his experience working at various levels of government. Tinklenberg, a former United Methodist minister, is a former Blaine city council member and mayor. He is most recognized for his service as state transportation commissioner to ex-Gov. Jesse Ventura. He also has worked on transportation issues at the federal level.
By putting emphasis on his moderate stance, he got the DFL Party endorsement and the Minnesota Independence Party’s backing earlier this year.
Tinklenberg has been running a solid race while Michele Bachmann, well, where is she?
Matt Adds: WOW!!
Sean Adds: A MILLION DOLLARS? HOLY COW. This is an amazing take, and it will help make the 6th CD race much much more competitive immediately.
How are they going to explain this one? From El Tinklenberg:
With record unemployment, real wages declining, and living expenses and fuel costs strangling budgets, more families than ever are relying on credit cards to make ends meet. The average American family now has nearly $10,000 of credit card debt, and most of their interest rates already seem like highway robbery.It just makes sense to ensure that consumers are protected from abusive rate increases and interest charges.
Editor’s Note: This diary has been promoted from the new MNpublius Diaries page. This is the third of nine articles in Jeff’s Daily Liberal Mapping Project. These articles examine Minnesota’s voting patterns precinct by precinct, with data from the 2006 election.Perhaps you missed my analysis of CD8 and CD7?
In this edition of the Daily Liberal Mapping Project, we finally get to a race with a serious Congressional campaign — the 6th Congressional District. CD6 is the former district of Republican Mark Kennedy and currently held by Republican Michele Bachmann. Elwyn Tinklenberg, a moderate Democrat, is challenging Bachmann for the seat. RealClearPolitics recently called Bachmann one of the most endangered representatives in the country, and but CD6’s conservative voting patterns mean a tough race for Tinklenberg. Handicapper Stuart Rothenberg labels the race “favored Republican”.
With the race up in CD6 heating up, the excitement surrounding the Tinklenberg is cautiously growing. I think everyone has already heard the conventional wisdom on this race: Michele Bachmann is a total crazy running for reelection in a year that is awful for Republicans and even worse for Bush Republicans (the only person who’s gotten closer to Bush than Michele is Laura) but Bachmann has a hold on the 6th that is tough to beat. It seems counter intuitive to suppose that such a right-wing maniac is secure in her seat in a year like this, but Bachmann, for all her faults, has done a fairly good job of convincing the 6th that she’s their crazy, and sometimes that’s what counts.
This race, however, should not be discounted. Sure, El would probably be a Congressman if he had won the endorsement in ‘06, and it’s tougher running against an incumbent, but this is a worse year for Republicans than even ‘06 was and El’s a strong candidate now for all the same reasons he was then. Plus, as Grow points out on MinnPost.com today:
Recall, Bachmann defeated Patty Wetterling by 8 percentage points, 50 to 42. BUT there was a third candidate in the race, John Binkowski, of the Independence Party, who picked up 7.8 percent of the vote. This time around, the IPs endorsed Tinklenberg.
When you add Wetterling’s 127,144 votes and Binkowski’s 23,557 votes, Bachmann won the district by just 548 votes.
“Surely there are 548 people who have gone beyond the notion that everything is free,” said Tinklenberg.
I grew up in the Stillwater area and I don’t get back often enough. I heard that El Tinklenberg was going to be speaking at the DFL SD52 Picnic and Ice Cream Social this weekend in Pioneer Park so being it was so nice out, I decided to drop by.
Area families, local activists, volunteers and neighbors attended as well as DFL Associate Chair Donna Cassutt, CD 6 Chair Nancy Schumacher and DFL leaders from SD52. Minnesota House candidates Rolanda DelaMartinez and Kate Christopher gave great speeches as well as Thomasin Franken and a surrogate from Barack Obama’s campaign. Forest Lake School Board member Rob Rapheal also gave a great speech.
El Tinklenberg arrived right on schedule after touring around the 6th CD all day including a stop in Saint Cloud. His speech included mentioning his new endorsement of the Fraternal Order of Police in his already long list of endorsements. He talked about the many veterans he has been talking with, including many that voted for Michele Bachmann but are now switching after seeing how Bachmann voted against the GI Bill and otherwise has not supported our troops.
Tinklenberg addressed Bachmann’s “plan” to bring the price of gas down to $2 a gallon and said flat out that “…her oil claim is a lie. It is just a lie.” He listed realistic energy solutions including how he would have supported the DRILL Act, and other ideas focusing on becoming more energy independent. He mentioned a few companies in CD 6, such as SarTec Corp. in Anoka which are developing solutions for turning algae into fuels and how we should be doing more to support those efforts. In a Q&A session bluntly addressed his disagreement with how tax credits with some renewable energies were not renewed while oil companies were getting away with too many tax credits.
He talked about his visit earlier in the day to Rice, where Immaculate Conception Church was putting on their Summerfest celebration. He shared a short bit of conversation he had with “Father Tim” and how some people are seeing how Tinklenberg can be a partner on many issues Bachmann can’t be, such as social justice, economic issues and fighting for those in need in our country. The campaign is not shying away from any part of the district, no matter it’s past electoral reputation.
Overall a great, well-received speech and a fun picnic.
Tinklenberg can certainly win the 6th on issues, but he needs money to compete against Bachmann’s war chest.
Minnesota Democrats have a historic opportunity this fall. Between Al Franken, Steve Sarvi, Ashwin Madia and El Tinklenberg, the DFL has strong candidates running for every single Republican-held seat in our congressional delegation. With Barack Obama sporting double digit leads at the top of the ticket and a Democratic wave building, we could win each of these seats.
Achieving a 100% DFL delegation will not be easy. To even have a chance, we’ve got to give it everything we’ve got.
In that spirit, liberal leaning blogs in Minnesota are joining together to sponsor and end of quarter fundraising drive for our DFL challengers. Together with MNCR, Centrisity, Blue Man, Chris Truscott and Power Liberal, MN Publius is asking you to donate to one of our great DFL candidates before next Monday. We’ve established an Act Blue page so we can track our efforts, called Red to Blue MN. Our goal is modest, to raise $250 for each candidate.
Joining Ash Madia who has already garnered the DCCC’s attention and been added to their Red to Blue program, it was announced yesterday that Steve Sarvi and El Tinklenberg have been added to the DCCC’s emerging races list. From the press release:
The DCCC also announced 20 emerging races. In each of these races, Democratic candidates have generated excitement in their districts for their campaigns for change:
…
Steve Sarvi (MN-02)
…
El Tinklenberg (MN-06)
As these campaigns continue to develop and demonstrate increasing strength, candidates will have an opportunity to qualify for the Red to Blue program.
The Red To Blue program netted each of it’s members about 450K dollars in 2006 and if we can get Steve and El on there it will be a major coup — but they won’t get that attention without your help: donate to the Sarge here , and help El light the bulb here .
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