Briefing - Monday April 17, 2006 (open thread)

Posted at 8:11 AM on April 17, 2006 by Bob Collins (4 Comments)

The Washington Post repeats a theme. Quotes a Woodbury resident.

Other voters are less charitable. Shirley Jackson of Woodbury, Minn., said she formerly considered herself an independent voter "and my husband used to be a staunch Republican. But now we're both Democrats."

The main reason, she said, is Bush's handling of the war. "My husband and I think he lied to us, and he won't admit he's lied to us," said Jackson, 69. She said she believes Bush launched the war to avenge Iraq's reported plan to assassinate his father.

Jackson is following the competitive race to replace retiring Sen. Mark Dayton (D), and she doesn't like Republican candidate Mark Kennedy. "I won't vote for him, I'm pretty sure," she said.

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Time Magazine has unkind words for Mark Dayton. "The blunderer." The up-and-comers are Barack Obama, Lindsey Graham, Hillary Clinton, John Sununu, and Mark Pryor. As for the best, one is Sen. Kent Conrad of North Dakota, along with Arlen Specter, Ted Kennedy, Thad Cochrane, John McCain, John Kyl, Carl Levin, Olympia Snowe, Richard Lugar, and Dick Durbin

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The Ford Bell campaign is out with a press release today "accepting" my suggestion that candidates for Senate meet with autoworkers.

Minnesota Public Radio’s (MPR) Bob Collins, who is in charge of their Polinaut blog, suggested on the MPR blog last week that in the wake of the Ford Motor Co. announcing that the St. Paul Ford plant will be closing for business, that all three candidates for U.S. Senate should meet with workers to “listen to them” and hear what the workers need from their leaders in Washington. Then as a follow-up, the three candidates could participate in a broadcast where they discuss what they heard and what they would do to address the workers needs in the Senate.

Well, not exactly. Let's go back to the original posting, which was actually in the comments section.

If the candidates and their supporters don't understand why 1,900 people losing their jobs today was a bigger story than one (out of what will be many) debate, then maybe the problem isn't me. Because those were real people, with real jobs, having a really bad day. Not the kind of bad day like when somebody makes a joke about a politician you support, but the kind of bad day when right now -- today - their lives just got turned upside down. That kind of bad day.

Am I embarrased that I think that's a bigger story? Let me say this proudly: No. I'm embarrassed that I spend so much of my life around people who have completely lost perspective about what it means to be a working stiff in America today.

I take the issues seriously. But I don't take politicians as seriously as they take themselves. They, and many of their supporters, have already spent way too much time playing victims in this campaign -- somebody didn't get the same airtime, somebody make a joke, somebody did this, somebody did that. They should stop. Life is too short, and the campaign is too long.

Let me just throw out this possiblity. Maybe the answer to the problem isn't for us to listen to the candidates. Maybe it's time for the candidates to listen to us. What if, tomorrow, all three candidates for office got together at the coffee shop across the street from the Ford plant, and instead of gassing on about how much they support them (whatever that means), what if they just kept quiet for, like, two hours, and listened?

My "suggestion" didn't come as a result of the Ford plant closing, it came as the result of a post, apparently by a Bell supporter, in the comments section who suggested I should be embarrassed by the fact MPR chose to cover the Ford plant closing instead of the Bell-Kennedy debate.

Kind of an important point since it gets to the issue of whether candidates "get it" when it comes to being a working stiff in America.

If I were hosting such an event, though, I doubt my first question to the candidates would be one they'd want to hear. "What don't you get about working for a living?" Just to see the look on their faces.

And then, of course, there's these.

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Local writer Barry Casselman has an article in the Washington Times today called, Wake Up America. There's a little bit in there for every political party to embrace as their own,which, of course, isn't his point.

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Skyway News has a couple of political articles this week. One is a profile of Sen. Scott Dibble. The other is a recap of the Minneapolis leaders v. Pawlenty sparring match a week or so ago.

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Happy Patriot's Day.

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Comments (4)

Cassellman poo-poohs the importance of knowing who is financing campaigns, and that it has "gone beyond the valid concern about integrity of elections in America." What nonsense. In the absence of 100% public financing of elections, knowing who the biggest whores are in this "pay to play" Congress is critical to understanding why our country is in such a mess. Maybe this is an attitude he picked up from his good friend Vin Weber, who never met a dollar too dirty to take.

Posted by Karl | April 17, 2006 11:08 AM

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It is a happy Patriot's Day. The Red Sox and Indians won!

Posted by fasolamatt | April 17, 2006 2:50 PM

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Thought you might enjoy seeing a pre-Polinaut post of yours I just stumbled over. You were inviting readers to go back and look at a prediction you made about Mark Dayton, prior to his decision not to seek re-election...

"I think the story here, actually, is the indication that Dayton probably isn't going to run for a second term. The decision made isn't one that is made by someone with a political future. It just isn't. I think he's going to resign at the end of his term."

So far so good...

Now as for Democrats who will get in. I think Betty McCollum will get in. It wouldn't surprise me if Hatch figures he can't take on a popular governor and decide to focus on Senate instead. Amy Klobuchar seems like a potential candidate. One of the folks here suggested one of the Wellstone sons.

On the Republican side, it seems obvious to me that Rod Grams wants back in. That race will have a heck of a good state convention with Gutknecht and Mark Kennedy and Grams.

You know, though, Minnesota is going to have a hard time on the federal level if it doesn't develop some seniority in the Senate someday.

BC

Posted by Charlie | April 17, 2006 10:40 PM

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That's always been the case with northern states, though. That's what the South figured out decades ago. Just keep sending 'em back until they die.

Hey, those predictions were ...well... not very good. Although Kennedy scared Gutknecht out of the race. Remember the first place Kennedy headed for after he announced? Yep, 1st District. It was a very impressive shot across the bow.

I was just looking at the financial numbers and the amount of money some folks with safe seats are sitting on... wondering if they've got something in mind. Ramstad, for instance, has $1 million sitting there, basically doing nothing.

Posted by Bob Collins | April 18, 2006 11:59 AM

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