Polinaut: July 8, 2009 Archive

Daily Digest

Posted at 7:28 AM on July 8, 2009 by Tim Nelson (0 Comments)
Filed under: Daily Digest

2010

Former House Minority Leader Marty Seifert officially got on the gubernatorial bus yesterday. MPR, the Strib and the Pioneer Press were all there at the beginning. MPR's Phil Picardi just had a newscast item calling Seifert the most prominent Republican so far to officially enter the race.

2012

It's never too early to start thinking about redistricting. The Swing State Project has opened an interesting exercise on Minnesota's potential loss of a Congressional seat after the 2010 census. The lines presume the DFL breaks its gubernatorial drought and pits Republicans John Kline and Michele Bachmann against each other. But it's a Collin Peterson/Bachmann matchup in the comments. The consolation prize? Keith Ellison's new St. Paul constituents, as shown in the backend link.

Afternoon addendum: Whoops. Missed the new Rasmussen survey on GOP contenders for 2012. Minnesota's Tim Pawlenty's 1% rankes 5 full points behind "anybody else" for preference among Republicans nationwide, along with Haley Barbour. It's Mitt Romney 25%, Sarah Palin 24%, and Mike Huckabee 22%. Newt Gingrich is 14%

Franken

Al Franken finally took the oath of office. He got Paul Wellstone's bible, but the Pioneer Press's Political Animal said he'll have to settle for Norm Coleman's desk. MPR, the Pioneer Press, the Strib and everyone else managed to get stories done between acts during the Michael Jackson memorial. Politico noted that Franken cast his first vote bucking the Obama administration.

Other

The embattled Metro Gang Strike Force got a look at its new digs and new cops at the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension offices in St. Paul yesterday. The Strib has a story, as does the PP. MPR had a Q&A with state public safety chief Michael Campion.

The same day Congressman Jim Oberstar says Minnesota is getting more than $50 million in stimulus money for weatherization projects, one of President Obama's Economic Advisory Board members says another dose of economic medicine may be required.

Addendum
Whoops. Missed the new Rasmussen survey on GOP contenders for 2012. Minnesota's Tim Pawlenty rankes 5 full points behind "anybody else" among Republicans nationwide, along with Haley Barbour.

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"You don't have to carry a card to be a member."

Posted at 11:48 AM on July 8, 2009 by Tim Nelson (0 Comments)

Gen. Colin Powell seems to have fully made the transition from Cold Warrior to diplomat. He was in Minneapolis this morning to speak to the 92nd annual Lions Club International convention.

He had a brief press availability before his speech. The political questions came fast.

First: "Would you be willing to go on with Rush Limbaugh to talk about the Republican Party, since he seems to think you're not really a member any more?"

Powell responded: "Well, I am a member. And you don't have to carry a card to be a member. And I don't need to go on with Mr. Limbaugh. He understands my position and I understand his."

Well, then. That's that. Powell did, however note that he is on a man-to-man footing with the Democratic chief executive. "I have regular conversations with Mr. Obama and his staff," Powell noted, when asked about his recent knock on the administration for "amassing a huge, huge national debt."

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Brod suspends gubernatorial "exploration"

Posted at 12:39 PM on July 8, 2009 by Tim Nelson (1 Comments)

State Rep. Laura Brod is suspending her nascent run for governor. She announced her plans with this letter on her facebook page:

Friends,

Over the past month, I have been talking to friends, family and activists
about what it will take to win next year's election for Governor. I have
been truly humbled by the support and encouragement so many have given to
me. In just a few short weeks, a talented group of volunteers formed and
laid out a winning plan for 2010. As I am out and about, I am often asked
the question, "Are you going to run for Governor, Laura?" It is with this
question in mind that I write you today.

Recently I went in to the doctor for a yearly check up, and unfortunately,
found that I had some results from routine diagnostic tests which were
concerning. Last week, a second opinion confirmed what I originally learned
and set forth a treatment plan, after which I am certain I will get a clean
bill of health. Over the holiday weekend, my family and I decided right now
is not the right time to begin a campaign for the Governor so we are
suspending the conversations I have been having related to the potential of
my candidacy so we can focus our energy where it needs to be and will
evaluate where things are at in late summer.

For us, as Republicans and more importantly, for our state, the stakes could
not be higher. The outcome to the Governor's race will shape Minnesota's
direction for a generation as well as the national landscape as we redraw
our Congressional districts following the 2010 Census. Anyone who seeks the
Governor's office must understand that wanting to "be" Governor isn't
enough. The person must have a well-defined plan that goes beyond just
talking points for what they want to "do" as Governor. The candidate who
deserves our Republican endorsement for Governor will be the one who leads a
spirited discussion about bold ideas and real solutions. No matter who ends
up getting in the large field of candidates for Governor, I look forward to
that discussion.

Over the next several weeks, I will be sharing my ideas for solutions and
asking you for your input about where we need to go as a state to address
the challenges that Minnesota faces now and into the future. We need all
hands on deck to pull together our best ideas for how we can persuade
Minnesotans that we have better solutions to positively impact their
families in both the short and long term and get our state back on track. I
believe this is the ultimate path to victory in November 2010; it is how we
can win and chart a positive course for the future of Minnesota. One
delegate I spoke with put it best: "When we act like them, they win. When
we act like us, we win!

I look forward to seeing you along the way.

Warm regards,

Laura Brod

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Study: Campaign refund is a national model

Posted at 5:15 PM on July 8, 2009 by Tim Nelson (0 Comments)

SUNY professor Michael Malbin runs Washington's Campaign Finance Institute and says that Minnesota is making a mistake by ending a state refund for small political contributions.

His group released a new study today.

"Minnesotans participate in the system, financially, at a much greater rate than the rest of the nation," Malbin said in an interview this afternoon. "About 5 percent of adults make a political contributions. That's really big. The more normal number around the nation is more like 1 percent."

Malbin says the Legislature ought to try to reinstate the money for the program next year. He says it will be the big year for candidate contributions, and it helps turn constitutents from "town hall meeting" observers and supplicants to active participants in the political process. "The result is, you get better representation."

He said he uses Minnesota as an example of what states can do to reform campaign finance when he speaks around the nation.

Republicans beg to differ, and deputy party chair Michael Brodkorb did exactly that this afternoon. "I don't think there is a role for the state government in terms of spending money, regardless of whether there's money in the bank or whether there is a deficit... in funding partisan campaigns. I just don't see how that could ever be a legitimate priority."

That's despite numbers from Malbin that show party contribution refunds favored the Republicans by a nearly 2-to-1 margin in 2007, the last year the study looked at.

"Our party will clearly take a hit," Brodkorb said, "but we'll just have to work harder at grassroots involvement."

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Pogemiller wants equal time

Posted at 5:34 PM on July 8, 2009 by Tim Nelson (0 Comments)

The state Senate's DFL majority leader sent a letter to WCCO-AM officials today, asking for some time to rebut the station's ranking talent, Republican governor Tim Pawlenty.

Here's the letter from Larry Pogemiller.

MPR's Toni Randolph hasn't heard back yet from 'CCO SVP Mick Anselmo, but says that Pawlenty himself pushed for equal time back during the Jesse Ventura administration.

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Pawlenty on tour

Posted at 5:48 PM on July 8, 2009 by Tim Nelson (0 Comments)

Governor Tim Pawlenty's travels continue tomorrow, with an appearance at the Education Commission of the States conference in Nashville.

Much of the agenda looks tailor-made for the retiring governor. (He is the chair of the organization, after all.) But he's on the list only for a rather generic sounding session with Jeb Bush, the former Republican governor of Florida, and Phil Bredesen, the incumbent Democrat running Tennesee. Here's the pitch:

Governors respond to challenges in meeting workforce needs including: retooling workers through increased access to training, validating skills and credentials; policies that attract and support globally competitive, state-led regional economies; leveraging and aligning federal programs to maximize impact and minimize duplication; and the role of K-12 in the states economy

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