Friday forum includes at least five candidates for governor

Posted at 12:57 PM on August 25, 2009 by Tim Pugmire (1 Comments)

Some of the DFL candidates for governor are expected to participate in an event Friday in Minneapolis.

City Council Member Gary Schiff is hosting the gubernatorial forum as part of a breakfast event at Mercado Central on East Lake Street, beginning at 7:30 a.m. The confirmed participants are Tom Bakk, Mark Dayton, Matt Entenza, Margaret Anderson Kelliher and John Marty.

Democrats Chris Coleman, Susan Gaertner, Steve Kelly. Tom Rukavina, R.T. Rybak and Paul Thissen were invited, along with Republicans Pat Anderson, Tom Emmer, David Hann, and Marty Seifert.

Comments (1)

Off topic, Tim, but I thought you'd want to know, since you were kind enough to put in a call about whether or not Bachmann was taking questions at these "town hall meetings" you announce here at MPR.

From the St. Cloud Times today:

Bachmann appearance brief at Social Security forum

By Lawrence Schumacher • lschumacher@stcloudtimes.com • August 25, 2009

A public forum on Social Security drew a crowd at St. Cloud Public Library on Tuesday, despite the absence of its host for all but 10 minutes.

A packed room listened to Christina Powell, an official with the Social Security Administration, as she explained the government retirement program in a forum entitled “What Every Woman Should Know About Social Security.”

U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., whose office issued a news release billing her as the event’s host, appeared an hour into the forum, spoke briefly, then left without taking questions for another meeting...

That's what I'm talking about, Tim and Polinaut staff. She can get away with passing off this sort of thing as "a town hall meeting" if you guys keep reporting such events as town hall meetings.

I know that Tim and Polinaut didn't report today's St. Cloud Bachmann forum as a town hall meeting. And I know that Bachmann's press representatives have assured us that she will be answering unscreened constituent questions at the Lake Elmo forum this Thursday.

My point is: she is trying to pass off these "forums" (where she won't take any questions from constituents) as "town hall meetings"--and the media shouldn't be helping her do that, especially during a summer where the institution of town hall meetings is at stake.

Posted by Bill Prendergast | August 25, 2009 7:43 PM

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