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8th District: Rod Grams


SNAPSHOT
Grams floated a trial balloon about a run for Senate that went nowhere and he decided not to pursue the seat he once held, thus avoiding an intra-party squabble with Rep. Mark Kennedy. In May 2006, however, he announced he would seek the 8th Congressional District seat held by Rep. James Oberstar. . After first being elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, Rod Grams gained the distinction of being the first freshman in the 103rd Congress to get legislation enacted into law: a bill to provide regulatory relief for loans for those devastated by the 1993 Midwest flood. He also pushed a $500 per child tax credit. But much of his focus during his Senate term was revamping Social Security, an issue that really didn't come into its own in Congress until President Bush proposed in 2005 what Grams was proposing in the late '90s. Grams says he was motivated to run for Senate because of the issues that have surfaced in Congress now are the issues he was trying to spearhead then.

Candidate Bio

Rod Grams
Political affiliation:
Republican Party
Born:
February 4, 1948
Princeton, MN
Personal:
Married, four children from previous marriage. Resides in Crown. Lutheran.
Occupation:
Owns three radio stations in Little Falls. Homebuilder. Was anchorman for KMSP-TV in the Twin Cities.
Education:
Carroll College, Helena, MT
Major political experience:
Grams ran and won a U.S. House seat in the 6th Congressional District. He defeated 10-year incumbent Democratic Rep. Gerry Sikorski in 1992. He was elected to the U.S. Senate, replacing the retiring Dave Durenberger in 1996.

Campaign Finances

Total contributions
$335,143
Total disbursements
$241,489
Cash on hand
$93,654
Source: Federal Election Commission. October 2006

Links and Resources

Open Secrets
Document Rod Grams

Candidate Pages

Coleen Rowley accused John Kline of "blind loyalty" to the Bush administration. Kline accused Rowley of violating her own call for integrity. (10/04/2006)
Minnesota's 1st Congressional District race has heated up. In a part of the state that has voted Republican for years, a Democratic challenger may have a chance. (10/04/2006)
Familiar names face off in the 8th District race this year. Long-time incumbent Democrat Jim Oberstar faces a challenge from Republican Rod Grams, the former TV news anchor who served both in the U.S. House and Senate. (10/02/2006)
The three candidates for Congress in Minnesota's 6th district offered distinctly different views and sharp exchanges on health care, taxes and the war in Iraq in a debate Thursday night. (09/21/2006)
The candidates for Minnesota's 6th Congressional District seat met for their first debate before a large audience Monday night in St. Cloud. (09/19/2006)
The three major-party candidates running for Congress in Minnesota's 5th Congressional District met in their first debate since Tuesday's primary. (09/15/2006)
Alan Fine is trying to do what Keith Ellison's DFL rivals couldn't: capitalize on reports of Ellison's past. Fine calls Ellison "unfit" to serve. (09/13/2006)
The seat has been dominated by DFLers for decades, but Ellison's Republican opponent in November says he'll question Ellison's character, a campaign theme that was used over the summer by Ellison's DFL opponents. (09/13/2006)
As the primary election nears, two of the DFLers running for Congress in Minnesota's 5th District say one of their opponents, Mike Erlandson, has gone negative. Erlandson sent out a mailing asking voters if Keith Ellison is above the law, and if Ember Reichgott Junge is out of touch with the district. (09/07/2006)
Former DFL Party Chair Mike Erlandson is touting the endorsement of one of the leading critics of the war in Iraq in an attempt to distinguish himself among the DFLers running for Minnesota's 5th Congressional District seat. (09/01/2006)
Midday hosts a live Minnesota State Fair debate between four of the DFL candidates hoping to succeed U.S. Rep. Martin Sabo in the House of Representatives. (Midday, 08/24/2006)
The DFL candidates in Minnesota's 5th Congressional District are busy campaigning just weeks before primary election day. Four of them will appear at debate at the Minnesota State Fair with the hopes of attracting DFL support. (08/24/2006)
President Bush mixed policy and politics into a four and a half hour trip to Minnesota Tuesday. The president led a panel discussion on health care in Minnetonka and later appeared at a fundraiser for Republican congressional candidate Michele Bachmann in Wayzata. (08/23/2006)
U.S. Rep. Gil Gutknecht will keep his place on the Sept. 12 primary election ballot after the state Supreme Court swiftly turned back a challenge to the petitions he used to qualify. (08/22/2006)
Increasing crime in Minneapolis is fueling concerns about public safety in Minnesota's 5th Congressional District, which includes the city and several suburbs. Candidates in the race for that seat are responding with a string of public safety proposals. One DFLer has even gotten the endorsement of Hennepin County's Republican sheriff. (08/01/2006)
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