Wetterling to withdraw tomorrow morning.

[KyndCulture]

As an Amy supporter thru and thru, this is FANTASTIC news!!

MN Senate 2006: WETTERLING DROPS
by MNDem
Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 04:49:07 PM PDT

Big news in the Minnesota battle for retiring Mark Dayton's (D) US Senate seat as Democratic contender Patty Wetterling is rumored to be announcing her withdrawl tomorrow. This makes the odds of an expensive MN primary on the Democratic side way less likely as Amy Klobuchar is out in front, and that makes taking on the only Republican, Mark Kennedy, way easier. The odds of keeping one of Minnesota's Senate seats blue keep on getting better and better.

I have the full story up on my blog: http://www.MNpublius.com/

The GOP has pegged Minnesota as their best chance of picking up a seat in 2006; this news changes everything.

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2006/1/19/18497/2919

[Greeby]

1. Hmm, what does an outsider like me make of it?

:shrug:

[CatholicEdHead]

2. Article says she will be the Lt Gov canidiate with Hatch

If this is the case she should REALLY go back to the 6th.

[Minnesota Raindog]

3. Kind of good news, bad news

If she's dropping out of the Senate race to run as Hatch's Lt. Gov. candidate, that's too bad. No one votes for a ticket based on who the lt. gov. candidate is, and I think she'd be wasting her opportunity to win an election for a meaningful office. Does she really want to be another Mae Schunk or Carol Molnau, traipsing around the state visiting school districts or cutting ribbons or whatever lt. govs. do?

If she is dropping out to run for the 6th CD, that would be GREAT news. I think she'd be unbeatable by any of the Rethuglicans running, and she'd win the endorsement from anti-gay, anti-choice, pro-gun Tinklenberg. We'd actually have a Democrat to vote for in the 6th.

Here's hoping for the latter.

[indigo32]

4. I'm with ya on the latter

I don't want to see Tenklenberg get the nomination.

[katinmn]

5. Bummer. She was the anti-war candidate in that race.

:-(

Oh well. Bell is coming around....

[dflprincess]

6. Kat - talk to me about Bell

Klobuchar just strikes me as too DLC.

[katinmn]

7. He's come out for setting a timetable for withdrawal after the Dec

elections in Iraq; considers universal health care a right; and supports investing in energy independence.

He finessed the visit from Junior in November or by inviting veterans to a barbeque a few buildings away from where Junior was posing for pictures with rich Republican donors at the Hilton. I thought that rightly highlighted Junior's neglect of the soldiers/veterans.

While he is wealthy like Dayton, he also has Dayton's commitment to public service and Bell talks a lot about bringing people out of poverty.

I agree on Amy. She seems to be one of the "safe" politicians and I'm not convinced she would take a stand or fight for us once she got in office.

This is not the time for traditional candidates! We need people with passion who will take some risks and fight. And as far as I'm concerned, it's not a risk to talk about the war. It's foolish not to.

[katinmn]

8. Someone on his staff posts on DU

Maybe she will see this and add something.

[MnFats]

9. Klobuchar strikes me as being very sharp, tough

I talk to her every so often and I am highly impressed. She's articulate and I have no problem seeing her on the Senate floor cutting some Repub down to size....tho I confess I don't know her position on all issues...

[katinmn]

10. Call me a narrow minded voter, but the war is my litmus test

Peace First.

[northernsoul]

12. Klobuchar is pro-war?

That would come as news to me. I haven't been paying too much attention to this race, bring me up to speed.

[Demrock6]

11. Ford Bell........

Is very issue based, very intelligent, and very progressive. He has a pledge calling on all senate candidates to make single payer universal health care their first priority after winning election to the senate. I heard him on Inside Minnesota Politics pod casts, he is also very sharp. www.fordbell.com I already have the bumper stickers! Negatives about Bell is that he doesn't have nearly the cash on hand to Klobuchar, and even farther behind Screech Kennedy.

But I am still not 100% on who to go for. So do I base my judgment on who is more likely to win or who I think would do the best job. This is the problem us Dems have faced for years. Happing right now in Ohio. Brown the guy you have known and loved for years, or Hackett a fresh new firebrand ready to kick some gop ass!

I bounced around between who to support but I think in my heart I was always a Patty backer. I also agree with previous posts, the sixth district is where she should go before joining Hatch. If Wetterling did join Hatch his number would shoot up like a rocket and Timmy would cry in his cereal.

A Lourey/ Wetterling ticket would be the way to go!

[northernsoul]

19. Can he beat Screech Kennedy?

I'm not looking for perfection - I'm looking for someone who can send that smirking empty suit crying back to his christmas village.

[csorman]

13. There is still another candidate in this race

Well, now we move on with the debate. I'm sick of the king-making, coronation procedures often adopted by some DFLers. There is a debate to be had and people have a right to hear where all candidates stand and how they'll work for us once they're in Washington.

Ford Bell IS the issue candidate, he is (and has been) calling for a timed withdrawal of troops from Iraq for months, he has issued a pledge for single-payer, Universal health care which the other candidates refuse to sign, he has a 6-point Farm Bill (see it at http://www.fordbell.com/issues/farm-ag.cfm#), and a plan for reducing our dependence on foreign oil by committing to a goal that by the year 2020, 20% of America’s energy needs are met through clean, efficient renewable energy sources, and many other issues to numerous to get into at the moment.

I think that in order to beat Mark Kennedy, we need a candidate who is not afraid to take CLEAR stances on the issues and who has some real plans for how to address the issues that divide us (which should be the issues that unite us).

Many supporters of other candidates seem to think that Ford is just an old rich white guy who dabbles in community service from time to time. That cannot be further from the truth. He has been active in over 25 community-building and social justice organizations, nonprofits, citizen groups, etc. He is the grandson of James Ford Bell, who founded General Mills - but as a Quaker, did NOT leave the family fortune to his kin. Instead he fueled it into what became the James Ford Bell Foundation and the Bell Museum of Natural History. He has been a High School Spanish teacher, a veterinarian and a nonprofit leader (in that order) for the past 35 years and has a demonstrated and tireless record of public service.

So, let's keep the debate open. It's healthy, patriotic, and necessary in order to give folks a choice about who they wish to represent them.

[Demrock6]

14. Bell is a life long DFL'er who just found a new hard line supporter

Fords stand on Iraq:

Staying the course is not an option.

It’s time for us to push aside those who tell us that victory is just around the corner given more money, more troops, and more patience. These are false prophets. We know what’s around the next corner and it’s more casualties, more grieving families, more death and destruction. We need to end our involvement in Iraq in a responsible way that protects both the safety of our troops and the safety of Iraqis.

[dflprincess]

15. About this time 16 years ago

people were telling me I was nuts to support Wellstone at the caucuses because he "couldn't win" (of course, some of these same people carry on now like they were not only Wellstone supporters forever, but practically his best friend). So, I don't pay a whole lot of attention to the "most winnable" argument when picking a candidate.

I've been leaning Wetterling but with her out of the race and from what I've read here, I'm thinking Bell is more my kind of candidate. I need to check out his website.

Thanks everyone for the input.

[indigo32]

16. I've seen him speak

he's good

[katinmn]

17. Thanks, csorman. I agree. People need to dig in and learn about

what the candidates stand for, not just who has the most money.

Those with the biggest campaign chests are often supported by the congressional pacs and special narrow interests.

With another war on the horizon, Junior's claim to dictarorship, and the declining power of the middle class, we need people with bold ideas who will go in and kick some ass.

[MnFats]

18. just got an email from Sen Schumer praising 'class act.'

singing hosannas to Patty Wetterling, then declaring that Klobuchar will be the next Minn. senator.
it almost seems a little like Cheney giving Pawlenty the boot from the Senate race and annointing Coleman as the candidate.

[csorman]

21. Hey MnFats, do you have a copy of that email

that Chuck Schumer sent out? If so can you post it? Just curious - thanks!

[MnFats]

22. I do. It's actually from the Dem Sen. Campaign Committee...

short and to the point I guess:


DSCC Chair Charles E. Schumer issued the following statement in response to Patty Wetterlings decision to withdraw from the U.S. Senate race in Minnesota:

†

Patty Wetterling is a class act and her decision puts Amy Klobuchar in a strong position to be the next U.S. Senator from Minnesota.† Amy Klobuchar is a dedicated public servant, a terrific candidate and will win the Senate race in November.

†

†

Phil Singer

Communications Director, DSCC

202-485-3123 (office)

202-528-1462 (cell)

[e-mail] <mailto:[e-mail]>



that's all, that's it. there ain't no more.

[katinmn]

24. There ya go. That's exactly what the DCCC did with the House

District 6 race. (Oh-oh. I feel a rant coming on.)

They sent money to Tinklenberg, featured him on their web site and refused to respond to repeated and numerous requests for recognition for a progressive Dem who was running. Pelosi, Dayton, Kerry and others all sent $2K each to Tinklenberg last summer. One of them had the gall to deny it when we called their offices, even though the proof was in hand. They essentially locked someone out of the race before they could even get a proper start. This should not happen. If they supported democracy they should be sending this DSCC and DCCC money (collected from all of US) to all the parties' candidates. Give the people some choices. As of tonight, Tinklenberg STILL does not say what he stands for on his web site. http://www.tinklenbergforcongress2006.com/polstate.html How can a candidate get away with that in January? The most impressive thing he has on his website is a photo op with Rep. Rahm Emanuel and a letter that came with another check from Obama.

This is the thing I dislike about our political system. People say: all politics is local. Work for local and state candidates. Change the party from "the inside."

Pretty hard to do when those in Washington are still choosing our candidates. They are locking out candidates with support before they even get a chance to get their issues before all the people. We have to compete against Dem Pac money and lobbyist's money. They simply don't want progressives to win! They say people won't elect a liberal, a left-winger who speaks out against the war and demands universal health care. I don't believe that's true and I think we deserve to have a choice in the matter. When I see progressives who are willing to stick their necks out and are discouraged from running (and I'm sure there has been ongoing pressure on Patty to drop out and they are outright dismissing Ford Bell's camapign by crowning Klobuchar) then people like me are left without a candidate because I won't vote for a stay the course, bland candidate just because they have a "D" behind their name. I hold the submissive, get-along Dems in Congress partly responsible for the mess we are in right now.

The centrists are trying to do the same thing to Coleen Rowley's campaign, and there isn't even a Dem running against her yet, just someone getting cheap publicity by nipping at Coleen's heels.

I don't dislike Tinklenberg or Klobuchar. I dislike having them shoved down our throats by Washington Dems and party loyalists. I preferred their progressive opponents who spoke bravely and transparently about issues and where they stood on them. A candidate saying they will represent our "core values" is not enough. I want details or at least recognition of the problems. I want to know how they will get us our of this and future wars, how they plan to address our profit-driven healthcare system, how they will help solve poverty, stop the outsourcing of our jobs and fight fascism.

Becky Lourey wants the endorsement but said openly that she will run without it in order to give people some clear choices. Rowley's and Lourey's races may be the only major races that Minnesotans and not Washington decide.

I hope Minnesotans shock the nation again and elect some fresh blood who don't kow-tow to the parties. Hopefully they won't ALL be forced out.

[dflprincess]

26. It is ironic that, with Abramoff's money and lobbying causing the

Republicans so much trouble that we now have progressive candidates dropping out because the big money is going elsewhere. I wish they'd study Wellstone's first campaign. He ran it on a shoestring and won by talking to people one on one in coffee shops and at fairs. He saved his money for a few very effective adds (though, granted he got some last minute help from Boschwitz and the "good Jew/bad Jew" letter). A race can be won cheaply if the candidate has the time and energy to go right to the voters.

That said, I have some concerns about candidates taking things to a primary. It wouldn't be such a big deal if we had a primary in June instead of September but we'll wind up fighting each other all summer and then have barely two months to pull things together for the general election. Even the late primary wouldn't be such a problem if we had closed primaries but we don't and the Repukes - who apparently won't have any primary fights - can cross over and "help" pick the DFL candidate. (Let's just be thankful the vampire isn't running as a DFLer or they'd pick him).

[katinmn]

28. Question about the primary date.

At the risk of showing off further my ignorance, is the date set in election law nationally or does each party or state select the primary date?

They should be a lot earlier.

[dflprincess]

29. States set the date for their primaries

and there has been some talk of trying to get ours moved to an earlier date (I think June is what's mentioned most often).

[Minnesota Raindog]

36. Paul Wellstone never would have passed muster with this DCCC/DSCC

The mealy-mouthed spineless consultants and tired party hacks who run things in Washington would have never let a candidate like Paul Wellstone through the door. Janet Robert loses to kennedy by 10 points more than a progressive candidate like Wetterling, and what does the Washington Brain Trust give us? A Janet Rboert clone. No thanks. It's time for the people who show up at caucuses and conventions to give the DCCC/DSCC a big "F*ck You" if they keep trying to coronate candidates like this.

[csorman]

20. Ford at the SCC meeting

Hey everyone,

If you are a state central committee delegate, come on over to the meeting tomorrow in Lakeville to hear him speak. If you need details, I can provide.

Hope you are all having an eventful Friday!

[dflprincess]

23. I'll be at the SCC tomorrow

I tried to PM you, but you haven't been on DU long enough to receive messages...Details would be welcome.

[csorman]

30. Sorry dflprincess, I've been so busy...

I haven't been around too much today! Anyway, the senate candidates will be last in line of statewide races that are slated to speak (they have to go through auditor, sos, gov, etc.). Ford is last of all, and I expect - since the speeches will start around 12:15 - that he will speak around 1:00.

I'll either be at the table (there will be lots of lit and issue papers at our talbe) or running around somewhere - hope to see you there!

[CatholicEdHead]

25. I heard her speech highlights on MPR

and you could tell by her voice that she really did not want to do this. Patty was a very close second in my book for the primaries and I would have supported either of them.

I do hope Patty goes back to the race for the 6th.

[katinmn]

27. I second that. n/t

[goodhue]

31. Imagine the pressure brought to bear

I feel it is unfortunate that Wetterling senate candidacy was foreclosed before we the people have a say in the party selection process. We want folks to go to March 7 precinct caucuses and participate in subsequent endorsing conventions. If in the name of party unity only one candidate remains at the endorsing convention, what is the point of participation?

Luckily, there is still another DFL candidate, Ford Bell. As a strong supporter of single payer health care and other progressive issues, he will have my support.





http://www.fordbell.com/

[katinmn]

32. Thanks, goodhue. You made a strong point

eloquently and concisely and without ranting.

I wish I could do that more often!

[wellstone dem]

33. I am very, very disappointed

Once again the DFL party goes for the insider rather than the most electable candidate. The Minneapolis based democratic elite has no idea what is going on in the rest of the state. True, Klob would do great in the TC, but so would Patty, but Patty would do much better outstate. And Patty is more progressive. I'm now supporting Bell.

[CatholicEdHead]

34. They are both very electable

It is hard to say if Amy or Patty was more electable than the other. They both had their pluses and minuses.

[Demrock6]

35. I am backing Bell

I think with him being very articulate and well informed that he would be the stronger in taking down Kennedy. That is as long as people know who he is, and what he stands for.

I do not see anything negative about Bell fighting it out until the endorsment is made. If Bell gets more exposure he could perhaps even pass Amy Klobuchar up in the polls. If Amy wins the endorsment, Bell would probably withdrawal. If Bell wins its, Amy would take it to a primary.

Amy is good, but I would not yet say great. I see it as we can send in a Mark Dayton "Klobuchar" or a Paul Wellstone "Ford Bell".