A Bluestem Prairie

FEC's Independent Expenditures in MN-01 filed between 10/19-10/21

DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSIONAL CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE - C00000935
View    Download   FEC-247490 Form F24  - filed 10/20/2006 - 24 HOUR NOTICE   

1. Opposes Candidate: Gilbert Gutknecht (H4MN01070)

        Office Sought: House of Representatives, Minnesota District 01
        Payee: Great American Media
        Date Expended = 10/20/2006      Amount Expended = $27976.63
        Purpose: Generic Cmte. Media Buys   

2. Opposes Candidate: Gilbert Gutknecht (H4MN01070)

        Office Sought: House of Representatives, Minnesota District 01
        Payee: McMahon Squier and Associates
        Date Expended = 10/20/2006      Amount Expended = $7150.00
        Purpose: Production

SERVICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL UNION COMMITTEE ON POLITICAL EDUCATION (SEIU COPE) - C00004036

Opposes Candidate: Gil Gutknecht (H4MN01070)
        Office Sought: House of Representatives, Minnesota District 1
        Payee: 360JMG
        Date Expended = 10/13/2006      Amount Expended = $3200.00
        Purpose: direct mail 10/18

NATIONAL REPUBLICAN CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEE - C00075820
View    Download   FEC-247265 Form F24  - filed 10/20/2006 - 24 HOUR NOTICE

  Opposes Candidate: TIM WALZ FOR U.S. CONGRESS
          Office Sought: House of Representatives, Minnesota District 01
          Payee: STRATEGIC MEDIA SERVICES
          Date Expended = 10/20/2006      Amount Expended = $98438.60
          Purpose: Issue Ad Placement

New Ulm Journal: Gutknecht immigration ad distorts article

The New Ulm Journal weighs in on the misuse of one of its article in Gutknecht's attack ad:

Minnesota’s political campaign season is in full swing — as in, “Come out of your corners swinging!” The state’s voters have been hit with a barrage of attack ads that seems bigger and nastier than ever before.

Public-minded citizens grit their teeth and grab the clicker when these as come on the TV, and it seems that’s all that comes on the TV these days.

These ads have created a new style of political coverage — the political ad review, in which the political reporter examines the latest attack ad and determines how close to actual fact it comes. Most of the time, it’s not that close.

It is discouraging for newspaper reporters who find a lengthy interview with a candidate boiled down and distorted to be used in an attack ad. A report from The Journal in July on Tim Walz, for instance, is the basis for a claim in a Gil Gutknecht ad that Walz favors amnesty for illegal aliens. The full story shows Walz would require illegal aliens to leave the country first before applying for citizenship.

The paper also looks at the selective use of a NUJ quotation from Gutknecht's campaign manager on the Walz campaign web site. Not quite the same magnitude as distorting a candidate's stand on an issue in an ad in heavy rotation, but the NUJ is right in asking both sides to play fair.

Mn-01 News: "Gil's running on empty"

The netroots were fairly quiet overnight, so we turn our attention to the newspapers. Let's start in the small town of Preston, where the Fillmore County Journal is published.

FILLMORE COUNTY JOURNAL COMMENTARY: "GIL'S RUNNING ON EMPTY"
Editor John Torgrimson's commentary takes on Gutknecht's attack ads that claim Walz supports anmesty for undocumented immigrants:

If you take Gil Gutknecht's latest campaign ad at face value, immigration is the most important issue facing America on November 7. And Gil wants you to believe that Señor Tim Walz is muy soft on border issues and illegal immigrants.

One would think that after 12 years as our Contractor With America, Mr. Gutknecht would be touting his many accomplishments as a six term representative, a mover and shaker on Capital Hill, guiding legislation past the maddening Beltway fixers. But when your bonafides include voting to give Congress' war powers to the President on Iraq, voting to support tax breaks for the über rich, and, voting to give additional tax credits to the oil companies, you don't want to approve that message.

So, plan on getting an earful of Gil's Bait & Switch rant on immigration until November 7, as it's reported that Gutknecht has $1 million in his treasure chest to throw around.

One political pundit told me, "Gutknecht has nothing to run on - he supports a lousy president; he claims to be a fiscal conservative, but voted to create the largest deficit in U.S. history; and he supports an unpopular war in Iraq. He's got to run on something, so he might as well run on immigration."

With Mark Kennedy's miserable showing for the senate, the Republicans are dumping another 100 grand into Gil's campaign. They are also bringing in Laura Bush next week to shore things up for the Gilster. A little dose of Diet Bush, they couldn't take the risk of bringing in the real thing, Stay the Course George.

FILLMORE COUNTY JOURNAL COLUMN: "'PIG' AS AS A BASIS FOR CAMPAIGNING"
One of the things we've noticed about Gil Gutknecht's incumbency campaigning is that he's often the one handing out government checks. It's sometimes reported that he's the source of the money, as in the headline we read in the Owatonna People's Press: Gutknecht awards Bushel Boy USDA grant.

FCJ commentator Robert Sauer notices pork as well, though he doesn't name names:

It occurs to me that almost all incumbents rely on "pig". It stands for Pork, Incumbency, and Greed in my political lexicon. When I hear an incumbent running on these "principles" it turns me off quickly. This is true whether it is a local, state, or federal office. Yes, they have to run on their record. But not in "Pig".

Pork means bringing back tax money to their constituents in some form. The implication always is made that without the incumbent none of that money would be coming back and the constituents really didn't deserve to have it come back in any case. Not true in most cases. . . .

Incumbency is an excuse for inertia. Incumbents do not own the job because they can become a committee chairman.. . .

After researching my state and federal representatives' votes and legislative initiatives I have reached the conclusion they have had no distinguished efforts to point to. They have voted the party line almost 100% of the time if you remove procedural votes. They have shown no personal initiative. They are not alone. I wish I could vote in lots of states and districts. Most Senators and Representatives should be voted out of office.

When you vote this year (I know you will vote) please take time to learn about the incumbents' record of voting and which bills he thinks were important (the marriage defense bill?). Local and state elections are as important as the national election. Take time to learn in what the challengers are interested and how they intend to pursue their goals. As Red Green says, "I'm with you; we're all in this together".

PIPESTONE COUNTY STAR: VOTER DISGUST AT FOLEY "A KNEEJERK REACTION"
We move across to the far southwestern corner of Minnesota, where we see Gutknecht on another incumbency stop at another light industry. No checks this time, but Gutknecht does dismiss polling taking during the height of the Foley page scandal.

Now the scandal is no longer a "distraction"; this time, the voters themselves just had a "kneejerk reaction.

Oh, and now voters are supposed to keep Gil in office because it will take Representative Walz and his staff years to get up to speed on Iraq. Hmm.  How many years did it take Gutknecht to get up to speed on Iraq?

In Gutknecht stumps for support, the Pipestone County Star's Duane Winn reports:

If one is a passenger aboard a jumbo jet, one would naturally prefer an experienced pilot to an untested one.

The comparison is also apt in politics, according to U.S. Rep. Gil Gutknecht, who is seeking another opportunity to serve his constituents in Minnesota's First Congressional District.

"A fresh new face may sound interesting," said Gutknecht, "but voters have 12 years invested in me and it's going to take them (a new congressman and his staff) a few years to get up to speed on what's going on Iraq and Germany, what's going on in the federal government and with USDA Rural Development."

The "new face" to whom Gutknecht is referring belongs to Tim Walz, a Mankato schoolteacher who is mounting a surprisingly strong challenge to the six-term incumbent.

In the face of a scandal involving Mark Foley, a Republican congressman, the dwindling popularity ratings of President George W. Bush, and an uneasiness among Americans about the direction of the country, Gutknecht realizes that being dismissive of Walz's candidacy would be a serious misstep.

"It's a close race, a lot closer than I'd like to see it," said Gutknecht. "I don't own this seat. We're only temporary tenants. At the end of the day, all I could do is state my case and let the voters decide."

A poll released on Oct. 12 by Majority Watch, an independent polling project, has Walz and Gutknecht running neck and neck.

CQPolitics.com once rated Gutknecht a strong favorite to retain his season. It has now downgraded Gutknecht's chances, giving him a slight nod.

Gutknecht said he's suspicious of the poll results because of their timing. Most of these were taken when former Rep. Mark Foley, a Republican, resigned after being caught sending explicit instant messages to male teenage congressional pages.

"One thing we believe is a number of these polls were taken at the absolute nadir (for Republicans)," said Gutknecht. "The Foley story hurt Republicans nationwide. We saw Republican polls drop six to eight points."

Gutknecht said new polls show that Republicans have rebounded somewhat from the Foley debacle. The earlier polls showed Americans' kneejerk reaction to the story.

"People have a certain reaction to a scandal. But as they absorb it and think it through, they realize yes, it was a disgusting thing, but Gil Gutknecht didn't have anything to do with it.," said Gutknecht.

Gutknecht, who visited the US Marine Bayliner plant in Pipestone on Wednesday, employed more than a figure of speech or two during his campaign stump. To describe the temper of the times in the United States, Gutknecht used one of Charles Dicken's novels — "A Tale of Two Cities" — to make his point.

The best of times, the worst of times? One thing we caught in an article in today's Washington Post was an assessment of the work of the House ethics committee. The Foley page scandal is indicative of the larger ethical problems created by Republican rule in the House:

"Regardless of what happens in the Foley investigation, the ethics process in the House is a failed process and must be fixed," said Democracy 21 President Fred Wertheimer, a congressional watchdog who supports establishment of an independent investigative body that would answer to the ethics panel. "We have had the most congressional corruption scandals in three decades, and we have had a House ethics committee that did nothing about it."

Gutknecht must want voters to believe he has no connection with Republican rule in the House--though they should return him to office because of his experience and connection. Okay then.

FACEBOOK ELECTION PULSE UPDATE
Meanwhile, Tim Walz's Facebook group is up to 719 people, while Gutknecht's has declined to 58. In the Election Pulse, Walz is at 71% to Gutknecht's 29%.

Speaking of netroots, Tim Walz is closing in on $30,000 at the ActBlue Netroots Candidate page.  Anyone with $166.04 $102.70 can put him over the top. Any takers?

MPR: Select a candidate for MN-01

Minnesota Public Radio's Bob Collins has created a "Select a Candidate" survey for the Walz-Gutknecht contest.

After answering questions about where they stand on the issues, those taking the survey can push a button to see which candidate best aligns with their views.

It's a work in progress since Collins is still formulating a question about the DM & E issue:

As soon as I can figure out how to boil down that D,M&E controversy in a couple of sentences I'll add that.

Walz Campaign: Of telephones, scare tactics, and the GOP

It looks as if voters are learning how the GOP is spending the money it's dumping into the Fighting First. The Walz Campaign just sent out this alert:

We’ve received numerous complaints in the last two days from citizens across the 1st District.  Paid telemarketers are making blatantly false accusations about Tim Walz’s position on taxes.

Many times these callers do not identify themselves at all and often pushy and frightening, especially to some of our elderly voters.  Sometimes the telemarketers have identified themselves from groups such as the NRCC, RNC and Republicans for Gutknecht. 

Know your rights when it comes to calls like these:

1. You have the right to hang up!

2. You have the right to know who is calling and what organization they are with.

3. You have the right to insist that they remove you from their call list.

4. You have the right to ask questions about the source of the information they claim to provide.

If you receive a suspicious call, you may be able to record it by hitting the “record” button on your answering machine. If you choose to do so, you should inform the caller that you are recording the call.   Providing these recordings to the Walz campaign will help us shed light on the effort to smear Tim Walz. Know your facts!

The non-partisan, non-profit organization, Project Vote Smart condemned Gil Gutknecht this week for distorting Tim’s position on taxes in his advertisements.  In its statement to the press, Project Vote Smart said,

Gil Gutknecht, a candidate for the 1st Congressional District in Minnesota, has attacked his opponent, Timothy Walz, with misleading information and used Project Vote Smart’s name to give his accusations credibility.  This kind of negative campaign activity is precisely the sort of tactic that the Project attempts to counter with its factual database.  By using the Project’s name to give credibility to these attacks, Gil Gutknecht is cheating the public out of their need for trusted, abundant, accurate, factual information.

The Project prohibits the use of its name and programs, including the National Political Awareness Test (NPAT), in partisan political advertising.  All candidates in Minnesota have been notified of this policy in writing.  Additionally, this policy is posted prominently on the Project Vote Smart website.

This kind of behavior occurs in less that 00.05 percent of all races nationally.  It is our policy to condemn this misuse of Project Vote Smart’s name and reputation and to alert the public to any misuse of our name or programs for negative political activities.

Click here to read the truth about Tim’s position on taxes.

MN-01: Blood in the water edition

While the Star Tribune may run headlines about the GOP taking no chances in its "safe" seats, Gil Gutknecht employed much more edgy language in speaking with Bloomberg Reports:

Representative Gil Gutknecht, 55, seeking a seventh term in Minnesota's first district, also is getting help from the Republican congressional committee. It spent $100,398 on Oct. 17 for ads attacking his Democratic opponent. Gutknecht won 60 percent of the vote in 2004.         

If the election is a referendum on the Foley scandal, ``this thing could break the wrong way for me,'' Gutknecht said. ``If there's blood in the water, the sharks start to circle.''

Let's begin that dance. 

Let's hear from Tim Walz himself, who has posted on Daily Kos. If any of our readers have ever wondered what makes us wake up early to read all the online newspapers in the 1st, the  national feed, and the blogosphere chatter, then stay up late to post there's why. He writes of "Bloody Hands", not sharks circling:

As the election draws near, I want to thank all of you involved in the Netroots movement for your unending support, and for joining me in the fight for the future of our country.  Without your help, we would not have achieved the things we have.  You represent the core of the progressive movement, people who do the hard work of democracy.  In the last week I've become a poster child for the Democratic tidal wave that is about to hit Congress, but that was not always the case. I want to take this opportunity to thank you for blessing me with your support when few people outside of my district were even paying attention. 

Last night I debated my opponent, Gil Gutknecht in Mankato, Minnesota. Nearly 400 people showed up.  There may have been places many of those people would have rather been, but there was no more important place they could have been. 

My opponent, Gil Gutknecht has been trying to stake his claim to these swing voters by running negative ads on both my positions and my character.  He is distorting issues such as immigration, health care and tax relief.  His negative ads are filled with false claims and mischaracterizations.  These ads are being followed up by direct mail, robo calls and letters to the editor.  The political machine designed by Karl Rove is hard at work in my district and I need your continued support to shut it down.

The people of the first district are some of the finest in this country, and they are quickly wising up to the complacent, corrupt Congress that is currently in power.  They believe, as I do, that good health insurance should be more than just luck.  We believe in educating our children and fighting for every last resource they need in order to succeed.  We believe that our military is doing all it can in Iraq despite the lack of any plan to win the peace.  However, none of us would ask our plumber to perform open heart surgery and it is equally ridiculous to ask our military to perform the tasks that our diplomats are trained to do.  Without robust international diplomacy in the near future, we will lose any hope of salvaging democracy in Iraq.

These issues are at the core of all the working class Americans that make this country great.  It is important to me that my 1-week old son and my 5-year old daughter grow up in a country where they feel that they can achieve these basic tenants of the American dream, and that's what I plan to fight for.  There is nothing wrong with this country that can't be solved 18 days from now.   If we choose, we can continue to be the most free, most fair and most compassionate nation on earth. But we must consciously make that choice as a people.

Here in Minnesota's first district, we are nearing the end of a long, hard battle to win back a voice for the people in Washington.  We have truly fought for the support of every voter here in the district, and through press coverage and countless hours on the road we have gotten our message out to the district.  We have managed to raise more than any Democratic candidate for Congress ever has in this district and one of things I am most proud of is that most of our contributions come from individuals.  In the past donation cycle, we have accepted 75% of our money from individuals like the members of the Netroots community and the people of the 1st District.  Of the money I accept from PAC's, most comes from labor unions and other organizations comprised of the individuals from within the district.  Only 3.7% of my opponents PAC money comes from labor groups, an overwhelming majority of his money comes from large business interests.  People say money talks, and in this case it tells you who the man of the people really is.

When I speak to the labor unions I always make the point that the pendulum of politics does not abide by the principle of gravity.  That pendulum will never swing back to the middle on its own.  Sometimes you have to reach up, grab that pendulum, get your hands bloody and move that thing back to the middle with every ounce of strength in your body. 

A Washington Post blog, Chris Cillizza's The Fix on the Fighting First:

The DCCC is set to launch ads in Minnesota's 1st district and Nevada's 2nd district tomorrow. Both races were considered on the very outskirts of competitiveness until the last few weeks when the continued erosion of Republicans' standing in the polls put them in play.

In Minnesota's 1st, Rep. Gil Gutknecht (R) has won better than 60 percent in his last two re-election bids, wins that belie the potential competitiveness of the southern Minnesota district. Prior to Gutknecht's election in 1994, the seat was held by Democratic Rep. Tim Penny, and President Bush carried it with 49 percent and 51 percent in 2000 and 2004, respectively.  The Democratic nominee is Tim Walz, a first time candidate with lots of energy but -- until the planned DCCC buy -- not nearly enough money to be competitive with Gutknecht.

That's not a shark, Gil, it's the New York Times/CQ Politics Battleground Dispatch linking to the Mankato Free Press's excellent coverage of the debate. The AP via KTTC TV reports that the  1st District Debate is a Battle of Words, Ideas and Accusations.  The New Ulm Journal reports on the debate as  well.  Vox Verax/ Minnesota Monitor posts more detailed coverage of the Mankato debate. The debate is available online.

Ken Rudin notes those "Key Races That Could Swing Control of the House" at NPR.

Had enough? Contribute to Tim Walz directly or via ActBlue Netroots Candidates and volunteer.       

MN-01: Tight Race, Intense Debate

This morning, we write from the 20th floor of a tower in Minneapolis, looking south toward St. Olaf church and beyond, to Minnesota's first congressional district. Light posting until later in the day when we return home.

This morning, news of last night's debate comes first.

MANKATO FREE PRESS: TIGHT RACE, INTENSE DEBATE

Mark Fischenich at the Mankato Free Press once again demonstrates his skills as a political reporter in the paper's coverage of the debate at Bethany College, in "Tight Race, Intense Debate:"

MANKATO— A 90-minute battle of words, ideas and accusations revealed distinct differences between Congressman Gil Gutknecht and challenger Tim Walz Thursday night in Mankato.

And the intensity of the debate before an overflow crowd at Bethany Lutheran College provided further evidence of the growing consensus among political experts that the 1st District race is a tight one.

The two repeatedly sparred over the accuracy of a growing number of television attack ads launched by each campaign. But mostly, they gave the approximately 400 people in attendance a clear choice for Nov. 7.

Gutknecht, a six-term Republican who had cruised to victory in his previous three re-election campaigns, offered optimistic words about America’s direction and the GOP-led federal government’s ability to solve problems such as the Iraq war, terrorist threats, dependence on foreign oil and economic challenges.

If elected to another term, Gutknecht promised to concentrate on promoting economic prosperity through reduced taxes, work to implement his prescription drug reimportation plan and promote renewable energy. But foremost, he said, would be a focus on protecting Americans from foreign threats.

“We need to keep America safe,” Gutknecht said. “That’s one of the most important things we do in Washington.”

Walz, a Mankato Democrat making his first run for public office, talked of an America that’s desperate for change after being poorly led by Washington Republicans who have taken the country into a military quagmire, driven up the national debt and left average workers worse off while pandering to wealthy special interests.

A geography teacher at Mankato West High School and a retired 24-year-veteran of the Army National Guard, Walz said he would bring accountability to a Congress that blindly followed the Bush administration into a war that had nothing to do with the 9/11 attacks. He promised to invest in education and transportation, work to bring health care to the uninsured and strive to bring the federal budget into balance.

“This country needs to move back to the common good,” Walz said. “... The American public is ready for change like they’ve never been ready for change. We in the 1st District can be a part of that.”

American policy in Iraq needs to move away from the failed attempt to solve the problem militarily and start focusing on a diplomatic solution, according to Walz, who called for a multinational force and a focus on improving Iraqi infrastructure. He pointed to the 70 recent American casualties and said the world’s finest military has suffered terribly from the failed leadership in Washington.

“Donald Rumsfeld has been wrong every step of the way with this war,” Walz said.

Gutknecht, a strong supporter of the administration’s war policy until making a trip to Iraq in July, admitted mistakes have been made. But he said the war was justified because it ridded the world of Saddam Hussein, who would have been a threat to America if left in place.

“We were a lot more optimistic than we deserved to be,” he said. “... That doesn’t mean what we did was the wrong thing.”

When the debate turned to domestic issues, Walz and Gutknecht continued to disagree.
Gutknecht rejected suggestions that more money is the solution for better educating students.

“We have not shortchanged students,” according to Gutknecht, who also said that college tuition is rising at unreasonable rates. “At some point we have to start putting pressure on our universities. ... We have allowed the educational establishment to basically charge what they want.”

Walz said education spending is a crucial investment that pays dramatic dividends whether it’s pre-school programs or higher education.

“We’re making it harder for our children to get an education in a world where they need it more than ever,” he said.

Discussions about illegal immigration and taxes quickly transformed into an argument about campaign ads that have focused on those issues. Walz complained in particular about a Gutknecht ad that accuses him of supporting amnesty for illegal aliens.

He said he has clearly stated that he opposes amnesty and guaranteed that Gutknecht could not provide any evidence that he supports it.

Walz’ support for repealing tax cuts for wealthier Americans is on record on a questionnaire he answered for Project VoteSmart, a bipartisan group that attempts to get candidates to answer tough questions about federal policy. Gutknecht refused to answer the questionnaire and then used Walz’ answers in attack ads.

Walz read a strong condemnation of the ad by Project VoteSmart, which includes top Republicans such as Newt Gingrich and John McCain. Gutknecht said he’s at a disadvantage because he has a voting record for Walz to attack, and he reminded the audience that the basic fact is true.

“You said you’d repeal the tax cuts,” he said.

The pair didn’t offer any solutions for southern Minnesotans concerned about the proposed Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad expansion. Gutknecht said he knew it would be controversial as soon as the DM&E announced it wanted to bring dozens of high-speed coal trains through Mankato, Rochester and other parts of the district. But he said worse than the coal train project would be the DM&E failing to survive.

“In the end, we need good transportation and we need good railroads,” he said.

Walz said Gutknecht and others in Congress failed the district by allowing a former DM&E lobbyist to insert a $2.5 billion federal loan provision for the project into a transportation bill last year.

“My opponent, by his own admission, did not even read what was coming through here,” Walz said.

In a sidebar article, Fischenich looks at the lighter moments in the debate:

MANKATO— Folks who chose a political debate at Bethany Lutheran College over Larry the Cable Guy at the Midwest Wireless Civic Center Thursday night still got a few laughs out of their event.

Republican Congressman Gil Gutknecht and Democratic challenger Tim Walz got off several lines that amused the standing-room-only crowd.

The first half of the debate — which will be rebroadcast at 7 p.m. today on Minnesota Public Radio with highlights on public TV’s Almanac at the same time — was weighty and somber as war, transportation and agriculture were discussed. The issues were similarly serious in the second half, but were interrupted by some lighter moments.

After Gutknecht threw out statistics about economic growth and an increase in the number of jobs, Walz made the point that not everyone is feeling the impact.

“When’s the last time the GDP filled your gas tank?” asked Walz, who added that one young person wasn’t impressed by Republican claims about a strong economy.

Walz said he asked the man why, noting that there were supposedly a lot of new jobs.

“He said, ‘I know, I’ve got two of them,’” Walz said.

When the candidates were asked what they admired about each other (which got a laugh in itself), Walz said he admired Gutknecht’s passion for his family. But when the award-winning Mankato West High School teacher added that someone could be a great person “and not be a great congressman,” Gutknecht was ready with a response.

“I agree, just because someone was teacher of the year doesn’t mean he’ll be a great congressman,” Gutknecht said.

The debate was sponsored by Debate Minnesota, a bipartisan organization that — in conjunction with the Independent Community Bankers of Minnesota — attempts to boost the civility in politics by hosting debates in tight races. It was moderated by St. Paul Pioneer Press political reporter Bill Salisbury and Free Press Editor Joe Spear.

Salisbury, after listening to the candidates spend 90 minutes trying to win votes and a few laughs, left impressed.

“No matter who you elect,” he told the audience, “you’re going to have an articulate representative in Washington.”

WINONA DAILY NEWS: GUTKNECHT, WALZ TO DEBATE AT SMU

Because of a demand by Gil Gutknecht, most folks in the Winona area won't have the chance to see Walz and Gutknecht spar in person. A debate is scheduled at St. Mary's University on Tuesday, but most will have to listen to it on the radio. The Winona Daily News reports in "Gutknecht, Walz to debate at SMU"

By Chris Hubbuch | Winona Daily News

Candidates for Minnesota’s first Congressional district will debate Tuesday in Winona, but most voters will have to listen on the radio or read about it in the paper.

The half-hour debate between U.S. Rep. Gil Gutknecht and his Democrat challenger, Tim Walz, will be open only to Saint Mary’s University students and staff and the media. It will be broadcast later on Winona Radio stations. The candidates have not yet settled on a time and date.

“The candidates could not agree on whether it should be open,” said Jim du Bois, president of the Minnesota Broadcasters Association, one of the coordinators of the event.

Walz spokesperson Meredith Salsbery said Walz would prefer the debate be open to the public, but Gutknecht would not agree.

Gutknecht’s campaign manager, Nels Pierson, said the candidates agreed to eight debates, six of them public. The final one will take place Thursday in an Austin TV studio.

“Not all debates are public. This one is non-public,” Pierson said.

The last time the broadcasters’ association hosted a debate with Gutknecht and Walz it was in a studio, du Bois said. The candidates agreed to open this one to Saint Mary’s students at the request of the university, he said.

The debate will be broadcast on KWNO and KAGE at an undetermined time, according to Winona Radio.

Walz and Gutknecht participated in a public debate Thursday night in Mankato.

The race between Walz, a Mankato teacher, and the six-term incumbent Congressman from Rochester has become increasingly tight, with a recent poll showing the two even.

Gutknecht planned to tour Southeast Minnesota today with stops in Rushford, Caledonia and La Crescent.

STAR TRIBUNE: EVEN WITH ITS 'SAFE' SEATS, GOP IS TAKING NOTHING FOR GRANTED

The phrase "out of touch with the district" has been tossed around a lot in the MN-01 congressional race.  What else can thoughtful readers experience upon opening the Strib and reading the headline "Even with its 'safe' seats, GOP is taking nothing for granted" and the lead from Kevin Diaz's article:

WASHINGTON - Two weeks ago, nobody in Washington worried much about the First District congressional race in southern Minnesota, where six-term Republican Gil Gutknecht was thought to be safe, if facing somewhat more of a challenge than usual.

Perhaps readers would also ask who those somebodies for whom a Gutknecht loss might be a worry.  Nice of the Strib to spell out that  the anybodies in Washington are Republicans.  All signs indicate that conventional wisdom is about to change. But to read the Strib this morning, readers could be forgiven for thinking there's no question of the outcome for the race in MN-01. The local papers tell a much different story.

MN-01 Events: Jim Hightower with Walz and Ritchie in Owatonna & Albert Lea Saturday

Tim Walz and Mark Ritchie are campaigning with Jim Hightower this Saturday. The first event is in Owatonna and the second one is in Albert Lea.  From an elist we're on:

Please join the next Secretary of State Mark Ritchie and your next Congressman from Minnesota'€™s First District Tim Walz
 
For Chili, Comedy and Candidates
with Special Guest Jim Hightower
Twice Elected Texas Agriculture Commissioner, Public Speaker, National Radio Commentator, and Author
 
Owatonna Elks Club
126 E Vine Street
Owatonna, MN 55060
 
Saturday, October 21
4:00-6:00pm
 
and
 
Albert Lea Union Center
1407 N. Hwy 13
Albert Lea, MN 56007
 
October 21, 2006
6:00-8:00 pm
 
Please RSVP to RSVP@timwalz.org or 507-388-5382 

MN-01: Gutknecht and the environment

THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW: GIL GUTKNECHT AND THE ENVIRONMENT
We've always loved this picture of Representative Gutknecht parading down Main Street in St. James' Railroad Days in 2004.

Why?  The title of the movie showing at the Princess reminds us of Gutknecht's status as an environmental laggard. Readers may recall that "The Day After Tomorrow" was a big-budget film about catastrophic climate change.

So where's Gutknecht on that issue?

Martha Greenwald, an artist who lives in the First, takes a look at the way Gutknecht has framed the issue, and sees the advice of GOP pollster and strategist Frank Luntz.  Greenwald is too much of a fan of Lakoff for our tastes, but her analysis of a recent Gutknecht mailer is interesting.  Here's part of a post from Hickory Bud, her new blog:

Many people . . . don’t believe in global warming, but think that temperature extremes are a natural cycle. You can see the current frames-in-use by comparing the issue statements of Democrat Amy Klobuchar in Minnesota, who says “I will fight to reduce global warming by adopting legislation to limit greenhouse gas emissions,” to her Republican opponent Mark Kennedy, who makes no mention at all of either global warming or climate change, but instead speaks of protecting the environment and reducing dependence on foreign oil.

GOP Pollster Frank Luntz says, “nearly all Americans agree that our nation’s current energy policy is behind the times and needs a new, 21st century approach.” You can review the Luntz memo here: it outlines how Republicans should address the issue. Several days after I learned about the Luntz memo from a media organization called Action Media, my own Republican congressman, Gil Gutknecht, hit his constituents with a glossy mailer that hit all the Luntz talking points. The talking points that many partisans agree on is advocating renewable energy and decreasing dependence on foreign oil. Neither global warming nor climate change are part of the Republican pitch.

In his policy statement on the environment, Tim Walz addresses the need to reduce carbon emissions, a vital step in reducing global warming. Walz has been endorsed by the League of Conservation Voters, Clean Water Action,  and the Sierra Club.

Gutknecht and the environment? Not so much. He received a 0% rating from the League of Conservation Voters, as Leigh Pomeroy noted at Minnesota Monitor.  Audience members at the Steele County Free Fair Debate guffawed at Gutknecht when he complained about "radical" environmental groups--which, of course, he never named.  His campaign likes to complain in general terms about "Hollywood values" and phantom radical environmentalists, but American values like environmentalism play on Main Street.

More netroots and news: Hot race, chilly prairie

OLLIE OX UPDATE:  Minnesota Republican Watch delivers with Shock: Gutknecht Attacks Walz For Supporting Law Enforcement, Homeland Security Funding Boosts:

Yesterday, Gil Gutknecht was slammed by the non-partisan organization Project Vote Smart for attacking Tim Walz using his answers to Vote Smart's candidate questionnaire. Since Gutknecht thought Walz's answers to the questionnaire were worth attacking, I thought I'd take a look at just what Gutknecht seems to oppose. What I discovered was truly shocking. [Go read it at MRW]

MRW reminds readers of tonight's debate:

Tonight, Tim Walz and Gil Gutknecht will be debating at Bethany College in Mankato. This is a perfect opportunity for Gil to explain to First District voters why he's attacking Tim Walz for his desire to give our law enforcement and homeland security efforts more resources to keep us safe.

NETROOTS ROUNDUP: ALL THIS AND YOUTUBE, TOO

Over at the ActBlue Netroots Candidates page,  Walz is closing in on  $29,000 in contributions from inviduals.  Give if you can, and volunteer with the campaign.

From the looks of recent posts, Minnesota Republican Watch is going to be honing in on the Fighting First. We suspect MWR will soon have additional solid reporting on Project Vote Smart Slams Gutknecht's Negative Campaign Ad. 

Early this morning, MnPublius caught up on the MN-01 news in DCCC to Target 1st CD (crossposted to Minnesota Monitor). Matt's coverage joins earlier reports on the national feed from MnCR, Blog of the Moderate Left, The Wege,  Minnesota Monitor,  DailyKos, U-DFL, DFM, DFLers, Hot Flashes From the Campaign Trail and more. On the ground in the Fighting First: Minnesota Central, Vox Verax, I Don't Hate America!, and Craig's Site have been keeping an eye on things.

Jason at IDHA! has started his own YouTube page. Visit it to see Tim Walz in Winona.

ROLL CALL: PRACTICALLY NO ONE THINK REPUBLICANS CAN HOLD THE HOUSE
A peek behind the subscription firewall at Roll Call.  The Fighting First turns up Morton Kondracke's column:

Practically No One Thinks Republicans Can Hold the House
October 19, 2006
By Morton M. Kondracke,
Roll Call Executive Editor

Except at the White House and the top reaches of the Republican National Committee, I can hardly find a single politician, consultant or pollster, Democratic or Republican, who thinks the GOP can retain control of the House.

And even at the White House, the messages are mixed. Strategist-in-chief Karl Rove is proclaiming that Republicans will pull out a victory. On the other hand, one aide also told me that the chances of Republicans retaining narrow control is in the 40 percent to 45 percent range — that is, less than a 50-50 shot — while Democrats’ chances of winning either narrowly or with a bigger margin are greater.

Other potential new targets are Reps. Jim Leach in Iowa’s 2nd district; Jean Schmidt in Ohio’s 2nd; Gil Gutknecht in Minnesota’s 1st; Mike Ferguson in New Jersey’s 7th; Charles Bass in New Hampshire’s 2nd; Robin Hayes in North Carolina’s 8th; and Cathy McMorris in Washington’s 5th, plus Nevada’s 2nd, an open seat being vacated by GOP Rep. Jim Gibbons. . . .

. . .The latest RealClearPolitics.com generic ballot gives Democrats a 14-point edge in House races. In 1994, Republicans outpolled Democrats by just 7 points, and Democratic experts calculate that, factoring in gerrymandering of House districts, they need a national vote margin of just 7 points to 8 points to capture 15 seats.

In a joint survey for National Public Radio, the first-rate GOP and Democratic polling firms Public Opinion Strategies and Greenberg Quinlan Rosner reported this week that in the 48 most-contested House districts, when voters were asked, by name, which candidate they favored, 50 percent chose the Democrat to 43 percent for the Republican. Six percent were undecided...

One GOP pollster told me that the Democratic tilt of swing voters — especially independents and white women — is the main factor operating against his party this year. “They are frustrated with the lack of success in Iraq. They are scared about the future of the economy. They doubt us on social issues. And, they say, ‘We let you run things for 12 years. We want something different...’”

The result, he said, is that “Democrats are sitting on our three-yard line. It’s first and goal. Maybe we can hold them, but they’ve got four plays to score. If they don’t, it’s their fault.” The bottom line is that Republicans need to be better at defense than the Chicago Bears.

New Tim Walz Ad: "Amnesty"

There's a  Quicktime version of a Tim Walz ad, "Amnesty"  up at the Walz campaign site.  Here's the YouTube:

MN-01 News: Republican Nightmare plays well with tough crowd

WALL STREET JOURNAL:  TOUGH CROWD, OR, POLL SIGNALS MORE REPUBLICAN WOES
The Wall Street Journal was the first publication we know that associated the words "Tim Walz" with "Republican nightmare." That was back on March 30.

Thus we weren't surprised to see mention of Gutknecht's political woes in this WSJ article: "Poll Signals More Republican Woes As Disapproval of Congress Grows."  The article begins:

With just 19 days until the midterm elections, a new poll shows both President Bush and his party in worse shape among voters than Democrats were in the October before they lost control of Capitol Hill a dozen years ago.

Support for the Republican-led Congress has eroded to its lowest point since the party's watershed 1994 victory that brought it House and Senate majorities.

A new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll illustrates the political toll Republicans are paying for rising discontent over the Iraq war, as well as a spate of scandals including the disclosure that Republican House leaders knew of inappropriate emails to House pages from Florida Rep. Mark Foley, who resigned late last month. Voters' approval of Congress has fallen to 16% from 20% since early September, while their disapproval has risen to 75% from 65%.

Deeper in the article, readers discover what this means to Representative Gutknecht's political fortunes:

The new poll also suggests the advantages that have helped Republicans sustain their majority in Congress -- gerrymandered House districts, a well-oiled turnout machine and the national-security issue -- all have been somewhat neutralized by the political winds buffeting the party. Democrats need to gain a net 15 seats for a House majority, and they now have polls showing leads in about 40 Republican-held districts from New England through the Mountain West -- with none of their own in serious jeopardy.Republican spending records indicate greatly diminished hopes of unseating Democratic incumbents in Ohio, West Virginia, South Carolina and Texas, while some of their own incumbents once thought safe, such as Rep. Gil Gutknecht in Minnesota, are now in Democrats' sights.

Let's take a look around the Fighting First to see how this national wave plays out.

HOUSTON COUNTY NEWS: GOP SCARE TACTICS IN IMMIGRATION ISSUE
It's not surprising that Gutknecht is going to extremes to save his seat. Reader Doug Nopar of Winona sends his "Thoughts on immigration":

Here in southeast Minnesota, I am wary of Republican candidates’ distortion of the immigration issue this election season. This specifically includes state legislative candidates, as well as Congressman Gil Gutknecht. The question for us voters is: “Will their scare tactics, mailings and inflammatory rhetoric influence our votes?”

Republicans want us to believe that, if elected, they’ll have the answers on immigration. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. If Republicans truly wanted to enact meaningful immigration reform, they could have already done so.

They are already in control of the Presidency, both houses of Congress and the Supreme Court. In Minnesota, they’ve controlled both the Minnesota governor’s office and the Minnesota House of Representatives. Really, how much more power does one party need in order to get something done?

The immigration issue is complex. It does need the nation’s attention. But overly simplistic campaign sloganeering and fear-based strategies that pit long-time Minnesota residents against newcomers and “the other” benefit no one.

WINONA DAILY NEWS LETTERS: GROVER, GUTS, GOD, AND GUNS
Winona is a hotbed of DFL activity, with Minnesota celebrities and guests  playing to packed houses at fundraisers.  It may also be home to the highest per capita concentration of LTE writers.  Jon Nicholson sent his letter A hero or a zero? about the connections between Gil Gutknecht, Grover Norquist and convicted bribester Jack Abramoff to his hometown paper. What Nicholson says about the starring role that Americans for Tax Reform played in the Abramoff corruption scheme bears reprinting:

. . .the U.S. Senate released a report saying that Americans for Tax Reform probably committed money-laundering fraud at taxpayer expense. According to newly released e-mails, convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff apparently funneled money from his clients to Americans for Tax Reform and four other Republican-linked nonprofit organizations. These tax-exempt organizations then laundered the money for Abramoff by providing favorable newspaper articles, introductions to Bush administration officials and free trips for Abramoff’s clients.

We have more here, including a screenshot of the Gutknecht webpage touting the Norquist award.

Winona's Yvonne Johnson is another industrious letter writer. Time for a change, a letter about Johnson's response to Max Cleland's visit last week, appears in today's WDN. Michael Fields' letter about how Republicans turned against the faithful turns up too.  Fields tells values voters what GOP leaders say behind their backs:

Consider this: For the past six years Republicans have controlled the entire government, including the Supreme Court, yet abortions are still legal, we can still burn our flags and it’s still illegal to force students to recite government prayers.

Sadly, the Republican Party establishment has been using you. And, to add insult to injury, they think you’re “ridiculous.” David Kuo was the No. 2 guy in George Bush’s “Office of Faith-based Initiatives.” In his new book, “Tempting Faith,” he writes: “National Christian leaders received hugs and smiles in person and then were dismissed behind their backs and described (by White House officials) as ‘ridiculous,’ ‘out of control’ and ‘just plain goofy.’”

The Nicholson, Johnson, and Fields letters were in yesterday's blizzard of Walz letters published in the Rochester Post Bulletin.

Finally, an NRA member warns readers about threats to their Second Amendment rights, writing in part:

The National Rifle Association, with its million members, has been the guardian of these rights for many years. There are members of Congress right now who are working to seize these rights and to void the Second Amendment. We have seen these rights abolished in Australia, Great Britain, Canada and Brazil. Let’s not let it happen in the U.S.A.

The NRA has evaluated the present local candidates, through their past efforts and rated them from “A-1” which they also endorsed to “F” being the lowest. The “A-1” endorsed candidates are: Tim Pawlenty, Mark Kennedy and Gil Gutknecht.

What Bud Safranek doesn't tell readers is that Tim Walz also received an "A" rating from the NRA, based on answers to its candidate survey, though not endorsement.  Walz is a gun owner who will defend the Constitution.

BEHOLD! THE POWER OF INCUMBENCY: GUTKNECHT'S INDUSTRIAL TOUR
One way Gil Gutknecht has responded to his nightmare is to tour businesses around the district. The Worthington Daily Globe buries the report of his tour of Newport Labs to the next-to-last paragraph.

Readers of the Daily Globe get more information about their U.S. representative in the Daily Globe's letters section, where the Nopar letter is also published. Closer to home, North Mankato resident Jack Flinner suggests it's Time for a change in negatively viewed Congress:

A recent New York Times/CBS poll of registered voters finds that Americans have an overwhelmingly negative view of the Republican led Congress, with only 25 percent approving of the way it is doing its job.

Seventy-seven percent (including 65 percent of Republicans) say that Congress members do not deserve re-election and that it is “time for new people to be in charge.” We, here in the Congressional 1st District, have an opportunity to do just that Nov. 7th. Tim Walz is the Democratic candidate on the ballot for the House seat now filled by a six- term Republican, Gil Gutknecht.

Tim Walz reached the highest rank of an enlisted soldier, Command Sgt. Major (retired), serving 24 years of duty in the National Guard, including a tour overseas in Operation Enduring Freedom. And his 20 years of experience as a public school geography teacher and coach taught Tim that tackling problems requires bringing people together and the courage to look at issues honestly. He was chosen “Teacher of the Year” in 2003.

Is there a public outrage over the results of the last six years in Washington, D.C., where Rep. Gutknecht has supported President Bush 93 percent of the time? Massive tax cuts for billionaires, skyrocketing national debt, record oil-company profits, No Child Left Behind and the trashing of the successful Head Start program, slashing student loan programs, the Medicare-D donut hole, the global warming “debate,” the stem-cell research veto, the GOP culture of corruption involving indicted lobbyists, failure to secure the homeland (borders and ports), no-bid contracts, unfair trade, polluter-friendly environmental policies, veterans kicked off the health care system, national park budget cuts, etc.

We have the opportunity to help Rep. Gutknecht fulfill his pledge to serve only six terms when he signed the Contract for America in 1994.

I have no doubt for whom I am going to vote — Tim Walz.

Gutknecht's industrial tour also stopped in Owatonna (nice tomatoes) and St. James, where the Plain Dealer article leads with:

Minnesota manufacturing was the theme of Representative Gil Gutknecht's campaign visit to St. James on Friday, Oct. 13, when he toured Westin Automotive.

Gutknecht said he has toured factories all over southern Minnesota, and is amazed by the manufacturing done in his district.

Amazed?  Sounds like he's been in Washington D.C too long if his own district's industrial base is a surprise. We wonder if any of his votes on legislation supporting domestic manufacturing will turn out to be "amazing."  That item on "unfair trade" in the Flinner letter suggests there might be some surprises.

OLLIE OX UPDATE: Via Polinaut, the Los Angeles Times mentions the dogfight in the Fighting First. The DeeTrip is throwing another puppy into the ring:

The Democratic campaign committee is also taking new aim in Minnesota, where Republican Rep. Gil Gutknecht had been favored to win reelection. Encouraged by recent polls, the committee plans to air an ad against him.

Cook Political Report: House Ratings Change

Via DailyKos, we learn that the Cook Political Report has more good news for Tim Walz:

HOUSE RATINGS CHANGE:

  AZ-01       Renzi              Solid Republican to Likely Republican
  CA-50      Bilbray           Solid Republican to Likely Republican
  ID-01       Open               Likely Republican to Lean Republican
  KS-02       Ryun               Solid Republican to Likely Republican
  MN-01     Gutknecht     Likely Republican to Lean Republican

MN-01 News and Netroots

NETROOTS REVIEW
Minnesota Republican Watch recaps the week in which CD-1hit the big time.The Blog of the Moderate Left notes  Gil Gutknecht New DCCC #1 Target while MnCR warns MN-01:  DCCC is Coming for Gil Gutknecht..  Kos notes that the "DCCC gets confident":

"Cautious optimism" has been replaced with "confident aggressiveness".

Democrats said private polls have convinced top party officials that they could pick up 40 or more seats -- nearly double their internal projections from a week ago -- if they spend enough money on television advertising for long-shot races...Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Rahm Emanuel (Ill.) has privately signed off on targeting a new group of GOP incumbents who were once considered safe for reelection, starting with Rep. Gil Gutknecht in rural Minnesota, officials said...The DCCC is likely to go deep into debt, perhaps topping the $11 million deficit it racked up in 2004. The committee can borrow as much as a bank is willing to lend. The other option is to take money out of Republican districts that the party is confident it is almost certain to win.

There's another option -- safe incumbents sitting on large piles of cash pay up. And not just their dues, but MORE. People are sacrificing their hard-earned dollars, so should safe incumbents.

The Wege notes that PAC money is flooding into Gutknecht's war chest, but that can't stop Tim Walz.

Firedog Lake says to donate to TimWalz at the ActBlue Netroots page.  Democracy for Minnesota writes:

The momentum for Tim Walz (MN-01), our DFA Link candidate with the most local endorsements is simply amazing.  I will be visiting the 1st CD this weekend and will blog about my volunteer experience for Tim Walz.

DFA is watching this race but if you want DFA to take action (a national endorsement) they need to hear from DFA Link members. Show your support for Walz to DFA by adding your name to the Walz DFA Link candidate page.  Not yet a member of the DFA Link?  Join over 530 MN DFA Link members at www.dfalink.com.

MnPublius discusses Laura Bush's visit to Rochester next week.  Minnesota Central looks a "State of Denial – Gutknecht Style."

Jason at I Don't Hate America! shares a letter from Tim Walz to nursing students. OLLIE OX UPDATE: Now with YouTube video!

The DFLers blog ties Walz's abilities to lead a great grassroots campaign to his potential in congress:

If a veteran Washington politician like Gutknecht has a six term incumbency and a history of winning the district with 20-point leads, and Tim Walz, a political newcomer and local teacher, has the sense, ability, and will-power to fight the fight into national spotlights such as The New York Times and The Washington Post, it’s clear that Tim Walz is a guy who can get things done.

ALBERT LEA TRIBUNE:CONGRESS IS RUBBER STAMP, HE SAYS
The Albert Lea Tribune reports on a DFL rally for House candidate Robin Brown. Walter Mondale played to a packed house:

Former U.S. Vice President Walter Mondale on Tuesday encouraged people to get involved in the voting process and to change the face of Congress back to the way the Founding Fathers intended it to be.

“It’s become a classic rubber-stamp Congress,” he said. “I love that institution, and I love what it can do for us when it’s operating the way the founders intended.”

Albert Leans turned out in droves Tuesday night to hear Mondale, 78, speak at a political rally supporting DFL candidate Robin Brown for Minnesota House.

Before and after speaking to the full-house crowd at the Ramada Inn he went around the room and stood for pictures with people in attendance. . . .

[snip]

During the program, [State Senator] Sparks and  [Tim] Walz also gave short remarks encouraging people to vote in November.

“Things are going to change,” Walz said. “There’s nothing wrong with this country that an election won’t fix. We’ve got to run like we’re 10 points down in the next 21 days.”

MANKATO FREE PRESS LETTERS: WHO DOES GUTKNECHT LOOK OUT FOR?
Judi Brandon of Mankato takes her congressman to task for his endorsement by the 60 Plus Association in "Gutknecht looking out for drug campanies' interests":

Rep. Gil Gutknecht says that he is working to lower the cost of drugs for Minnesotans. But he is being supported by groups like the 60 Plus Association, which recently honored him.

This organization has received substantial funding from the drug companies Merck, Pfizer and Wyeth-Ayers, according to AARP.

Whose interests is Gutknecht really working for?

Bluestem Prairie took a close look at Gutknecht and the 60 Plus Association early in October.

Walter O. Jones of Lake Crystal isn't happy with the Republican Congress in "The People's only glimmer of hope lies with Democrats":

Republicans: The party of, by and for the super rich. Never more true than in the past six years, when our government has become anything but a representative democracy.

The economic giants rule, every bit as tyrannical as the old European monarchies.

Problem is, all politicians feed at the same financial trough, those replenished by big pharmaceutical companies, big energy, big medical (insurance and technology), big ag (Cargill, ADM, Monsanto), and by big media.

Yet, our only glimmer of hope lies with the Democrats, historically the only major party that has tried to wrest the reins of government into the hands of The People. A good example is the Democratic Farmer Labor party of Minnesota.

It is unfortunate that third and fourth party candidates — who often have the best ideas — under our system (winner take all elections, electoral college) cannot win. And they take away votes from the Democrats.

If you are not super rich, for you to vote Republican would be an irrational act.

I hope upcoming elections will not be close. If they are, Republican-sponsored election day fraud will be rampant.

ROCHESTER POST-BULLETIN: THEY GET LETTERS
When we move east to Rochester, we find that pro-Walz letter writers have flooded the Post-Bulletin with letters.

Here's a good one, from Jon Nicholson in Dakota: Paying for Gutknecht's failures

If you go to Rep. Gil Gutknecht's campaign Web site (as of the morning of Oct. 13), you will see that he received the "Taxpayer Hero Award" from the group Americans for Tax Reform.

Yesterday, the U.S. Senate released a report saying that Americans for Tax Reform probably committed money-laundering fraud at taxpayer expense.

According to newly released e-mails, the convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff apparently funneled money from his clients to Americans for Tax Reform and four other Republican-linked non-profit organizations. These tax-exempt organizations then laundered the money for Abramoff by providing favorable newspaper articles, introductions to Bush administration officials and free trips for Abramoff's clients.

Gutknecht may be a "hero" to the money-suckers hanging on to the Bush administration, but he is not a hero to the ordinary American taxpayer who is paying for all the Bush administration giveaways to the rich. Gutknecht has rubber-stamped every false move by the Bush administration.

We and our children and grandchildren will be paying far into the future for Gutknecht's failure to pay attention to where our country has been heading.

We wrote about Gutknecht, Norquist, and Abramoff last week and saved a screen shot of the page Nicholson mentions.

Read more letters below the fold.

PROJECT VOTE SMART: GUTKNECHT AD MISUSES PVS NAME AND REPUTATION

Project Vote Smart has released a public statement (now available at the Walz campaign site::

RELEASE DATE:  October 18, 2006 
FOR INFORMATION:
Adelaide Kimball:  406-859-8683
 
PUBLIC STATEMENT

Gil Gutknecht, a candidate for the 1st Congressional District in Minnesota, has attacked his opponent, Timothy Walz, with misleading information and used Project Vote Smart’s name to give his accusations credibility.  This kind of negative campaign activity is precisely the sort of tactic that the Project attempts to counter with its factual database.  By using the Project’s name to give credibility to these attacks, Gil Gutknecht is cheating the public out of their need for trusted, abundant, accurate, factual information.

The Project prohibits the use of its name and programs, including the National Political Awareness Test (NPAT), in partisan political advertising.  All candidates in Minnesota have been notified of this policy in writing.  Additionally, this policy is posted prominently on the Project Vote Smart website.

This kind of behavior occurs in less that 00.05 percent of all races nationally.  It is our policy to condemn this misuse of Project Vote Smart’s name and reputation and to alert the public to any misuse of our name or programs for negative political activities.

More on this story later.

MN-01 morning: Walz to Walz news, starting with Gutknecht

WASHINGTON POST:  GUTKNECHT HEADS NEW LIST OF DCCC TARGETS
An article in today's Washington Post suggests that the Fighting First has become number one on the Dee-Trip's new list:

Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Rahm Emanuel (Ill.) has privately signed off on targeting a new group of GOP incumbents who were once considered safe for reelection, starting with Rep. Gil Gutknecht in rural Minnesota, officials said.

Fundraising is an issue, as the article's headline indicates: "Funding Constrains Democrats;Party Chiefs See Chance to Take 40-Plus Seats With TV Push." 

We ordinarily urge readers to contribute to Tim Walz directly or via ActBlue, but this might be a time to throw some coin at the DCCC to help pay for those ads in MN-01. Contribute through October 20 (Friday) and your dollars will be matched 3-to-1 by Democratic leadership.

News of this race is busting out all over. Last night, we posted about the New York Times coverage of the Walz-Gutknecht race, with a strong dose of local coverage thrown in. We may have had to miss the Daily Show to put the piece together,  but the collection of 1960s Impulse jazz a friend sent smoothed the way.

ABC NEWS POLITICAL RADAR: GUTKNECHT NEW TARGET
The Fighting First shows up on ABC's Political Radar as well in "New Dem Spending Target: Rep. Gil Gutknecht (R-MN)":

ABC's Teddy Davis reports: Democratic sources tell ABC News that the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's independent expenditure will soon start advertising in the first congressional district of Minnesota.

The target? Rep. Gil Gutknecht (R-MN), a GOP House member who offered a grim assessment about conditions in Iraq after returning from the war-torn country in July of this year.

Gutknecht's grim assessment, in which he said that a partial withdrawal might be wise, sent shockwaves through political circles because it followed his saying, "Members, now is not the time to go wobbly," during a June 15, 2006 debate on the floor of the House about Iraq.

The Democrat running against Rep. Gutknecht is Democrat Tim Walz, a National Guard veteran who served in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan).

The DCCC's decision to target Rep. Gutknecht is expected to be followed by additional new spending targets.

NEW ULM JOURNAL: WALZ TO WALZ LETTERS
Walz supporters get feisty in the New Ulm Journal's lively letters section. Bruce Larson of Rochester tackles Gutknecht's attack ad. Some key excerpts:

I write concerning the laughable attack ad currently being run by Rep. Gil Gutknecht which blatantly lies about the position of 1st District Congressional candidate Tim Walz on border security and immigration.

Gutknecht accuses Walz of supporting amnesty for illegal aliens. Yet the good congressman recently sat right next to Walz at a debate in Rochester and heard Walz say clearly that he opposes amnesty. . . .

. . . .Beyond being wrong on the issues, Gutknecht’s deliberate lying in his attack ad against Walz exhibits a distinct lack of integrity and suggests he is running scared in his dead heat race with Walz. Indeed, Gutknecht’s own campaign manager told KTTC-TV last week that when campaigns use negative advertising, it “often shows desperation.” Exactly.

Jim Gurley of Winona writes to say "Walz campaign is amazing":

The magic and electricity of Tim Walz’s campaign for U.S. Congress is truly amazing.

Here’s a man who, just a few months ago, was given no chance to make a showing against Gil Gutknecht, the powerful six-term Washington-insider and close ally of George W. Bush. And yet an independent poll now shows the race to be neck-and-neck!

We voters of southern Minnesota are tired of hearing “Stay the course” in Iraq while so many Americans and Iraqis die daily. We’re tired of Gutknecht throwing our hard-earned tax dollars away with budget-busting spending. And we’re tired of the corruption of Tom DeLay, Jack Abramoff, Tom Foley, and the rest of Gutknecht’s Republican leadership.

We are ready for a change. It’s time for long-time Washington politicians like Gutknecht to step aside now and allow new leaders like Tim Walz to put our country back on the right track.

ROCHESTER POST BULLETIN: LAURA BUSH, MCCAIN COMING TO ROCHESTER
Not only Laura Bush, but also John McCain, will be stopping by to help bail out Gutknecht's foundering campaign.  The article closes:

Bryan Anderson, Gutknecht's campaign spokesman, said Bush's presence would be a boost for Republican candidates, including Gutknecht, who is in a tough re-election battle with DFL challenger Tim Walz.

"Laura Bush is very popular, and a lot of people respect her and appreciate the things she's done as First Lady," Anderson said.

Bush will arrive in Rochester with less than two weeks before the Nov. 7 election, the first of what is expect to be a flurry of political events centered on national political figures.

Sen. John McCain, an anticipated GOP presidential candidate, is also planning to campaign for Pawlenty as party of a swing through Minnesota, including stops on Nov. 2 in Rochester, Mankato, the Twin Cities and Moorhead.

Lynn Wilson, chairman of the Olmsted County DFL Party, said she was not prepared to announce any upcoming DFL events, but expected to do so in the coming days.

We look forward to the news.

NETROOTS ROUND-UP
Kos at DailyKos notes how "We expanded the playing field."  Vox Verax excerpts the NYTimes coverage. Craig's Site posts a message from the Progressive Patriots Fund.  Walz is listed in the letter.

In an article directed against John Kline (MN-02), Lakeville Dad notes Gutknecht's receiving "campaign contributions from representatives accused of being the most unethical in Congress by the non-profit watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW)."

Photos at I Don't Hate America! reveal the graphic difference between an incumbency campaign and a grassroots campaign at recent festivities at Winona State University. We've added this Winona blogger to our "Blogs in the First" list. Check it out. 

Mankato Free Press: We can’t have it both ways in Iraq

The Mankato Free Press takes incumbents to task over Iraqi policy in an editorial, "We can't have it both ways in Iraq":

Another atrocity in Iraq occurs as candidates for office, mostly incumbents, try to defend the plan.

The plan is fuzzy at best. It involves putting more pressure on the Iraqis to take more control of their own security. Political interests at home are pushing the agenda in Baghdad.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with Iraqi leaders last week making a not so subtle hint that the country has to work more quickly toward its own security and as a first step, toward reducing the sectarian violence ravaging the Iraqi people and catching U.S. soldiers in more than a little crossfire.

In this respect, the news is only getting worse.

By the Iraqi government’s own estimate, sectarian attacks have increased 10 times since the start of the year and 100 people a day lose their lives because of it. Most are Iraqis.

As the security situation worsens, there seem to be two views coming from Washington. President Bush told Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki that he was “under no time pressure to curb the sectarian violence,” according to a report in the Washington Post.

At the same time, members of Congress running for re-election, like Republican Gil Gutknecht, have urged more pressure on the Iraqi government, and Gutknecht has suggested some withdrawal of troops sooner rather than later to make that more immediate.

Others in Congress, including Rep. Mark Kennedy, say there should be no pressure until the terrorists are defeated. Sen. Norm Coleman, another Republican and Bush supporter, says we should apply pressure but no timeline.

The problem with all of this is that the American people are not going to stand for it much longer. Many feel the Iraqis have had enough “non-timeline” time to get the country under control.

As the Post reported, Maliki is actually moving in a direction that seems opposite of urgent. The Post report says American officials and even some Iraqis are frustrated with Maliki, who apparently has postponed plans to convene a reconciliation meeting between Shiite and Sunnis and “postponed” measures to disband militias.

Increasingly, people like Gutknecht, and according to Gutknecht, leaders of the Armed Services Committee, also will not stand for the president to stand by and continue to say progress is being made, when, if there is, it is not apparent to the American people.

And that may be the most important fact in the entire debate.

As a member of Congress or the administration, you can’t say you’re holding Iraqis more accountable for their own security if you can’t tell the American people exactly, what, and under what timeline you have directed Maliki to make progress.

Gutknecht opposes setting a timeline. Here is his response to a Minnesota Newspaper Association questionnaire:

Gil Gutknecht-Republican-District 1

Terrorism: Rate the effectiveness of the current war on terrorism. Do you support a specific timetable for withdrawal of troops from Iraq? Is so, what is it? Will you vote to end the war in Iraq?
I think we need to be clear about what we are fighting. We are fighting radical Islam and those who use terrorism to try and destroy liberty, freedom, and democracy. There has not been a terrorist attack on American soil since the terrorist attacks of September 11th and numerous attempts have been deterred. After these attacks, Congress passed stronger laws and created intelligence programs that are strengthening our ability to fight terrorists and protect our country.

I do not support a specific timetable for withdrawal in Iraq. I do believe that, ultimately, one of the ways we are going to force Iraqis to take greater responsibility for their country is the gradual drawing down of U.S. troops. Many will still remain to help in a supporting roll, but the day to day tasks of policing the streets must fall to Iraqi soldiers. It is their country.

In his answer, Tim Walz discusses the criteria by which a timetable should be set.

New York Times: Walz a Legit Barrier to Gutknecht

The New York Times/ CQ politics writes what the Strib can't bring itself to say:"Minn. Roundup: Walz a Legit Barrier to Gutknecht in 1st District":

By Marie Horrigan

As Election Day nears, CQPolitics.com will periodically provide roundups of the key House races in individual states, highlighting major developments in the contests. The following is an update of general election contests in Minnesota.

The roundup includes one change to a CQPolitics.com rating: the race in Minnesota’s 1st District has been moved to the more competitive Leans Republican category from Republican Favored.

• Minnesota’s 1st District: October has been a good month for Democrat Tim Walz, a retired command sergeant in the Army National Guard, high school teacher — and increasingly competitive contender for Congress in his first bid for public office. His wife gave birth to their second child, a boy, on Oct. 13. Meanwhile, on the political front, Walz appeared to be gaining steam in his bid to upset 12-year Republican Rep. Gil Gutknecht in southern Minnesota’s 1st Congressional District.

Emerging poll data and reports from state political analysts have prompted CQPolitics.com to change its rating on the race to Leans Republican from Republican Favored.

A poll released Thursday by Majority Watch, an independent polling project, showed Walz and Gutknecht in a virtual dead heat — 47 percent to 48 percent — in a district where any Republican lean is slight: President Bush took just 51 percent there and had a 4 percentage-point margin over Democrat John Kerry in 2004.

Though some critics have raised questions about Majority Watch’s automated phone polling techniques, the result was in sync with claims by the Walz campaign in recent weeks that their internal polling showed a rapidly tightening race.

In addition, results from a poll by the Service Employees International Union, which strongly favors Democratic candidates, were leaked late last month and gave Walz a 6 percentage-point lead. But details were not released, making it impossible to ascertain the veracity of that poll.

The race, originally ignored by the well-funded campaign committees and outside groups, also began to draw serious cash for the first time in October — $123,000 in the month so far, according to Congressional Quarterly’s PoliticalMoneyLine.com.

The largest expenditure to date was a $91,000 media buy on Oct. 4 by the public service union AFSCME to run ads critical of Gutknecht. The National Republican Congressional Committee has gotten in on the action in recent days and has produced an attack ad against Walz; there is no word yet on what kind of media buy they would undertake.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has not spent any money on the race, but has listed it among its “emerging races” to watch — a signal to Democratic donors that they should consider pitching in to help Walz.

Meredith Salsbery, press secretary for the Walz campaign, said she wasn’t surprised by the strength of the campaign after two years of hard work. “We didn’t think that it would be quite that dramatic this soon before the election ... but I don’t think we’re surprised at all that we’ve made this a competitive race,” she said of the earlier SEIU poll.

Walz is a graduate of Camp Wellstone, an organization created in commemoration of late Minnesota Sen. Paul Wellstone, a progressive Democrat who died in a plane crash during his campaign for re-election four years ago. Should Walz wins, he would be the progressive training program’s first successful candidate on the federal level.

Walz, who served with his Guard unit in Europe in support of U.S. military operations in Afghanistan, taught at Mankato West High School until April. He is hoping his everyman appeal will sway voters in a district where Gutknecht just two years ago took 60 percent and had a 24 percentage-point margin over a little-known and underfunded Democratic challenger.

A critic of Bush’s handling of the Iraq war, Walz is hoping that the national decline in the president’s job approval ratings also pertains to voters in Minnesota 1.

Gutknecht’s campaign has not ignored the political threat Walz presents. Spokesman Bryan Anderson told CQPolitics.com the congressman was taking the race seriously, but that campaign officials believe he is in a good position.

“We’ve always known this is going to be a tough race, it’s not a good environment for Republicans, but ... every indication is that we’re in good shape,” he said, while raising questions about the soundness of the Majority Watch poll.\

Republicans are trying to emphasize what they portray as Walz’s liberal outlook, which they said will not play well with voters who voted in favor of Bush both in 2000 and 2004.

“The only thing conservative about Tim Walz is his haircut,” state party spokesman Mark Drake told CQPolitics.com.

[Yeah--it's all about the hair, dude].

Gutknecht’s campaign sent out a press release Tuesday to highlight money that a gay rights group, the Human Rights Campaign, has spent in the race on behalf of Walz.

“Congressman Gil Gutknecht believes marriage is a union between one man and one woman,” Anderson said in the statement. “The Human Rights Campaign and Tim Walz disagree. Elections are a choice, and Gil Gutknecht clearly stands with a majority of First District voters on this important issue.”

[Please, keep talking.  The GOP has been saying this sort of thing since February when it decided on its play book for this race, and we are utterly pleased how well it worked out for them.]

Gutknecht’s campaign also has been bolstered by top party luminaries, including first lady Laura Bush, who is scheduled to visit the district next week.

Walz, meanwhile, is more likely to need outside money than Gutknecht; according to the candidates filings with the Federal Election Commission on Sunday, the congressman had $791,000 in left in his coffers as of Sept. 30 vs. $289,000 for Walz. The difference in their overall fundraising was smaller, though, with $1.1 million in total receipts for the incumbent and $759,000 for the challenger.

The two candidates are set to face off in a debate Thursday night at Bethany College in Mankato.

Via Forbes, the Associated Press is reporting:

The National Republican Congressional Committee reported it would spend $100,398 to help GOP Rep. Gil Gutknecht's re-election race in Minnesota against Democratic challenger, Tim Walz. Democrats signaled they would begin airing ads in that rural Midwest district as well.

It's officially a barnburner, folks. Within the Fighting First, the Mankato Free Press is also running the AP story.

Meanwhile, the Albert Lea Tribune notes a national endorsement Gutknecht received Monday:

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce endorsed U.S. Rep. Gil Gutknecht in the race for 1st District congressman. The endorsement ceremony took place Monday during a lunch at Riverland Community College’s Albert Lea campus.

About 15 people from the Albert Lea Chamber of Commerce attended the lunch.

The DFL fundraiser in Winona on Monday evening that was Tim Walz's first campaign appearance folliwing the birth of baby Gus Walz? Hundreds attended.

Rothenberg Political Report: MN-01 Democratic challenge is one of "the more interesting long shots"

We snagged this off of Nexis, but will look for a link later (link now found here). Today, Stuart Rothenberg explains his methodology in "Handicapping Long Shots And Late Shots":

If you make your living as a political analyst and handicapper (and the odds are very good that you don't), you're facing an interesting dilemma right about now. Do you add every possible House upset race that you can think of to your list of competitive races, or do you keep your list as small as possible, listing only those races that you truly believe might flip in November?

If you add longer-shot races to your list, you minimize the chance that you "miss" a race that changes party control. That's good, since it's always better to look brilliant than appear even a little clueless. But if you do that, you also give credence to long-shot candidates who probably won't flip a seat. And worse, you flirt with intellectual dishonesty.

In the past, I invariably added races about which I was skeptical, preferring to have too many races on my list rather than not enough.

This year, with a Democratic wave brewing, the handicapping problem is particularly acute. Given that waves are inherently unpredictable and likely to sweep in at least one or two candidates who should have no chance of winning - look no further than Republican Steve Stockman, who toppled House Judiciary Chairman Jack Brooks (D-Texas) in 1994 - I'm tempted to add anyone who could possibly ride a wave to victory. It's the easy way out, and I've always taken that route in the past.

But I've decided that I won't do it this year - at least not yet.  . . .

[snip]

For Democrats, the more interesting long shots may include Rep. Melissa Hart (R-Pa.), whose 4th district gave Bush 54 percent of the vote in 2004 and 52 percent four years earlier. Or Rep. Gil Gutknecht (R), who represents a competitive district in southeastern Minnesota. A true national wave could hit hard in districts like those, creating opportunities that Democrats ought not have in a normal year. That's why both of these races now are on my list of Democratic challenges to watch.

OLLIE OX UPDATE: Remember, the Star Tribune's Kevin Diaz cited The Rothenberg Report's earlier stand as a source in Sunday's profile of Gutknecht:

The Rothenberg Political Report says the race "doesn't look particularly competitive," while National Journal's Hotline rates it in the top 50, reflecting a national shift toward Democrats.

Any bets on how soon we'll hear  from the Strib about Rothenberg's change of mind?

MN-01 News: Walz outraises Gutknecht; 75% of Gutknecht's new cash from PACs

One of the things Gutknecht has bragged about in the past is that he limits the PACs' share of contributions to around a third of the haul.  Tim Walz's campaign is enough of a threat that Gutknecht has had to break that pattern.

The Rochester Post Bulletin reports on the last round of fundraising:

By Edward Felker

WASHINGTON -- Rep. Gil Gutknecht held a better than 2-1 advantage in cash on hand over challenger Tim Walz in their 1st Congressional District race at the end of September, according to disclosures recently filed with the Federal Election Commission.

Gutknecht, a Republican from Rochester , had $790,865 in cash, compared to $289,250 reported by Walz, the Democratic nominee from Mankato. Neither candidate reported outstanding debts.

Gutknecht has outraised Walz for the campaign to date, however. Gutknecht's campaign has raised $1,108,738 in net contributions, while Walz had $750,870 in net contributions.

As for Gutknecht, for the quarter PACs gave him $155,250, or 75 percent of his net donations. For the campaign, individuals have given the majority, or about 59 percent.

Neither candidate has seen significant direct support from party committees. Gutknecht got just $600 for the quarter and Walz just $800. Still, the figures mask the involvement of the Republican Party and outside groups via independent expenditures against the candidate they oppose.

For instance, the House Republican campaign wing, the National Republican Congressional Committee, on Monday bought $7,980 in ads to use against Walz, and last Thursday spent $12,705 on polling on the race, bringing its spending on the campaign to $20,685.

The race continues to make the list of races to watch as compiled by independent Washington election handicapper Charlie Cook. On Friday Cook ranked it as a likely Republican victory. At the same time, he said current political conditions are so bad for Republican incumbents that second- and third-tier Democratic candidates have a chance to pull off unexpected victories.