Bluestem Prairie: news about Tim Walz (MN-1)

Rochester Obama Town Hall meeting: media coverage

From the looks of the audience in the clip at KAAL-TV, the Obama Town Hall Meeting at the Mayo Civic Center yesterday was well attended. Not bad for a gorgeous football Sunday.

In the first town hall meeting for Senator Barack Obama in Rochester national security experts took the stage stumping for the democratic hopeful. 

They unveiled Obama's foreign policy vision for national security.
    
It includes withdrawing troops from Iraq within 16 months and refocusing the fight towards Al Qaeda and the Taliban.

. . ."The currently policy under president bush supported by Senator McCain has been solely focused on Iraq that had nothing to do with 9-11 and had used our resources, our troops to the point where it's very difficult to focus on the greater need," said Walz.

We will hear more as Obama and McCain square off next Friday in Oxford, Mississippi, where the focus of their first presidential debate will be on national security and foreign policy.

The latest Gallup survey found 48% of registered voters support Obama while 44% preferred John McCain.  . . .

KTTC-TV reports in National security town hall meeting:

Our National Security is top of mind for many people and is one of the big issues in the presidential race.

Today some state leaders came to Rochester to discuss Barack Obama and Joe Biden's national security plans.

State representatives Tim Walz and Betty McCollum were among the participants.

The event was free and open to the public. 

The focus of the discussion was the country's situation in Iraq and Afghanistan, our diplomatic relations with countries around the world, as well as solutions for energy independence. 

Former Major General Paul Eaton says, "Militarily, we are in a less adventages position today than we were eight years ago and as a retired soldier and father of soldiers, I have a real problem with that." 

Representative Tim Walz says, "We've gotten ourselves in a situation where we don't have the allegiance and allies that were once there and I think Senator Obama's been talking about building those alliances for the 21st century, reconstituting this force and using all the tools of diplomacy of soft power, economic power as well as military to bring about true national security." 

The panel made their last stop of the day in St. Paul.

National security experts in Rochester on Sunday

From the Post Bulletin:

On Sunday, national security experts will be stumping for Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama at noon at Mayo Civic Center in Rochester.

The town-hall-style meeting will feature retired Maj. Gen. Paul Eaton, who was in charge of training the Iraq military and later became a critic of former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's management of the war.

Other panelists will include Democratic Rep. Ellen Tauscher, a member of the House Armed Services Committee and chairwoman of the Strategic Forces Subcommittee, and former ambassador Bob Gelbard, who served as President Clinton's special representative for the Balkans from 1997 to 1999.

The article also notes that Brian Davis will be speaking to a Palin-McCain rally in Blaine. Since he'll be in the Sixth, perhaps Davis can share Political Muse Eric Austin's Open Letter To An Absent Representative with his BFF Michele Bachmann:

My question is what will it take for you to pay attention to the people of your district?

It seems even in an election year and at the height of election season you are displaying an attitude of ownership over this area and thus feel no need to be in personal contact with the people living here. Granted, you and I don’t agree on much and I support Elwyn Tinklenberg but how can you and more importantly, how can your supporters justify a 20-month tenure in office with nary a single open forum or constituent meeting in the district?

Are you simply too busy? If so, perhaps you could talk to Rep. Tim Walz in the 1st District and ask him how he juggles three times more committees than you and has still found time to meet on numerous occasions and in numerous places with his constituents. . . .

The letter appeared in the St. Cloud Times. How interesting of the Post Bulletin to report that the "local action" in the First heats up when Davis speaks. . . at a rally in Blaine, but can't manage to report that the first encounter between Congressman Walz and Davis already occurred in Worthington? (We can't recommend enough that readers watch the Globe's video of the candidates speaking.  The contrast speaks volumes).

Monday morning digest: scavenger hunt edition

We had a grand time at King Turkey Day on Saturday--the organizers really know how to trash talk about turkeys and put on a show, and the visiting Texans give as good as they get. The talent wasn't so equally distributed in the political speeches.

The Worthington Globe's coverage of Saturday's speeches in Rivals Davis, Walz talk politics doesn't report on the crowd's reaction to the speakers. Davis blew his own jokes, while Walz drew laughs and cheers throughout his speech, especially when he talked about the passage of the new G.I. Bill. 

Julie Buntjer reports:

Walz, nearing the end of his first term in the U.S. House of Representatives, spoke of the work he helped accomplish and the work yet to be done, while admitting he’s “as frustrated as you” when things don’t move forward.

“If we lose faith in City Hall, if we lose faith in St. Paul, if we lose faith in Washington, we’re saying we lose faith in this great democracy,” Walz said. “It’s our responsibility to rise up and move this country forward.”

Walz spoke of the bi-partisan farm bill passed by Congress and the Senate this year, as well as the “first sweeping GI bill since 1944 to care for our veterans.

“It’s our moral responsibility and a national security responsibility — take care of them and they’ll take care of us,” he said.

During his first term in office, Walz said Congress also passed legislation to fund rural water projects, including both the Red Rock Rural Water system and the Lewis and Clark pipeline.

As for energy, Walz said, “Partisan statements that don’t coincide with fact hamper us from getting solutions. We’re working on a bipartisan bill that allows us to drill in our off-shore areas responsibly — not all of them, some of them.”

Walz said he wants to take the royalties earned from offshore drilling and invest a trillion dollars in renewable energy — from wind turbines to biofuels.

“When it comes to energy, this nation can do it. We can use the resources we have here,” he said.

“The best ideas don’t come from the democrats, and they don’t come from the republicans — they come from the American public who puts partisanship second and solutions first,” Walz continued. “This nation can solve those problems, this nation can lead and this nation can do what every other generation has done before — leave this country better than the way they found it.”

The candidate's respective parade units also illustrated the level of enthusiasm. Twenty people wearing Walz t-shirts walked with the Nobles County DFL, along with Thomasin Franken and a number of her father's supporters. Davis walked with ten people, including Representative Magnus. 

Parade watchers responded well to Walz, often calling him over to shake hands. Davis? Just at the moment when we could see his sign carriers coming toward us, Dale and I were startled to see a turkey vulture gliding over the street. The crowd where we stood was nonresponsive to Davis. The vulture, too, took a pass.

The scavenger may have some company with that oversight.

It's our understanding that, as of Thursday, the Davis campaign had not made a television or cable media buy for post-primary advertising. Time--and space--are going fast. Judging from Mark Fischenich's Campaign Notebook, it looks as if Davis's supporters hope the hapless doc will win on Sarah Palin's coattails:

Neal Breitbarth, a Fairmont businessman and delegate to the Republican National Convention, didn’t agree with a suggestion that Palin was the star of the convention. But Breitbarth might have been trying to protect McCain’s feelings, because he asked that Palin — not McCain — do a campaign rally in the district with GOP congressional candidate Brian Davis.

Breitbarth said he thinks the district is perfect for Palin and that residents would respond with great enthusiasm, helping Davis in his attempt to unseat freshman Democratic Congressman Tim Walz of Mankato.

We'll see if the McCain campaign decides Southern Minnesota is a good fit for the Alaska governor. Fischenich adds that she and Walz have something in common:

One organization that was a big supporter of Palin as governor of Alaska is also endorsing Walz. The National Rifle Association announced its endorsement of Walz last week, something the Democrat’s campaign publicized with a pair of press releases.

A retired Army National Guard command sergeant major, Walz has a strong record of backing Second Amendment rights.

According to Fischenich:

No debates have been finalized in the 1st District. . . although the Walz and Davis camps are said to be talking about it.

If Davis is as smart as he claims, he'll try to avoid one-on-one meetings with Walz. We've seen them twice now--at Farmfest and King Turkey Day--and the comparison isn't flattering to the Republican. It's no wonder that observers like Beyond the Polls put this seat in the "safe for now" category.

MSU-Mankato Dean of Nursing Mary Bliesmer writes the Mankato Free Press to observe Walz’ energy bill would make a real difference:

Tim Walz, southern Minnesota’s energetic new representative in Washington, D.C., along with other legislators, has introduced a new energy bill the National Conservation, Environment and Energy Independence Act, a bipartisan bill proposed to make a real difference for our future.

This is a bill that has vision for not only tomorrow but also 10 years from now. The proposed bill expands offshore drilling responsibly, lifting the moratorium on the Outer Continental Shelf in some areas as a short-term solution.

Revenues (around $1 trillion) raised from taxes and royalties on new drilling would be invested in renewable/alternatives research and conservation over the next decade and Americans may even find it easier to buy hybrid vehicles that get better gas mileage.

This is a groundbreaking bill, written by moderates from both parties who realize that partisan bickering about energy policy does not bring lasting results.

The Rochester Democrat looks at one reason why offshore drilling is more complicated an issue than Brian Davis admits in Dr. Davis’ Sloganeering Approach Ignores National Security.

In a letter to the editor, Walz supporter Ronald von Arb tells readers Walz brings integrity, accountability to D.C.

Congressman Walz will be at this morning's press conference at the new I-35 bridge and then back to Washington.

Photos: Above: from the Worthington Globe, Tim Walz and a couple of turkeys. Below: from the USGS, a stock photo of a turkey vulture. Dale was familiar with the species because they roost on the local law enforcement communications towers in Luverne; we've seen them while out birding.

 

Sunday afternoon news digest: stumping, spitting and bowling edition

Dick Day grabs the lion's share of earned media in WCCO's report, Republicans Face Off In 1st District Primary. From the sounds of things, Brian Davis should spend some of that money on the primary, since Day is a master at getting the press's attention.

In the WCCO news report, Davis has little name recognition. Day was featured on two station's news last week.

We got a chance to look for signs of the primary yesterday in parts of Nicollet, Brown, and Blue County on the way back from the ruins of Farther and Gay Castle.  When we drove through New Ulm, we saw a few signs for both candidates in the Day-Davis primary, and they seemed evenly matched.  We were most impressed by the signage for both Skillings and Torgelson in the 21B open seat. Neither faces a primary, but are hustling for visibility and their work shows.

Congressman Walz and Senator Klobuchar will visit Rochester, Albert Lea, Waseca, Mankato and St. Peter tomorrow to talk about equalizing Medicare payments between states and to visit with veterans at service clubs. Details and full schedule here.

Outspoken Owatonna conservative Marlene Nelson writes to say Walz’s office staff was quick to help, in the Owatonna People's Press. When she encountered a problem with transportation to the V.A., she turned to Walz's congressional office.  Go read the outcome at the OPP. This is how congressional constituent services are supposed to work.

Phil Heim of Medford did a little research and praises H.R. 6709 (National Conservation, Environment, and Energy Independence Act) in Energy bill is what we should expect. He concludes:

Without labeling ourselves as Republicans or Democrats but as Citizens, isn’t this the type of working together we expect from our governmental leadership? Why not call or write your representative or senator and express your concerns?

In Winona, DFLer Jim Gurley writes ti say Rep. Walz helps hard-working families. On the editorial page, the board is ticked off at state legislators from both sides, except for Gene Pelowski. We have to hand it to the WDN's Darrel Ehrlick: he's not one to mince words.

Winona Radio reports that Women in Business will host a meeting featuring congressional and state house candidates:

Four political candidates will be the special guests at next weeks meeting of the Winona Women in Business group.

The event will take place at noon on Thursday, August 21st, at Westfield Golf Club.

First District Congressman Tim Walz and his Republican challenger Brian Davis will be on hand. Also attending will be Minnesota State Representative Gene Pelowski and his Republican challenger, Rhett Zenke.

All four will address current campaign issues.

The deadline for registering for the event was August 11.There will be more forums and debates as the general election nears. One post-primary debate, sponsored by Debate Minnesota, is in the works; readers can probably expect at least as many post-primary debates and forums as Gutknecht and Walz attended in 2006.

The Austin Herald reports Local voter registration up. The local League of Women Voters is facilitating the process:

. . .Members of the Austin Area League of Women Voters offered voter registration at the Austin Public Library Friday and Saturday in preparation for the Sept. 9 primary election and the Nov. 4 general election.

. . .The Austin Area League of Women Voters will also be offering registration at its primary forum Sept. 3 at 6 p.m. at the city chambers. The event is open to the public. Registration can also be made at city hall, which is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Minnesota's election laws allow same-day registration on election days,  but registering in advance will speed an individual's time at the polling place. Those who is wish to be on the roster at their polling place for the September 9 primary need to register by August 19; for the general, it's October 14.

The Minnesota Secretary of State's website provides information about how to register.  Voter qualifications:

You may register and vote in Minnesota on the next Election Day if you:

• will be at least 18-years-old on Election Day 
• are a citizen of the United States
• will have resided in Minnesota for 20 days immediately preceding Election Day
• have any felony conviction record discharged, expired, or completed
• are not under court-ordered guardianship where a court has revoked your voting rights
• have not been ruled legally incompetent by a court of law

Again, one need not be registered before election day in Minnesota to vote (registration is available at the polls) but you must register. Doing it in advance saves everybody time on Election Day.

The blogger at Minnesota First started posting because of concerns about FISA. In Here We Go Again he links to an article about a proposal to expand domestic eavesdropping. At Minnesota Central, McPherson Hall takes several looks at drilling as an issue.

A letter writer tells the editors of the Mankato Free Press Backyard hens are nothing to fear. We agree, unless you're Mickey Rourke in this 1987 film.

In Owatonna, Steele County politicians engaged in a watermelon seed-spitting contest. Now think how much more fun it would be to see Norm and Al go bowling? (h/t) to THM.

Speaking of bowling--there's going to be a one-sided immigration reduction forum in Austin tomorrow night that features a panelist from FAIR. The convergence of bowling news and  FAIR news is as good a superficial excuse as ever to post a video of our favorite bowling song.

Mid-day news and netroots digest: pesto edition

We were out late last night cooking a going away dinner for a friend heading out for his summer naval ROTC assignment. It's remarkable how much pasta with pesto and garlic bread healthy young people can eat.

Congressman Walz's communications and district director Meredith Salsbery returned our email asking about how Walz defined "expanded drilling."  It's much as we expected, based on what he said at his Shell gas station press release several weeks ago. Walz does not favor opening ANWR, but does want to ramp up drilling and production in the National Petroleum Reserves-Alaska, which is already open but which could be put into more production.

He's more keen on better tapping areas that are already leased, but is willing to look at opening up additional off shore areas so long as such efforts are part of a comprehensive energy policy that includes environmental safeguards, as well as the development of new fuels and energy conservation and fuel efficiency. GOP endorsed candidate Brian Davis wants to open everything up, but also eliminate CAFE fuel efficiency standards and other mandates.

Walz is sticking to the notion that lease holders should use it or lose it. The "use or lose it" bill is coming up again in the House, CQ Politics reports in ‘Use It or Lose It’ Bill Revised to Win Oil-State Support Comes Back to House.

Update: The Washington Post reports in White House threatens to veto oil drilling legislation:

The White House on Thursday threatened to veto legislation being considered by the U.S. House of Representatives that would force oil companies to give up undrilled federal leases and ban the export of crude drilled in Alaska.

The bill, which the House was to vote on later on Thursday, has a "use it or lose it" provision that requires oil companies to diligently develop their existing federal leases or turn them back to the government before they could obtain new acres to drill.

Even the Pope is advocating conservation, according to the Washington Post article, Pope Says Save the Earth for Future Generations. Who knew?

Ben Pershing at the Washington Post's Capitol Briefing blog looks at Unrest in the GOP Base.

In the Duluth News Tribune, Ted Thompson of the National Association to Prevent Sexual Abuse of Children praises Tim Walz's leadership in supporting child abuse protection:

Thankfully, there are many elected officials around the country who understand this, and Minnesota Sens. Norm Coleman and Amy Klobuchar, along with U.S. Reps. Jim Oberstar and Tim Walz, are leaders among them.

Through their efforts, and with the help of many others, the National Child Protection Training Center program, based in Winona, Minn., has received significant federal funding, allowing training center trainers to travel to every region of the country and to train approximately 10,000 prosecutors, law enforcement officers, social workers and other child-protection professionals and organizations.

The Rochester Post Bulletin reports US Rep. Tim Walz to visit St. Charles grocery store. MnPublius picks up on the National Geographic Education Foundation award in National Geographic Recognizes Our Own Tim Walz.

The Pioneer Press issues a CORRECTION for its errors in reporting fundraising figures in the First.

The Big E at MnBlue compares and contrasts Walz and Klobuchar on recent FISA votes. He's not happy with Klobuchar.

Brian Davis's whoppers are starting to get noticed. Aaron Landry at MnPublius observes in Norm Coleman: Liar On Off-Shore Drilling:

Michele Bachmann, CD1 candidate Brian Davis and a number of elected officials across the country have said it: China, with the help of Cuba, are working to drill for oil just tens of miles off of the shore of Florida. It’s a complete lie. Although even Dick Cheney has backpedaled on it, Norm Coleman is caught still spreading the myth. [video follows]

A source in Rochester informs us that Republicans in that area are still circulating this myth, in the form of a Powerline post from May that's now repackaged and beefed up with the attributed authorship of a Phillips Petroleum heir. Snopes refutes the bogus authorship while looking at the silliness of the main claims. Disavowing the Chinese drilling myth is left to Cheney, I guess.

The Blueman laughs at Davis's spin on fundraising in Brian Davis Is A Mathematician Too?  Who Knew! Hal was flabbergasted:

Honestly...this is a Blueman first.

I have no idea where to begin here.

Once he stopped guffawing and collected his thoughts, Kimball dove into his analysis. At the end, he decides:

Ollie is 100% correct. Davis has quickly become the biggest exaggerator in Minnesota politics.

then links to an anonblog that raised a question about Davis's driving record.  One can check out  Brian James Davis's tickets by picking "I Accept" here (Internet Explorer only), then accessing his files in the Criminal Case Records section by picking the "Defendent" option on the search menu.  Is the one in Rochester the candidate? Perhaps a kind reader could check on that.

Frankly, we don't think that a handful of speeding tickets matters in an election, whether or not this Brian Davis of Rochester, Minnesota, is the Brian Davis running for Congress. As for the suspended driver's license after a ticket for operating a vehicle with expired registration wasn't paid in a timely fashion, it's not as if he's the mayor of Minneapolis.

Map: NPR-A

FISA and the First, with a dash of Madison Powers

CQPolitics has posted a fine column about the FISA bill up for a vote today in the Senate. In Surveillance Deal: Same Bad Law, New Bad Arguments, Senior Research Scholar at the Kennedy Institute of Ethics, Georgetown University Madison Powers writes:

The bill revising the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) goes to the Senate floor for a vote today after being caught in the crunch of stalled legislation prior to the July 4th recess. It grants civil immunity to telecom companies who have, or may again, violate the Constitution with regard to warrantless electronic eavesdropping, and it carves out huge exceptions to the usual safeguards that protect citizens from promiscuous government fishing expeditions.

It was a bad bill a week ago, and it is still a bad idea whose time apparently has come. All the bad arguments for the bipartisan compromise remain largely the same, but now even fewer people are paying attention, and some new bad arguments have been added over the long weekend. . . .

Yesterday, Minnpost looked at the upcoming vote in From Coleman to Obama, senators feel pressure on wiretapping bill.  Reporter Sharon Schmickle noted that Coleman favors the bill, and signs indicated that Klobuchar will vote for it as well. Sad stuff. Update: Klobuchar voted against the bill and for the Dodd Amendment (good), but Joe Bodell explains the problems with this in an excellent post,Klobuchar did the right thing...BUT...[end update].

When the legislation came up earlier this summer:

In the House's 293-129 vote to pass the bill, Minnesota's Democratic Reps. Keith Ellison, Jim Oberstar, Tim Walz and Betty McCollum voted no while Democrat Collin Peterson and all of the state's Republicans voted yes.

In Walz sees good, bad news for civil liberties; Congressman applauds gun ruling, decries spy bill, the Mankato Free Press reported that GOP endorsed congressional candidate Brian Davis would have voted for the bill. As the Worthington Globe points out today (without mentioning this particular issue),  voters have a clear choice between Walz and Davis--should he take the nomination in the primary. Senator Day, Davis's primary challenger, has not made a public statement on the issue.

After receiving much justified criticism for his  yes vote on PAA last August, Walz supported the RESTORE Act, while opposing retroactive immunity for telecoms, and began to take heat from Beltway special interest groups.

The neo-con PAC Defense of Democracies made an enormous television ad buy to pressure Congressman Walz to cave and support the Senate bill.  Newsweek and Factcheck.org asked if the ads were Scare Tactics on Eavesdropping?  Yes, the answer turned out. Voters in the First also received scary robocalls about the bill from telecom-funded Frontiers of Freedom, as we reported in Who put the "front" in frontiers; or, the one about those robocalls in the First.

Southern Minnesota's blogosphere has tended to oppose the new bill, though not all have written about the issue. On the right, the conservative libertarian blog Preserving Freedom posted FISA Bill All About Power and Control. On the left Vox Verax has consistently linked to articles about the issue, while Walz supporter and recovering Republican Ron Amundson wrote Way cool on Tim Walz on voting against HR6304. Moderate independent blogger Apollo revived Minnesota First out of concern for Walz's forthcoming vote of the measure, then thanked Walz for voting against it. Minnesota Central was also pleased.

The Hill's blog posted Walz's statement to the press here: FISA Compromise Bill Undermines Law.

Saturday afternoon news and netroots digest: linkage edition

he letters section in the Owatonna People's Press has been getting pretty feisty since the paper adopted a new format. Recent letters include Tim Walz does well, despite his debt and Congressman is a breath of fresh air.

A widely-email urban legend that a Republican commentator posted in comments back in May when the Rochester Post Bulletin used a different comment software package is recycled in comments at the paper's Political Party blog. This time, it's two falsehoods for the price of one; a wild misreading of a Tax Foundation document is thrown in for good measure. Good times!

Yesterday we looked at a hilarious example of a MarketWatch article misused to defend the honor of the Honorable Mrs. Bachmann. Our friend the talented Mr. Quimby caught another example as well.

At the Mankato Free Press, reporter Mark Fischenich takes a gimlet-eyed look at both party's position on the pain at the pump in Political gas is at a premium.

Another federal grant announcement; this one in the Winona Daily News: Catholic schools awarded $500000 grant for phy-ed programs.

Our friend McPherson Hall has a number of interesting post up at Minnesota Central.  First, Walz Rated Top Impact Congressman – Could Sarvi Be Next ? Those who want to help make it so can contribute via the Red2Blue MN Act Blue page.  Earlier, MC posts about earmarks in Politics Trumps Governance UPDATE : Republicans Delay (?) Earmark Proposal and the "Article 1" campaign in In an Obama Administration Will Republicans Defend Article 1 ?.

A reader writes the Winona Daily news to lament his anger that Congress is selling our rights with the pro-FISA vote. It was reported that a number of representatives who changed from being against telecom immunity to approving it received large campaign contributions from telecoms.

Congressman Walz voted against the bill.  The Mankato Free Press reported that Brian Davis, the endorsed Republican candidate in a primary battle with Dick Day, would have voted for it.

Individuals can reward Walz's standing strong against telecom immunity by contributing by June 30 or volunteering to help with the campaign.

MFP: Congress fails to defend Constitution by going along with FISA bill

The Mankato Free Press editorial board opines today that Domestic spying needs restriction. The editorial is headed by this statement:

Congress is failing in its sworn duty of defending the Constitution by going along with the administration's domestic surveillance program.

The lead:

It seems surprising that 80 United States senators, sworn to uphold the Constitution, voted Wednesday to mow down the last attempt to get them to think seriously how their actions might damage the long-help principles of American democracy and justice.

The editorial draws strongly on Senator Dodd's impassioned speech against cloture. You can access video of the speech via C&L's Senator Chris Dodd, Constitutional Champion.

As the MFP notes in the article Walz sees good, bad news for civil liberties, Tim Walz voted against the FISA bill in the House last week. GOP contender Brian Davis tells the newspaper he would have for the bill,  siding with the DC special interests that ran a scare tactics ad that FactCheck.org said used Fear and False Claims  to attack Walz on his resolve. 

No word on where GOP primary challenger Senator Day stands on the issue.

Congressman Walz drew much justified fire when he voted for the PAA last August. He listened. Since then, he has repeatedly voted to protect civil liberties--with the RESTORE Act last fall, turning back the Senate bill this spring in the face of an expensive ad campaign urging him to stand down on the RESTORE Act, and now voting against the bad bill that was passed in the House and that will most likely pass in the Senate.

Reward Walz for heeding the good sense of his constituents by contributing to his campaign by June 30 or volunteering.

And now, a cover from the Boss, with a shout-out to Richard. Keep your hand on the plow.

The Hill: NRCC circulates FISA opponent names to telecom PACs

As we mentioned earlier today, the Politico reports that Dems who flipped on FISA immunity see more telecom cash.  Walz voted against telecom immunity last week and The Hill posted his statement in one of its blogs.

Now it looks like the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) has tried to use the votes of telecom immunity opponents to raise cash against them. In   FISA overhaul spat moves from Capitol to campaign, The Hill's Walter Alarkon writes:

A new poll suggests that the FISA debate hasn’t resonated with voters in the way Republicans would like it to. According to the Rasmussen survey, 32 percent of likely voters think the government worries too much about protecting individual rights, while the same proportion believes that the government is too worried about national security.

Republicans may also have a difficult time paying for attacks focusing on FISA, with the NRCC raising far less money than its Democratic counterpart and with polls showing other issues — the economy, energy costs and the Iraq war — more on voters’ minds.

Republicans may have to rely on outside advocacy groups to push the issue; the NRCC has even circulated the names of Democratic opponents of the White House-backed FISA deal among telecom companies and their political action committees (PACs). One advocacy group advised by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) and Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, ran ads earlier this year criticizing House Democratic freshmen for not supporting a bill that included immunity. The ads ran in the districts of Reps. Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.), Michael Arcuri (N.Y.), Nancy Boyda (Kan.), Tim Walz (Minn.), Chris Murphy (Conn.) and several others, according to Factcheck.org.

Don't like special interests setting the agenda? With the June 30  FEC deadline for Q2 looming, now's a good time to contribute to and volunteer for Congressman Walz's re-election.

And if you have more coin, please help elect more good Democrats to join Walz in Washington by giving to Red to Blue.

 

Hill Blog: Walz on FISA

In FISA Compromise Bill Undermines Law, the Hill Blog has published Congressman Walz's statement about his no vote on FISA.  It's worth repeating here, since some of our readers might have missed it at the end of last week:

There are many parts of this bill that I support. It reaffirms that FISA is the exclusive means for electronic surveillance, and it strengthens protections for Americans at home and abroad.  If this was all that this bill included, I could support it.

Unfortunately, the bill also contains an unprecedented free pass for the Bush Administration’s past actions.  It does not allow judicial review of the Administration’s use of warrantless wiretaps, and the process it puts in place to review the telecommunications companies’ participation in that illegal program has a predetermined outcome – immunity.

Incredibly, this bill actually says that as long as the telecommunications companies can prove that the Bush Administration told them this action was legal, they can get off scot-free.  Today, my colleague Roy Blunt called the process of granting immunity to these telecoms “a formality.”

When Richard Nixon said that “when the President does it, that means it’s not illegal,” many Americans were horrified that any President would consider himself above the law.  This legislation is even worse, because it essentially says ‘if the President tells you do so something, it’s not illegal,’ even if it violates the plain letter of the law.  The process set out in this bill to rubberstamp the actions of the Bush Administration is contradictory to the rule of law in this country.

This free pass for the phone companies isn’t needed to protect Americans – in fact, it protects only those in the Bush Administration who knowingly broke the law. We can protect our security while protecting our shared values and our freedoms. Unfortunately, this bill does not do that, and I have no choice but to oppose it.

I have repeatedly said that I could not support a bill that provides a free pass for illegal behavior, no matter who committed it.  Our laws matter, and they should be applied equally and fairly to the President, Congress, telecommunications companies, and every other citizen.

We're also reposted our response to a statement issued on Friday by RPM Chair Ron Carey about the vote. It began:

"By voting against this bipartisan compromise on FISA legislation, Tim Walz has made clear he will side with national liberals and special interest groups....

We think Ron Carey is deeply confused about Southern Minnesota:

. . . Ron Carey, chair of the Republican Party of Minnesota, is seething--and very confused as well. Chairman Carey seems to have forgotten the special interests that paid real money to run those fearmongering ads that got severely ripped by Factcheck.org in  Fear and False Claims. Special interests opposed Walz's position--and spent thousands to trash him. The citizens in the First were appalled by the ads. Wow, Mr. Carey needs to get a firmer grip. Really.

Photos: Richard Nixon (top) and RPM Chair Ron Carey (bottom).