A Bluestem Prairie

End of quarter reminder: Contribute to Tim Walz

Just a reminder to contribute to Tim Walz's campaign via the ActBlue Netroots Candidate page before midnight tonight.  It's the end of the third quarter for fundraising, and federal candidates must report their take to the FEC. 

So far--at 1:38 this afternoon, 1073 donors have given $23,500.34 to the Walz campaign via the  ActBlue Netroots Candidates program since he was endorsed. This giving exceeds the goals set by Kos, MyDD, and the SwingState for the their end-of-quarter push.

MN-01 more cowbell: Government Center gets the scoop

The Rochester PB's Government Center blog looks at the latest rollout by Track the Truth, the anti-DM & E site in 'A great, big scoop of you-know-what'

...fighting the DM&E can now take on the ambience of a game show, should you wish. All it takes is a mustard-colored T-shirt, a tinny-sounding cow bell, and this deck of cards bearing messages of assorted DM&E "truths" and "scoops." It's a farm motif, by the way, so these are not "scoops" in the sense of ice cream or a news report nobody else has. Hint: The logo is a winking bull.

Rank the truths yourself here.

Rochester Post Bulletin: Region's GOP leanings no longer a given

Before it disappears behind the paper's subscription firewall, here's a story from today's Rochester Post-Bulletin about shifts in Rochester's political winds:

By  Matt Stolle

Richard Hall recently attended a rally for DFL senate candidate Amy Klobuchar, and as he scanned the room at Daube's Bakery in Rochester, he couldn't help but notice a political trend.

Many of the people there had once been Republicans.

Hall was in a position to know. A retired IBM engineer, Hall's life in many ways had followed the same political arc as many of the 40 to 50 Rochester residents gathered in the bakery that day.

A one-time moderate Republican, Hall abandoned the GOP many years ago after it, in his opinion, went from being "fiscally conservative and socially liberal to socially conservative and fiscally out of control." He now considers himself a moderate Democrat.

"Back in the days when there was a moderate ring of the Republican Party in town, I was a moderate, as were a lot of what you now call pro-choice people," Hall said. "As the party became very pro-life, or anti-abortion, that sort of split things up."

Hall's story is one example of a region in political flux. For decades, the Rochester area was considered reliably Republican territory, a region of GOP stalwarts who for decades loyally voted for the party of Lincoln. But two years ago, Rochester's political foundations were shaken with the election of two Democrats, Tina Liebling and Andy Welti, to the Legislature. Suddenly, Rochester was an area very much in political play.

For some, this is what the 2006 election is about: Was the beachhead established in Rochester by the DFL Party two years ago a transitory phenomenon or a launching pad for a political transformation?

"I think we're going to find out," said Ray Ricketts, a retired IBMer who also defected from the Republican party several years ago. "I was as surprised as you were at the last election with the change of the two House seats."

Political prognostications about Rochester's future depend on who you ask.

Sandy Keith, a former lieutenant governor and state Supreme Court judge, says the flow of political converts is moving both ways across the aisle but is probably creating a net gain for Democrats.

As Rochester's moderate Republicans have abandoned their party to vote independent or embrace the Democratic Party, others have left the Democratic Party, disenchanted with what they see as party's embrace of gay marriage and support for abortion.

"I sense it (political switching) in both directions," Keith said.

Faye Eggenberger, a Rochester homemaker, said she was a Democrat. When she moved to Rochester, it was her policy to vote for whomever she considered the best candidate. As the parties became more polarized, she turned into a straight party-line voter for the GOP.

"I have to now because of (the DFL party's) pro-choice and gay and lesbian and immigrant (stands), so they don't give me a choice," she said.

We're wondering when Faye Eggenberger was a Democrat; she was trotted out in 2004 to talk to MPR for the article "Cheney stays on the offensive in Rochester visit." Back then she said:

"I have two sons in the military, and I need them to be protected. I'm pro-life and I don't want same-sex marriage. . . ."

Interesting to see the shift in talking points from the military to immigration.

Gutknecht's Guest: Boehner and GOP House leadership in Foley case

Gil Gutknecht is bringing House Majority Leader John A. Boehner to Minnesota State at Mankato for a campaign rally on October 12.  Does Boehner represent the sort of leadership young people expect? The Facebook invitation stresses Boehner's leadership and support for Gutknecht:

U.S. House of Representatives Majority Leader John Boehner (OH-8) is coming to town to support Our Congressman, Gil Gutknecht. Congressman Boehner has been a leader in the house ever since he was elected to his first term in 1990. His tenure has been marked by his commitment to reform Congress, improve education and support farmers. Join us in welcoming US House Majority Leader Boehner.

Perhaps those attending can get some answers from Representative Boehner about his leadership role in the matter of Mark Foley. Boehner is, after all, "marked by his commitment to reform Congress." The challenge posed by Foley's behavior in email and text messages to underaged pages could be considered a test of Boehner's leadership and commitment to reform.

Let's review when Boehner knew about his peer's page problem and what he did with the information.

CNN reports on Boehner's early knowledge of Foley's inappropriate email exchanges:

Boehner's spokesman, Kevin Madden, said Boehner recalls a conversation with Alexander "making him aware earlier this spring that there had been contact by Rep. Foley and a page. It was Congressman Alexander's opinion that the contact was not of a professional nature."

The Washington Post notes that Boehner first told the paper that he talked to House Speaker Denny Hastert about the contact, but later changed his story:

The resignation rocked the Capitol, and especially Foley's GOP colleagues, as lawmakers were rushing to adjourn for at least six weeks. House Majority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) told The Washington Post last night that he had learned this spring of inappropriate "contact" between Foley and a 16-year-old page. Boehner said he then told House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.). Boehner later contacted The Post and said he could not remember whether he talked to Hastert.

Roll Call (hat tip to The Moderate Voice) has published "Foley Interviewed About Page Last Year; Democrats Not Told; Ethics Inquiry Ordered," an article that looks at the role of House Republican leadership in looking into Foley's behavior:

At least four Republican House Members, one senior GOP aide and a former top officer of the House were aware of the allegations about Foley that prompted the initial reporting regarding his e-mail contacts with a 16-year-old House page. They include: Majority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio), National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Tom Reynolds (N.Y.) and Reps. Rodney Alexander (R-La.) and John Shimkus (R-Ill.), as well as a senior aide to Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) and former Clerk of the House Jeff Trandahl.

Boehner strongly denied media reports late Friday night that he had informed Hastert of the allegations, saying "That is not true."

Joe Gandelman at The Moderate Voice observes:

The the emails in question are apparently some of the less sexually explicit ones than the highly explicit ones obtained by ABC News.[warning: link not work or family appropriate] But the implication is that it was kept under hush-hush (Democrats reportedly didn't even know about it) for political reasons

The Tallahassee Democrat has more about the page's work in the House; the young man was under the supervision of leadership:

The former page was sponsored by the office of Rep. Rodney Alexander, a Louisiana Republican, but Alexander said the page was actually chosen to work on the House floor and was supervised by the leadership.

''My first action was to call his parents and make sure they were aware of the situation,'' Alexander said. ''They said they were and that they would handle it.''

Alexander said he also notified House Majority Leader John Boehner of Ohio.

''I don't know what action (the House leadership) took,'' Alexander said.

Boehner could not be reached for comment Friday night.

Alexander said he believed the e-mails were inappropriate.

''It certainly wasn't something I would say to a young man or woman,'' Alexander said. ''Obviously (the teenager) thought there was something wrong with it.''

Perhaps the young man thought there was something wrong with the e-mails because of Foley's reputation among House interns.  Today's St. Petersburg Times reports:

As a member of Congress, Foley was gregarious and charming and befriended the pages, the teen-agers who serve as the Capitol's official messengers.

"I was told by a few interns to be careful about Foley," Will Humble of California, a 2005 page, told the Times last year.

Why did Boehner change his story? To provide cover for Speaker Hastert?

The San Francisco Chronicle provides this round-up of the struggle of House Republican leadership to come up with a single unified narrative about Foley's resignation:

Rep. Mark Foley, R-Fla., who is single, apologized Friday for letting down his family and constituents. Once his resignation letter was read to the House late Friday afternoon, Republicans spent the night trying to explain — six weeks before congressional elections — how this could have happened on their watch.

Near midnight, they engineered a vote to let the House ethics committee decide whether an investigation is needed.

Among the Republican explanations during the night:

_The congressional sponsor of the page, Rep. Rodney Alexander, R-La., said he was asked by the youth's parents not to pursue the matter, so he dropped it.

_Alexander said that before deciding to end his involvement, he passed on what he knew to the chairman of the House Republican campaign organization, Rep. Thomas Reynolds, R-N.Y. Reynolds' spokesman, Carl Forti, said the campaign chairman also took no action in deference to the parents' wishes.

_Rep. John Shimkus, R-Ill., chairman of the Page Board that oversees the congressional work-study program for high schoolers, said he did investigate but Foley falsely assured him he was only mentoring the boy. Pages are high school students who attend classes under congressional supervision and work as messengers.

_The spokesman for Speaker Dennis Hastert, Ron Bonjean, said the top House Republican had not known about the allegations. Shimkus said he learned about them in late 2005.

Just as Shimkus' explanation was released, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi of California proposed to the House that its ethics committee investigate and make a preliminary report in 10 days. She demanded to know who knew of the messages, whether Foley had other contacts with pages and when the Republican leadership was notified of Foley's conduct.

Instead, majority Republicans engineered a vote to allow the ethics panel to decide whether there should even be an investigation.

If Boehner knew there was a problem, why didn't he tell Hastert? Or did he inform Hastert, tell the press he did, then deny the statement?

Perhaps someone can ask him when he visits Mankato on October 12.

And maybe ask a few questions about those contributions from student lenders to Boehner, and the pass-though to Gutknecht via the The Freedom Project.  Max Halperin provided an update on the dollar amounts in our comments section of our earlier post about Boehner's visit and his Freedom Project contributions to Gil Gutknecht's campaign:

Although you are correct that DCCC reports Gutknecht as having received $10,724 from The Freedom Project, if you trace through to the underlying FEC data, you'll find that the number is out of date. Another $5,000 was contributed in December of 2005, bringing the running total to $15,724. (The $10,724 number reflects two earlier $5,000 donations, plus $724 of in-kind donations.)

I haven't double-checked Halperin's FEC sleuthing yet.

OLLIE OX UPDATE: In "Sanctimonious Potemkinites," The Wege also noticed the connection between the Foley scandal, Boehner, and the visit to Mankato. The Wege's post is, as always, more succinct than BSP, but then, we like horseradish:

Josh at Talking Points Memo has been indefatigable in posting all the new developments, most of which are old (but suppressed) news. As it turns out, the House Republican leadership has known about the exact nature of Foley's problem for quite a while, and never did anything about it. The Republicans in charge of the pages didn't tell the one Democrat on their page board about Foley, and — before retracting his remark — John "Gil Gutknecht fundraiser" Boehner said that he had informed Speaker Hastert.

**** Foley (and in prison they will), this story is about the corrupt House Republican leadership that covered up for a pedophile.

The Blog of the Moderate Left didn't mention Boehner's visit, but Fecke does chastize Gutknecht and the rest of "The Party of Moral Values," noting that:

Mark Kennedy, Jim Ramstad, Gil Gutknecht, and John Kline all voted to support a House leadership that covered up evidence that a Congressman was soliciting sex with minors for almost a year.

Would Michele Bachmann do the same? Really, we want to know. Knowing that Denny Hastert covered up this investigation for a year, will she support Hastert as either Speaker or Minority Leader, pending the outcome of the election?

And how about you, Reps. Gutknecht, Kline, and Ramstad?  How do you feel about backing Denny?

Albert Lea Tribune: Walz touts education during A.L. stop

There's a long article in today's Albert Lea Tribune about Tim Walz, who was in town for an Education Minnesota professional conference. Lots of interesting information (read the whole article). The reporter closes with this:

If elected, Walz said he will tell people where he stands and will lobby for the things that need to get done.

“What they’re going to see in me is someone who’s not willing to sit on the sidelines,” he said. “I think I would bring a much more proactive style of leadership. What I’m going to do is lobby for the people of this district.”

He said he hopes to bridge the gap between the American people and their government leaders in Washington.

MN-01: Of coal, ethanol, John Thune, and Gil Gutknecht

An item in this morning's Star Tribune caught our attention: "EPA looks to help the industry grow." The industry in question is ethanol.

And the EPA's plan?

The Strib reports:

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency wants to boost the construction of larger ethanol plants by more than doubling the amount of chemicals they can spew into the air before designating them "major sources" of pollution, a status that requires closer monitoring and tighter pollution controls.

A bipartisan group of 33 senators and representatives, including five from Minnesota, has signed a letter urging the agency to loosen what they called "unwarranted" constraints on the industry. "Increased renewable energy sources are key components to our nation's energy security," the letter says.

But some state and local air pollution control officials say that the industry already is growing at breakneck pace and that more liberal regulations would only contribute to air pollution. Some environmental groups said the EPA's "preferred" rule changes could endanger public health and contribute to global warming by encouraging more ethanol plants to burn coal rather than natural gas, which has volatile price swings.

And who are those five lawmakers from Minnesota?

Minnesota Republicans Sen. Norm Coleman and Reps. Gil Gutknecht, John Kline and Mark Kennedy also have signed on, as has DFL Rep. Colin Peterson.

They seem to be at odds with state environmental officials. The Strib reports:

In May, Sheryl Corrigan, then the commissioner of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), wrote to the EPA and advised caution. The EPA should consider the clean air controls that existing plants have had to install and ensure that new plants don't get an unfair advantage under the proposed rule change, she said.

Corrigan and her staff said in an interview that they believed the EPA's proposal would have little effect because larger ethanol plants will probably produce enough hazardous air pollutants to trigger the stricter controls in any case.

"Honestly, we don't think that this is where the EPA should be heading," Corrigan said later in an interview.

In May, Grist magazine's Muckraker Amanda Griscom Little reported on "Warts and Ethanol: A new reliance on coal could sap green cred from the ethanol industry," filling in some of the details on the congressional letter.  One such detail is the name of the U.S. Senator leading the charge for the rule change:

On the other hand, a bipartisan group of 33 members of Congress led by Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) threw its support behind the proposed rule change earlier this month in a letter [PDF] to EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson. The Renewable Fuels Association, an industry trade group, also backs the change.

A public-comment period on the proposal concluded earlier this month, and a final decision is expected soon. "It's widely accepted that the EPA will go ahead and make this important change," says Matthew Hartwig of RFA.

According to Kyle Downey, a spokesperson for Thune, "The current rules are needlessly impeding the growth of ethanol nationwide." He further argues that the trend toward coal is a good thing for the planet in the long run because it will accelerate the development of ethanol-friendly infrastructure, thereby paving the way for a system based on cellulosic ethanol: "The cheaper the ethanol in the short term, the greater the consumer demand will be for a shift from gas to ethanol, and the quicker America will transform fueling stations from gasoline to ethanol," he says, suggesting that the industry could then gradually move toward lower-emission forms of ethanol.

Environmentalists reject this logic, arguing that the ethanol industry is booming now and doesn't need looser environmental regulations to succeed. "The ethanol markets are already exploding with 25 percent growth per year without this rule change," says Greene. "The industry is expected to double in less than four years. It's very clear that there is an economically viable way of growing the ethanol industry rapidly without sacrificing public health."

John Thune and coal. Where have we read about Thune and coal before?  Yes, in those articles about his former employer, the DM & E  railroad. There's this, from US News and World Reports' "Loading the Pork Train: A case of why earmarks might be getting out of hand":

Senator Thune, who used to lobby for DM&E, says that expanding the rail company's existing 1,100 miles of track mainly in South Dakota and Minnesota into a 2,800-mile coal line will create tens of thousands of jobs. Any railroad can apply for these loans, he says. "This has national implications in terms of public benefit," Thune says. "It's about cheaper, cleaner coal."

In an article published at the end of July, the Star Tribune's Rob Hotakainen reported "New Railroad May Cross Midwest Executive Thinks He Can Build the Line, Despite Opposition."  Kevin Schieffer, CEO of DM & E, explained part of the economics of his project:

Schieffer said his new railroad line would allow the Midwest to tap "the holy grail of the energy world," tons of coal buried in Wyoming's Powder River Basin. Schieffer thinks he could haul the coal all the way to the Mississippi River -- if he first can get the money to build 260 miles of track in South Dakota and Wyoming and then patch up a few hundred miles of track that extend east through South Dakota and Minnesota.

The Federal Railroad Administration is expected to make a decision soon. Schieffer hopes to begin construction next year and have the new line up and running in 2009.

Schieffer called his project the perfect hat trick: hauling corn to the ethanol plants, bringing in the coal to fire them, leaving with the ethanol.

That arrangement might help the DM & E and Schieffer pay back that $2.3 billion federal loan. Taxpayers can only hope that's Schieffer's plan.

Let's read more below the fold, shall we?

 

Hog Roast Fundraiser for Tim Walz - Dodge County

Our friends in Dodge County sent us this message:

Jeff Berge & Diane O'Brien Berge and their host committee Judi & Charlie Bird, Ed McConville and Gail Berge invite you to join them for a Hog Roast with Tim Walz Candidate for U.S. Congress in MN-01.

The event will take place Friday, September 29th, 2006 from 6:00pm-9:00 p.m. at the Berge Farm, 71528 260th Ave, Hayfield, MN 55940-8750.

Suggested Donation: $20 cover charge $70 for a family of four.

Be sure to check out www.timwalz.org for updates on music and a special guest.

To RSVP please call (507)388-5382 or e-mail [email protected]

Can't make it? Give to the Walz campaign via the ActBlue Netroots Candidate page.

MN-01 Netroots: Walz poll round-up

At the Swing State Project, James L. looks at polling in netroots candidates' districts:

There are a lot of good reasons to be proud of the netroots candidates this year: 10 of 14 House candidates have been targeted for DCCC support, and polling continues to improve virtually across the board, including for our candidates in WA, MN, and NH.

He responds to the SEUI poll in Minnesota 01:

Over in the North Star state, MN Publius has a partially leaked MN-01 poll commissioned by the SEIU:

Tim Walz (D): 46
Gil Gutknecht (R-Inc): 40
Undecided: 14
Re-elect Gutknecht: 38

Whoaaa. Maybe this is optimistic, or maybe the MoE is 15%, but you never know. MN-01 is a true swing district at R+0.9, and up until the last national "wave" election in 1994, a Democrat held this seat. The demographics are there for a potential upset, and Walz has been raising more money and bringing more noise to this district than any challenger Gutknecht has faced in recent memory. The DFL is revved up statewide by the Senatorial and Gubernatorial contests, which will be a plus for Walz, too.

Michael Froomkin at discourse.net likes the Walz bio ad:

Via Firedoglake, a pointer to this pitch-perfect ad for Democratic Congressional Candidate Tim Watz, running in Minnesota's 1st Congressional District.

One for the textbooks.  If it makes you want to open your checkbook, here's the link (warning: slightly slow site).  (Bonus Walz video.)

Leigh Pomeroy at Minnesota Monitor on the DM & E and the Mayo Clinic.

Midwest Values PAC picks up the poll news. Hot Flashes from the Campaign Trail mentions a little fundraising.

As of 6:22 this morning, 744 contributors had given $17,204.32 to Walz via the ActBlue netroots site. Give some yourself.

MN-01 NEWS: "Don't let Gutknecht off the hook"

STAR TRIBUNE LTE: "DON'T LET GUTKNECHT OFF THE HOOK"
Ted Hinnenkamp of Albert Lea writes to point out an omission from a September 26 editorial:

This is in response to your Sept. 26 editorial. You are now officially and totally forgiven for your paper's initial support of the Iraq war, published on the editorial page right after Colin Powell's dishonest presentation to the United Nations. I was devastated reading that editorial, and now I am glad to read that you see the Iraq war the same way we who demonstrated saw going to war with Iraq over 3½ years ago.

The one problem with your editorial this week is that it neglected to point out that not only Mark Kennedy and John Kline but also First District Rep. Gil Gutknecht were lockstep with the Bush lies. Gutknecht was well over the 90th percentile in backing the Bush lies from before the Iraq war started up until very recently.

MANKATO FREE PRESS LTE: BUSH'S TERROR FIGHT NOT WORKING
Reader Don Strasser writes that "Bush's terror fight not working" while suggesting an electoral solution:

If George W. Bush wants the congressional elections to be a referendum on his war on terror, then bring it on. If he wants to divert our attention away from his failed presidency’s unresolved issues of health care, education, immigration, energy, global warming, Social Security, industry layoffs, exported jobs, trade deficits and the runaway national debt, then so be it.

If Bush was serious about the terrorist threat, why did he shift the special forces sent to Afghanistan to get Osama bin Laden to Iraq to get Saddam Hussein? Why did he attack Iraq, which had no connection to al-Qaida or 9/11? Now Iraq has become a recruiting ground for terrorists and today its Anbar province is in danger of becoming Al Qaidastan.

After 9/11, why did Bush tell the American people to go to the malls to shop? Why did he not ask for the tax money to pay for the wars and for restoring the draft to supply the troops? He did say that this is a never-ending war for civilization, didn’t he?

Five years after 9/11, the Middle East is roiling, with the Taliban rebounding and opium production at record levels in Afghanistan, and bin Laden possibly finding a safe haven in our ally Pakistan. Middle Eastern democracy has brought Hamas to power in Palestine, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Iran-backed Shiites in Iraq. Bush’s policies are backfiring all over the world.

There are more terrorists and more terrorist groups now than before 9/11. If you think we are safer and think that’s the only issue, then vote for Bush’s Republicans.

If not, your duty is clear.

CALEDONIA ARGUS: "A great trip, snakes or no snakes"
A bit of non-political news. The editor of the Caledonia Argus joins two DNR employees searching for rattlesnakes in the bluffs around Winnebago Valley and finds the prairie instead:

And I quickly discerned that this trip was about much more than rattle snakes. They can be a focal point for many people, and not necessarily a good one, although Spiering and Edwards would like to change that negative image.

The focus was really on the prairie. People might not think of the bluffs in Houston County as prairie, but many of them are, or at least used to be until the march of the red cedars overtook them. South and west facing bluffs are ideal because the sun dries them out, and that leads to prairie and oak savannas.

Rattlesnake populations are declining in Southeast Minnesota. The Rochester Post Bulletin warns readers about a different species' population boom: box elder bugs.

MN-01 Netroots Nitecap: SEUI polling data finds Walz leading--and more

One of the curses of working for a living is that sometimes we find ourselves torn from the joy of blogging. Today was one such day. The netroots were buzzing with news of the race in the Fighting First.

MnPublius broke a story this afternoon about a poll conducted by the SEIU in MN-01 that revealed:

Walz  :  46
Gutknecht  :  40
Undecided  :  14
Re-elect Gutknecht?  :  38
It seems that voters in the 1st are realizing what we've known all along, Tim Walz is an excellent candidate and can definitely win this race.

We tend to be skittish around polls for which we don't know the sample size, weighting, and all those other elements of solid polling, but that's our empirical bias. Decide for yourself. 

What the numbers do suggest is that volunteering for Walz and contributing to his campaign via the ActBlue Netroots Candidate page is a wise investment of your time and talents.

The BigE weighs in on a DailyKos diary (crossposted to MnBlue and MyDD) with "Tim Walz leads Gutknecht in MN-01."  Shef got there first, concluding:

This is why we fight in every district. This is why we need to be competitive in all fifty states. Because when you've got a candidate as great as Tim, it can pay off.

Obviously the work isn't done. We have to keep on pushing in this district so MN-01 goes blue once again.

Here is the Netroots page.

Here is his page.

Let's do this!

The Wege picks up on the Boehner visit, condensing our meandering post about education and PAC contributions into its marrow:

John Boehner, one of the less recognizable names in the Bush kleptocracy, will be in Mankato to stump for Gil Gutknecht. Boehner, the moral quadriplegic from Ohio who runs a Freedom Project PAC, is a good pal of Gil's and I'm glad to see him coming to the district so the local newspapers can focus on his record and then contrast it with Gil's.

To paraphrase Kris Kristofferson, "freedom's just another word for ....."

Speaking of kleptocracy, Gil Gutknecht shows up on The Abramoff 65 at Philly Bits.

Polinaut put the report of Boehner's visit in the daily digest.

The 463: Inside Tech Policy cites Tim Walz's cow barn video as an exceptional use of You Tube.

Far from the glare of the DailyKos, is Minnesota congressional candidate Tim Walz. This video is an excellent example how video is a medium that can capture whether someone is a "regular guy" or not better than any other.  Walz is discussing policy in a cow milking "parlor"..

Shhh! Don't tell the 463 blogger that Tim Walz is an ActBlue Netroots candidate.

MnCR reports that Tim Walz supports Net Neutrality. Spotty reported back in June that Gutknecht and every Minnesota Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives voted against it.

Time for a Bell's and the Daily Show.

MN-01 News: Walz in PiPress; Mankato and Winona LTEs

SAINT PAUL PIONEER PRESS: "MINNESOTA SOURS ON IRAQ"
The other part of the headline caught our attention: "42 percent now say the war was a bad idea, according to poll, and the issue is looming large in congressional elections."  One congressional election the reporters consider is that in the Fighting First:

. . .Declining support for the war has affected President Bush's popularity. And Minnesota's congressional candidates' fate on Election Day may depend on their views on the war.

On Iraq, voters are listening.

[snip]

Democratic candidates are less likely to link terrorism and the war but still expressed some support for staying in Iraq.

Tim Walz, a Democrat running for the 1st District House seat, said the United States should rebuild Iraqi infrastructure to pre-war levels and work with allied forces on security.

"If the evidence suggests that we cannot achieve these milestones, then we owe it to our troops to bring them all home immediately," said Walz, a former Army National Guard member who was stationed in Italy in support of the war in Afghanistan. He is campaigning to unseat Republican Rep. Gil Gutknecht.

Gutknecht, once considered a strong supporter of the war, made national news when he was openly critical of the situation in Iraq after a trip there this summer.

"Things in Baghdad were much worse than we were led to believe," he said in an interview then. He said the United States should reduce the number of Americans working on security issues in Iraq.

Removing Saddam Hussein from Iraq was right, but now tactics need to change and some troops should soon be sent home, he said.

Such nuances may not help Republicans win races. More than 60 percent of voters in the poll said that given the costs and benefits, the Iraq war was not worth fighting.

That sentiment was reflected in approval of Bush's handling of the war: 63 percent of voters disapproved of it while 26 percent approved.

MANKATO FREE PRESS LTE: "WALZ READY TO DEFEND COUNTRY'S CONSTITUTION"

Supporter and fellow teacher J. Scott Urban remembers being in a classroom next to Tim Walz's on September 11, 2001:

Sept. 17 was the 219th anniversary of the signing of the United States Constitution. Born from the revolutionary ideal of universal equality and nurtured by the undaunted idealism and courageous sacrifice of countless generations, our Constitution stands today as the last hope of humankind.

As Election Day, Nov. 7, approaches, we have the opportunity to vote to protect our most sacred Constitutional rights. Freedom, liberty and equality cannot long endure in a nation with warrantless wiretaps, secret detention camps, economic inequality, systematic torture and Orwellian doublespeak.

The time has come to vote for a change.

Over the past 12 years, Rep. Gil Gutknecht has failed to lead us, failed to protect us and failed to inspire us. In your heart, you know Minnesota deserves more than the failed policies of a weak and inept politician.

We need bold, honest and energetic leadership from a person we can trust to represent our Minnesota values in Washington, D.C.

Command Sgt. Major (retired) Tim Walz represents the very best in all of us. As an award-winning educator, dedicated father and honored veteran, Walz has proven himself worthy of our trust.

I know Walz personally. On Sept. 11, 2001, I was teaching United States history in the classroom next to Walz’. I shall never forget the look of fervent patriotism in his eyes and the passionate commitment in his voice as he spoke of defending our nation.

Walz was then — and is now — ready, willing and able to support and defend the Constitution of the United States.

WINONA DAILY NEWS LTE: WALZ AN ADVOCATE FOR SOLDIERS
The letter of support from former DAV national commander Jim Sursely, published in yesterday's Worthington Daily Globe, is printed today in the Winona Daily News.

MN-01 Netroots: End of 3Q fundraising edition

SWING STATE PROJECT
The end of another Federal Election Commission (FEC) fundraising quarter is upon us, and the netroots are asking contributors to pony up. The Swing State Project, part of the group of bloggers that endorsed Tim Walz as an ActBlue Netroots Candidate, explains this week's goals:

So, by now you probably already know the goal: 10,000 total contributors by the end of the quarter  (ie, Saturday night)  on the netroots page. Yesterday we had about 120 new donors, which is good, but is below what we need in order to hit the 10K mark. Fortunately, we've picked up the pace today, with about 100 new donors so far, so I'm confident we'll get there.

In the meantime, we have an intermediate goal: We want to see every candidate on the list get to 1,000 individual contributions. John Courage just passed that mark today, and Dan Seals is less than 50 away. So that leaves Larry Grant, Gary Trauner and Tim Walz, who combined need around 1,200 contributions to make it to the 1K plateau. (Remember, contributions are different from donors. If you donate to five candidates at once, that counts as one donor and five donations.)

This morning around 7 a.m.,  the ActBlue page showed that 618 donors had contributed $15,364.57 to Tim Walz's campaign since he was endorsed by the project. 

Help meet the goals by contributing to Tim walz at the ActBlue Netroots Candidates page.

DAILYKOS: TIM WALZ BIO AD
Kos posts on the Tim Walz bio ad, and gives a plug for the wealth of candidates running in Minnesota:

Another good ad, but because Walz really does have an impressive bio.

We have an incredible cast of challengers trying to transform D.C. Let's support them every which was possible. And if you are in Minnesota, you have a wealth of candidates to support. Whether it's Tim Walz in the 1st, Coleen Rowley in the 2nd,  or Patty Wetterling in the 6th, or the hot governor's race, you guys have plenty of options for getting involved.

BLOG P.I.: Blog P.I. Presents: Your 2006 Campaign Blog Scandal Guide
After running down a few blog scandals, Blog P.I. reminds readers of Gutknecht's Wiki Whacking:

The IP addressed used by the Bass office to troll the NH liberal blogs is the exact same shared IP address other House offices have used to vandalize/edit Wikipedia. The most recent example (and perhaps the most amusing) being Rep. Gil Gutknecht (R-MN).

 

 

MN-01 Prairie Companion: Gutknecht brings Boehner to Minnesota State University at Mankato

Via Facebook, we learn that Gil Gutknecht is bringing a guest to Minnesota State University--Mankato on Thursday, October 12:

Event Info Gil Gutknecht/John Boehner Rally!!
Welcoming the House Majority Leader to Southern MN
Host: Jesse Moreno
Time and Place:Thursday, October 12, 2006, 10:00am - 11:30am
MSU Mankato Centennial Student Union, Rooms 253 & 254
City:Mankato, MN

Description:

U.S. House of Representatives Majority Leader John Boehner (OH-8) is coming to town to support Our Congressman, Gil Gutknecht. Congressman Boehner has been a leader in the house ever since he was elected to his first term in 1990. His tenure has been marked by his commitment to reform Congress, improve education and support farmers. Join us in welcoming US House Majority Leader Boehner.

Improving education.  Hmmmm.   

College students should educate themselves about the contributions to Boehner's Freedom Project leadership PAC from for-profit schools and lenders.  Forbes reported:

He also wants to force students at traditional universities to fund 10% of their education with money from non-government sources, just as those at for-profits are required to. Such changes would put Corinthian Colleges , Apollo , Career Education    and Education Management on a more equal footing with not-for-profit universities.

"He's been a friend," says Bruce Leftwich of the Career College Association, which lobbies for the for-profit schools that primarily teach vocational and technical skills. "He's been an excellent chairman. I'm supportive of him."

Friendship has its rewards. For example, executives of Santa Ana, Calif.-based Corinthian Colleges have donated $34,750 to the Freedom Project, Boehner's political action committee, while Corinthian's own political action committee has given another $5,000, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

But the Corinthian execs aren't the top contributors to the Freedom Project. That honor belongs to executives of student loan giant Sallie Mae, who have given $122,470. Last month, as part of the budget reconciliation act, Boehner's committee adopted rules to raise student loan limits and set a fixed 6.8% loan rate after years of it being a variable rate pegged to the 90-day T-bill. Critics complained the new rules were a sweetheart deal for the loan companies at the expense of students.

The Washington Post has more in "Controversial Industries Have Backed Boehner":

Two controversial industries -- for-profit colleges and trade schools, and private student lenders -- have been the major sources of financing for Rep. John A. Boehner's bid to become House majority leader. Boehner has been an outspoken advocate for each interest, and has used his chairmanship to push legislation that would boost profits by millions of dollars.

How much money did these industries contribute to help Boehner's bid to become House majority leader? The WaPo reports:

In the most recent election cycle, 2003-2004, the Freedom Project received $572,719 from individuals, according to records filed with the Federal Election Commission and analyzed by PoliticalMoneyLine. More than half of that, $292,570, came from employees and lobbyists for private student lending companies and for-profit academic institutions.

Individuals affiliated with the private student-loan industry gave the PAC $220,020, including $52,670 from officers of Sallie Mae. Sallie Mae was established in 1972 as a government-sponsored organization that over the past decade has become privatized, and is now a Fortune 500 company specializing in student loans.

Boehner's PAC received $72,550 in donations from employees and lobbyists from for-profit colleges and trade schools.

The largest single source of money from the for-profits, $17,500, was given by corporate officers and senior employees of California-based Corinthian Colleges Inc., a for-profit educational firm which disclosed eight weeks ago that the Florida attorney general is investigating a Florida subsidiary.

Boehner has sponsored legislation strongly supported by private student lenders to restrict the ability of the U.S. Department of Education to make government student loans less expensive by cutting fees. Student loans constitute a multibillion-dollar market in which the nonprofit government and for-profit private lenders compete.

That information should please the students at Minnesota State University--Mankato. As should the fact that Gil Gutknecht  "received $10,724 from House Majority Leader John Boehner's "Freedom Project" PAC," according to the DCCC.

Netroots: Gutknecht's agenda, fundraising and more

MINNESOTA CENTRAL: FROM A LAW TO A RESOLUTION
The sharp-eyed Minnesota Central catches a change in Gutknecht's renewable energy program in "Is Gutknecht confronting the political reality of his legislative agenda?" Seems that Gutknecht's weekly e-line focused on renewable fuels. Minnesota Central writes:

Ah, it must be the election season, when the failure to enact legislation is masked by heralding of a House Resolution to address America’s addiction to foreign oil.

The subject of this week’s eline from Congressman Gutknecht is renewable fuels.
One might have thought that this would be just another plug for Gutknecht’s 10/10 plan which would require a 10 percent blend of renewable fuels in all gasoline sold in the United States by 2010. But since that legislation has just languished in the Republican controlled House, Gutknecht trumpets that “House Committee on Agriculture held a hearing to discuss the future of renewable fuels in America. We examined and passed a resolution (H. Con. Res. 424) that sets a goal for the United States to provide at least 25% of the total U.S. energy consumption from renewable agricultural resources by the year 2025.”

WOW. From a Law to a Resolution and from 2010 to 2025 – that’s must be what Gutknecht considers progress. I considered it to be insulting and illustrative of his non-performance and ineffectiveness.

Facing reality that this DoNothing Congress has squandered the time required to achieve a goal by 2010, why move it out to 2025? [there's more]

A bonus from Minnesota Central today: "CRIME SOLVERS: Gingrich and Gutknecht."

DAILY KOS: END OF THIRD QUARTER PUSH/AGAINST WHINING
Tim Walz is an ActBlue Netroots candidate and there's a 3rd quarter push going on now:

I know I've been pushing this stuff hard the last few months, but this is it -- the final push. The final telethon.

It's not the last time you can contribute to your favorite candidates, but the last time we'll spend a week nagging you about it.

Why now? Because it's one of those famous end-of-quarters. The party committees will use these final numbers, in large part, to determine which campaigns will get final big-money help. The media will use these numbers to determine which campaigns are financially healthy enough to close strong. Entire narratives will rise and fall with the numbers your favorite campaigns report.

More details at the Swing State Project.

Contribute through ActBlue.

"Whining"
Get out and help candidates that work hard. Kos notes:

"People-power" doesn't mean you sit around waiting for others to do the hard work. It means you do it yourself. The DCCC is helping candidates like Paul Hodes, Larry Kissel, Tim Walz and Vic Wulsin not because the candidates and their supporters sat around whining about lack of support. They got support because they built strong campaigns.

NORWEGIANITY: INDEPENDENCE PARTY LEANERS
The Wege observes:

Minnesota's Independence Party (aka Jesse Ventura's Reform Party) members are leaning towards Tim Walz in CD1.

Leaning? WTF? Are they waiting to see if the federal budget balances itself before Nov. 7?

ANGRY PROGRESSIVES: 4 PROGRESSIVE CANDIDATES WE LOVE
There's no hesitation on the part of The Angry Progressives. They love Tim Walz and suggest going to Act Blue to contribute.

Worthington Daily Globe: Sursely supports Walz; Walz meets with disabled people

WORTHINGTON DAILY GLOBE: "VIETNAM VET WILL SUPPORT WALZ"
Disabled veterans activist Jim Sursely sent a letter to the Worthington Daily Globe:

I am a Vietnam veteran, a graduate of Lourdes High School and a former resident of Rochester. I joined the Army in 1966 and subsequently lost both my legs and one arm in a landmine explosion. As the election approaches, I’d like to let my fellow veterans know where I stand. In this election I am supporting Command Sgt. Major (Ret.) Tim Walz.  

I am highly engaged at the national level in trying to secure veterans the benefits they were promised, and my experience tells me that it is crucial that we elect CSM Walz. Walz not only possesses extensive leadership experience in the military, but he has also demonstrated his commitment to helping our brothers and sisters in arms since his retirement. Walz is unwavering in his commitment to protect and defend those who served our country. 

Tim Walz is more than just an advocate for veterans. As someone who has taught in our public schools for nearly two decades, he is the kind of person our children deserve to have at the table when No Child Left Behind comes up for renewal next year.

I appreciate Tim’s efforts to engage his opponent in a discussion about Iraq, and I hope that voters will listen to his common-sense approach. But beyond that, I hope that the voters of the 1st District will realize that Walz is not only good for today’s soldiers; he will be an advocate for future soldiers, their families and the millions of American veterans.

Some readers may be familiar with Sursely's name; he is a former National Commander of Disabled American Veterans (DAV).  His 2005 statement before the Senate and House Committees on Veterans Affairs is found here in a 23-page pdf file. If I am not mistaken, the DAV as an organization does not make endorsements, although it does issue ratings of  U.S. senators and representatives that are based on key votes in legislative sessions.

First District Congressman Gil Gutknecht received 20% rating from the DAV in 2005.

WORTHINGTON DAILY GLOBE: NEWS
Today's Worthington Daily Globe reports on Tim Walz's tour of a local nonprofit that assists disabled people:

by Kari Lucin

WORTHINGTON — U.S. House of Representatives candidate Tim Walz visited with local disabled residents at their workplace and their homes Monday afternoon, touring The Achievement Center, Ridgewood and a group home, all three managed by the nonprofit Client Community Services Inc.

“We get in front of a lot of groups that can vote or give us money,” Walz said, adding he’d made plenty of stops like the CCSI visit that weren’t meant to garner support from voters.

Instead, Walz said, he wanted to learn about the costs and benefits of CCSI’s mission to employ and house disabled people.

“It doesn’t come from having a liberal bleeding heart,” Walz said. “Everybody’s better off if we do this.”

Walz’s interest in group homes and long-term care may have been sparked by his mother’s 25-year career as a licensed practical nurse in a nursing home. She began working in the field when she was in her 50s and retired at the age of 73, said Walz, and earned very little money.

One of the long-standing difficulties in assisted-living environments is staffing, Walz learned from CCSI representatives. CCSI Executive Director Marty Rickers referred to the wages that providers get as a “Burger King rate” and told Walz how difficult it was to attract and keep staff for $9 an hour.

Before he left, Walz asked several executives what they’d ask for in an ideal world.

Rickers gave him a simple answer: reduce government regulations to streamline operations and reduce costs.

“More money would be nice, but regulations really, really stifle us,” Rickers said, giving an example of the duplication of some services from the Department of Human Services and the Department of Health.

Throughout the tour, Walz stressed his belief that disabled people need to live their lives with dignity and purpose, and that helping them do that would improve their health, longevity and quality of life — all to the benefit of the community.

Between 40 and 60 disabled people work daily cleaning laundry, making commercial-grade lathes and stakes and gluing envelopes at The Achievement Center. Many more are contracted out through the center to do laundry, clean, restock shelves or work in many other capacities at businesses throughout the community.

“They work,” Walz said. “They add dignity to life. They’re a smart investment.”

He praised the CCSI’s work in Worthington and added, “We need to do everything in our power to make sure it stays that way.”

 

MN-01: Welcome Wes Clark's "Securing America's Future" and Minvolved readers

We've noticed quite a few readers coming to the Bluestem Prairie via WesPAC, General Wesley Clark's Securing America site, since Clark endorsed Walz last week. Clark said in part:

With a strong background in military service, education, and small business, Tim Walz will work tirelessly to develop new and innovative plans make our nation more secure, while continuing to create educational and economic opportunities for Americans. Tim Walz brings new leadership, vision, and a plan to Washington.

Many readers are also coming to BSP from minvolved, which had kind words for this blog.

Readers who like what they see here about Tim Walz's big for Congress--watch Tim Walz's latest ad on YouTube for an accurate picture of the man, or read a letter from a young soldier supprting Walz--should consider making a contribution to Tim Walz by September 30.

And what better venue than through the ActBlue Netroots candidate page?

511 contributors have given a total of $12,193.48 so far. Like that ad? Help more people see it on television in MN-01.

OLLIE OX UPDATE: Welcome to Norwegianity readers as well, and thanks for the link.

MN-01 Events: Track the Truth educational video screening Wednesday

This notice arrived via email today:

To all interested in the DM&E expansion issue:

Track the Truth has created an educational video regarding the impact
the DM&E expansion will have on communities outside of Rochester. A
showing will take place Wednesday, Sept. 27, at the Holiday Inn from
noon to 1:00.

Please attend!

Patrick Connolly
mailto:[email protected]
http://www.dmetraintruth.com
612-669-2296

Mankato Free Press: Taxes and PAYGO

MANKATO FREE PRESS: US BUDGET DEFICIT & PAYGO
Yesterday, the Mankato Free Press ran a long article about the budget deficit, with an accompanying article about PAYGO, which the paper defined as "rules where any tax cut or spending increase must be offset by a tax increase or spending cut."

The paper didn't post a candidate question and answer about the subject. We run them here.

Question No. 1: Have federal tax cuts been distributed fairly between different income groups?

Answer--Tim Walz:

No, they have not been distributed fairly. The burden of the most recent downturn fell disportionately on the middle class and working poor as employers cut health care and people lost their jobs to outsourcing.

Tax cuts at a time of war are largely inappropriate; however, any tax relief is that approved should go to low-wage and middle-class workers. The Bush tax cuts are disproportionately directed at the wealthy and I beleive the economics behind this philsophy are faulty. The best way to fuel our economy is to ensure middle-class and poor Americans are taking home more of their income.

Answer--Gil Gutknecht:

While everyone has a different definition of fair, I think these facts tell the story.

A comparison of tax  and income information for the Internal Revenue Service shows the top 1 percent of earners paid 37.42 percent of all income taxes in 2000 and 34.27 percent in 2003.  For those in the top 5 percent, it was 56.47 percent and 54.63 percent; the bottom 50 percent of earners paid 3.91 percent in 200 and 3.46 of all taxes in 2003.

Even after the latest round of tax cuts, the earners in the top 5 percent still pay the majority of income taxes in this country.

Question No. 2: Should Congress adopt the PAYGO rules where any tax cut or spending increase must be offset by a tax increase or spending cut?

Answer--Tim Walz:

The Congress should absolutely return to the PAYGO rules championed by former Congressman Tim Penny.  PAYGO required the Congress to be fiscally responsible and to prioritize.  by spending us into an $8.3 trillion dollar national debt, the current Congress has ensured that our children will be burdened with almost unmanageable interest payments for decades to come. The only way to correct this is to immediately rein in spending and to determine where government ends and the free market begins. As your representative, I will prioritize education and scientific research because these things are investments in our future.

Answer--Gil Gutknecht:

In principle, PAYGO is a good idea. All that is required, however, to waive PAYGO rules for new spending is a majority vote in the House. I believe there should be a higher standard to require offsets. The bottom line is that when a family needs to purchase a new vehicle or install a new furnace, it has to cut spending elsewhere. The federal government should do the same.

NETROOTS
Speaking of Tim Penny, Leigh Pomeroy of Vox Verax/Minnesota Monitor attended an Independence Party function in Waseca and reported back:

Last night, this reporter was at a gathering in Waseca of Minnesota Independence Party folk, including the IP statewide team and former congressman and gubernatorial candidate Tim Penny, and the talk among those attending was that Walz was the favorite among IP-leaning voters.

So Gutknecht, a solid Bush supporter, is seeing low approval ratings for the man in the White House, even lower approval ratings for Congress, a Republican senatorial candidate on the same ticket who's double-digits behind in his race, and very irritated (over the DM&E) hometown voters....

Will incumbency, name recognition and a strong money advantage be enough to fend off this year's re-election challenge?

Moderate Republican blog Lloydletta's Nooz and Views links to the YouTube "Railroaded" video, while reprinting the lead of David Strom's DM &  E Townhall column.

MANKATO FREE PRESS: A student and soldier writes; new Walz ad

It's a gorgeous autumn day on the prairie, with signs of fall everywhere.  The male goldfinches that come to our thistle feeder have traded their lovely yellow feathers for winter drab, and wild purple asters are in bloom.  We're going mushroom hunting as soon as this post is up. Perhaps the recent "duck-hunting weather" will return for the hunters among us once the waterfowl season opens next Saturday.

Today's Mankato Free Press yields a bounty of election-related material, though none online.  We'll transcribe the best.

LTE: "WALZ HAS SHOWN LEADERSHIP AS TEACHER, COACH, SOLDIER"
Sargeant Ryan Marti of St. Peter writes in support of Walz's candidacy.  His words echo what other National Guard soldiers and former Walz students have told us ( they're usually not aware of our life as a blogger):

I've known Tim Walz as a teacher, a coach and leader. I've had the privilege  of sitting in his classroom, running up and down the football field, and serving our nation under his leadership.

I am on deployment to Iraq.

Many of my fellow soldiers and former classmates have shown their support for Walz and I feel I must do the same.

In his classroom, Walz challenged us to think openly and consider all points of view. He taught us stand in the other person's shoes and to try and see the issue from their perspective.

Isn't this exactly what we want in a leader? Someone who will listen to everyone and make the right decision?

On the football field he continued to teach. He taught us that teamwork, discipline and hard work is the key to winning. Without having to be told, we knew it was OK to make a mistake, we also knew it was never OK to break a rule even if we got away with it.

Walz will do the right thing the right way. He will not cheat. I'm not saying that the other guy will or won't--I just know that Walz will be honest and true.

After high school Walz convinced me to join the National Guard. I still had more lessons to learn.  Walz taught me what it takes to be a good leader, and I owe my leadership success to him.

Walz was an excellent soldier and is a natural leader, and nobody except those who have served with him, have the right to question his service.  It says something about a man's character when everyone who has served with him respects him.

OLLIE OX UPDATE: Ryan Marti's letter is now online.

MANKATO FREE PRESS: "WALZ AD TACKLES HIS PAST AS A COACH"
Good news and mixed in an article on the first page of the B-section of the MFP.  "Walz as tackles his past as coach" looks at the ad that's getting so much praise online. Mark Fischenich reports:

Some Mankato residents--particularly former West High School football players--are likely getting a kick out of the latest Tim Walz for Congress television commercial, regardless of whether they prefer Walz or Congressman Gil Gutknecht on Nov. 7.

Titled "Everyday Heroes," the second Walz ad focuses on his work as a teacher and football coach at West and his service in theArmy National Guard.

There are numerous opportunities for area resident to say, "Hey, look! isn't that....?" as the ad shows Walz with Scarlet footbal players, including the 1999 championship team.  . . .

It's not just a Mankato-based ad, however. For Rochester residents, the ad concludes with Tim Walz speaking to the viewer from that city's War Memorial.

Fischenich then notes that the Walz-Gutknecht race "continues to be listed in the top ten or 20 percent of races for competitiveness" but has slipped in the "National Journal's rankings of House seats most likely to switch from Republican to Democratic control or vices versa.  The reporter also notes that Walz received "kind words" by being put on the "emerging races" list by the DCCC, but missed getting the "Red to Blue" designation and the resources that would entail.

MANKATO FREE PRESS: CONGRESS FAILS ON FUNDING
Yesterday, he editors of the Mankato Free Press take a dim view of several new unfunded mandates in "Congress Fails in Funding:"

Thumbs down

To Congress, both houses, for approving this week immigration-related measures but failing to provide any funding.

The U.S. House of Representatives voted 228-196 to approve a new law that would require voters in federal elections to provide a photo ID.

The bill requires states to help poor people who don’t have photo IDs get them, but appropriates no money for the mandate. It’s another example of Congress being able to look good without making the hard choice of paying for inflicting their will on state and local government.

In another case, the Senate approved the building of a $6 billion, 700-mile fence along the Mexican border, but left out a key provision: the $6 billion.

Republican Rep. Gil Gutknecht and Democrat Rep. Colin Peterson voted in favor of the House plan.

Sen. Norm Coleman, R, and Sen. Mark Dayton, D, voted in favor of the Senate plan.

NETROOTS
Over at the ActBlue Netroots Candidate page, Tim Walz is about $25 short of topping $12,000 and four contributors away from reaching 500.  Go visit the contribution page and change that.

On the netroots, Minnesota Central outlines four problems with the first bill mentioned by the Free Press, the Federal Election Integrity Act of 2006, in  Gutknecht votes to suppress democracy; foster apathy.

The Wege and MnPublius both observe that somebody's been working on the railroad.  We're glad to see J-D and the Wege agree on something.

Midwest Values PAC features the new Walz ad.

Strib on DM & E: "How a bad idea has stayed alive so long"

STAR TRIBUNE ON DM & E:  "An unfair fight, even without $2.3 billion in federal support."
The Star Tribune editorializes at great length about the DM & E project in  "An unfair fight, even without $2.3 billion in federal support." 

We don't remember seeing an editorial that goes on for two pages online. Read it all.

To give readers the flavor, here's the lead:

If you have followed the DM&E Railroad's plan to upgrade tracks and send more trains through Rochester, carrying coal and tankers of toxic cargo by Mayo Clinic, you may wonder how such a bad idea has stayed alive so long.

After all, we routinely see public officials relocate or reject projects with lesser opposition. It is unthinkable, for example, that state officials would consider a highway in this location. Still, if Rochester and Mayo have such a strong case, wouldn't some agency have blocked DM&E by now?

And the conclusion:

We think the FRA should hear in great numbers from Minnesotans who object to DM&E's plans for Rochester, or the closed-door loan that would enable it. So should Minnesota's representatives in Congress. There's not much under the law that people can do to rein in a railroad, but politics is a different arena, where public opinion might actually matter.

One place and time Gil Gutknecht can hear about this is on November 7, a day on which public opinion should matter.