We'd missed this KEYC-TV report on Saturday's Walz campaign activities in Mankato: Tim Walz Holds Campaign Event At East High School:
Supporters gathered at Mankato East High School to listen to Representative Walz talk about economy, healthcare, veterans' benefits, and restoring accountability in the government.Walz says he hopes there will be bipartisan momentum for change.Rep. Tim Walz says, ''It's obvious this is the heart and soul of our support. I said I'm very proud that I think I have a broad base of support here for the year we spent in the classroom teaching and through national guard and those things. For me, it's very encouraging because it's kind of a family thing, and I have my children down here today and these are really fun.'' . . .
Later on in the day the Walz campaign went door - to - door and made phone calls in Mankato, Rochester, and Winona, talking to an estimated 5,000 voters.
A talk radio station in LaCrosse reports Minnesota Republicans Worry That Divided Race For 1st District Give Democrat Walz A Second Term. The Republican assumption that Brian Davis is in touch with district voters may be the cruelest self-inflicted April Fool's joke of all. Walz's victory wouldn't hinge on their disarray, but on his service in Congress, accessibility to his constituents, and the growing grassroots volunteer force supporting him.
No word yet on fundraising from Walz, Davis, or Day. At Minnesota Campaign Report, Joe Bodell predicts:
In the House races, I think CD1 is going to be the least exciting, at least to those looking for a horse race.
We disagree: if the National Republican Congressional Committee and the Republican Party of Minnesota are actually as enthusiastic about this race as they claim, they will have made every effort possible to persuade friendly ideological and special interest PACs to pour money into Davis's campaign account. However, since we're close to neither the NRCC nor the RPM, we'll just have to wait to see if rainmaking confirms or refutes our analysis. No word from the Walz campaign on its take for the quarter.
The Rochester Post-Bulletin reports Rochester becomes attractive political venue:
Why this embarrassment of riches from the state's two major political parties? In a recently released report, the Rochester Convention & Visitors Bureau identifies several factors that have made Rochester a desirable site: Its thriving population, diverse political views and Mayo Clinic.
The Minnesota GOP Convention will be May 29-31, and the DFL Party Convention will be the following weekend, June 6-8.
The report notes that Rochester has seen an accelerated population growth in the past 30 years and marked the 100,000 mark in January. Within that growth spurt has been a surging minority population, which has jumped from 2.6 percent in 1980 to 16.8 in 2006. That diversity has brought a cacophony of political voices. In other words, Rochester has become a battleground.
"Rochester is a great snapshot of the state's political views," said Brad Jones, executive director of the RCVB. "Our voters do not vote the party line. Both parties will have to fight for Rochester's votes, and a competitive atmosphere is perfect for conventions."
Of course, it doesn't hurt also to be home of Mayo Clinic at a time when health care ranks as among the top concerns of voters.
"We took advantage of the amazing resources available in Rochester, and used Mayo to leverage us in the bidding process," he said.
Another item in the link notes Klobuchar's endorsed of Barack Obama and Obama's visit to Rochest in 2006:
Rochester residents might remember, too, Obama's support of Klobuchar's candidacy. He rallied voters here at the Mayo Civic Center in 2006 for Klobuchar and Tim Walz.
The Albert Lea Tribune reports that Winter seemed rough, but really it was only average. An interesting discussion of weather trends and climate change.
In Kasson, the Dodge County Independent reports, residents attended a Renewable energy program at library. The talk by MSU physics professor Lou Schwartzkopf is one of tenorganized by the Southeast Library System (SELS) and the University of Minnesota Southeast Regional Sustainable Development Partnership (The Experiment in Rural Cooperation).
Video and pod casts of earlier forums about rural sustainability are available online here at the library system web site. The final three forums:
Lanesboro, April 8, 2008
Houston Nature Center, April 15, 2008
LaCrescent, April 17, 2008
Rural Sustainability Program Series Brochure (PDF, 142 KB)
The Mankato Free Press reports Farmers to cut back on corn. This to be expected; crop rotation and the demand for other crops will make planting fewer acres in corn a good proposition. Given the demand for all crops, food prices are expected to rise again. The paper predicts a soybean surge.
Bachmann’s bulb plan a dim one the MFP editorial board observes. At the conclusion of the editorial, the paper goes to the heart of Bachmann's unscientific views:
Bachmann’s odd bill may have more to do with her view on global warming. At a recent Republican convention Bachmann said any human connection to global warming is “voodoo, nonsense, hokum, a hoax.”
For someone who claims to base her decisions on science, Bachmann ignores scientific consensus on global warming and the clear benefits of moving to new technology in lighting.
We trust her strange ideas will be quickly dispatched by her colleagues in Congress.
The Minnesota River is one of the great flathead fisheries in North America; flathead fishing at night is our favorite form of angling. The New Ulm Journal reports Catfish release part of Capital for a Day. Why catfish and the river?:
. . . the catfish release during New Ulm’s Capital for a Day celebration “provides a terrific opportunity to draw regional attention to New Ulm and the state’s namesake river in Minnesota’s sesquicentennial year. Plus it’s one more way for the community to showcase all we have to offer here.”
Mark Matuska, DNR Southern Region Director at New Ulm said the event is a great way to involve local kids, partner with the community to highlight the importance of the Minnesota River and New Ulm’s historic connection to it.
Unlike other catfish that are scavengers, flatheads eat only live fish, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Dept.
And some of our readers thought New Ulm only produced German-Americans, beer, and veterans.
Former Congressman Tim Penny, now head of the Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation, has a letter in the Spring Grove Herald about how the SMIF helps with Growing Small Businesses.
The Hill mentions the Republican endorsement in the First, concluding:
None of [Walz's] potential GOP foes has raised a substantial amount of money for the race.
Davis tells KAAL he doesn't favor programs helping renewable energy (Southern Minnesota's renewable energy industry includes wind, biomass, and biofuels):
"I support alternative energy but I support it on the free market - -we need to get back to free market principles and not always look to government to solve things."
Davis opposes renewable energy standards such as those passed by the Minnesota legislature and signed into law by Governor Pawlenty. Government assistance to renewable energy includes tax credits to the wind industry and a variety of other programs.
Photos from Saturday's campaigning Above right: At the Blue Earth County DFL convention, Congressman talks about the future, while son Gus, its physical embodiment, squirms in his arms. Lower left: Walz doorknocks in a very dog-friendly neighborhood in Rochester--also quite friendly to Democrats.
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