Minnesota

Reported by Charley Shaw, at the Minnesota Capitol

“The economy … has body-slammed our state’s budget.”

That’s how Minnesota Management and Budget Commissioner Tom Hanson put it Thursday morning during a dour press conference at the Capitol announcing a double whammy – that the projected deficit for the 2010-2011 biennium is now $4.8 billion and the deficit in the current budget that ends June 30 is $426 million.

Tom Stinson, state economist described the ugly situation this way: “It could be the worst [overall] economy since World War II.”

The $4.8 billion general fund deficit figure is the highest in state history, though at 13.1 percent ($4.8 billion out of a $36.7 billion budget) it doesn’t represent the highest deficit as a percentage of the state’s general fund.

Minnesotans are expected to flock to the polls tomorrow in numbers not seen since the 1956 presidential election, when 83 percent of eligible voters chose between Dwight Eisenhower and Adlai Stevenson (and Eisenhower carried the state with 54 percent of the vote).

The unofficial slogan this year in Secretary of State Mark Ritchie's office is "80 in '08," meaning that the goal is 80 percent of eligible voters casting votes tomorrow.

"We think we're well prepared," Beth Fraser, director of governmental affairs in Ritchie's office, said Monday afternoon. "We've been working with the county and city officials for months now.

"The counties have told us that they've printed more than enough ballots; in some cases they've taken the number of registered voters (in the county) and doubled that."

Sunday night, at their beautiful riverfront place in Minneapolis, Sam and Sylvia Kaplan, Minnesota’s political power couple, hosted a cocktail party billed as a bi-partisan welcome to politicians and journalists in town for the RNC.

The Kaplans’ airy, 10,000-square-foot house was filled with folks wanting to be in a festive mood, but having a hard time –- feeling conflicted. There was a strange feeling all around, a subdued party atmosphere I’ve felt before at family funerals -– you know those funerals where, yes, of course we’re sad that Grandma or uncle so-and-so has died, but it’s sure great to see the cousins from New York we hardly ever get to see but love it when we do.

“Tomorrow, we get back to work.”

At those words, as Al Franken finished his acceptance speech, red, white and blue confetti burst from the ceiling and the Kinks’ “I Hope Tomorrow You’ll Find Better Things” blared from the loud speakers.

The comedian had officially become a candidate.

Despite a week of negative attention resulting from past writings that have offended some people and politicians – on a bi-partisan basis – Franken is the DFL candidate for U.S. Senate.

He will face first-termer Norm Coleman, the Republican who used to be a Democrat and mayor of St. Paul and won election to the Senate a few weeks after the late U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone and his wife and others died in an airplane crash.

Franken made it perfectly clear that he is going to try to make Coleman and his record of supporting President George Bush the primary themes of his campaign.

His challenge, as Democrats and Republicans agree, will be to make sure that the GOP is not successful in making Franken himself the focus of the campaign.

State Sen. Larry Pogemiller (DFL-Minneapolis), Minnesota Senate Majority Leader, predicted that “in about a month” people will know whether Franken can do that and have a chance to beat Coleman.

Arlys Graff, a delegate from Le Sueur who supported University of St. Thomas peace professor Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer, said it was a bit “sad. But that’s what happens with elections. .. I think we’re pretty united to beat Norm Coleman.”

David Beecham, an alternate delegate from St. Paul, held a sign with one side supporting Franken and the other Nelson-Pallmeyer.

Beecham, a Franken supporter, praised Nelson-Pallmeyer’s decision to withdraw his bid for the endorsement. “I am a big Jack fan right now, as a result of what he just did. This is symbolic of unity in the party. The making goal has been to unseat Norm Coleman.”

Franken gave an animated acceptance speech, taking hard aim at Coleman and linking him with Bush.

“We have been waiting for eight years … and we have seen a new progressive majority in this state and in this country,” Franken said. “And we know what we want – we want universal health care; we want an economy that works for all of us and not just special interests; we want global warming initiatives that will create a green economy.

“And we want to restore our standing in the world, starting by getting out of Iraq and bringing our troops home.”

Franken promised that he and his staff will work hard by “getting up early and staying up late. … And we are going to do that because 5 million people in Minnesota need representation in Washington, and Norm Coleman has not been doing that. Norm Coleman has not brought people together to get things done; he has sold people out to get ahead.”

Now that Franken has secured the DFL nomination, some are wondering whether wealthy lawyer Mike Ciresi, Franken’s one-time primary rival for the nomination, will get back into the race and challenge Franken.

Speculation also has it that Jesse Ventura, Minnesota’s former governor and an Independent, will get into the race.

(Capitol Report staff writer Charley Shaw contributed to this post.)

Addressing a convention hall in Rochester that had more than a few empty delegate seats, U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman tried hard Friday to rouse to action a state Republican Party facing tough odds in an election year that most believe strongly favors Democrats.

With huge video screens reflecting back to the crowd Coleman’s image, dominated by preternaturally white teeth, and stressing how he’s spent 32 years in public service, the senator described how much he loves the job he’s had the last six years and wants for six more.

Without naming Al Franken, his probable opponent in this fall’s election, Coleman emphasized his own long public career, and said, “People don’t want an ideologue or a divider,” they want someone who can get things done. Coleman then outlined some of his accomplishments.

He talked about helping farmers around Lake Bronson in northwest Minnesota get help after devastating floods a few years ago.

“The best ideas don’t come from the Capitol in Washington, but from regular people” like the Lake Bronson farmers.

But Coleman saved the biggest moment for Wyatt Rech, 6, of Montgomery, a little boy battling a rare form of childhood cancer – a Wilms tumor on his kidney.

Holding the boy in his arms, Coleman talked about introducing his Conquering Childhood Cancer Bill, which “has a long way to go to become law.”

But he praised Wyatt and his parents for being crusaders in finding ways to cure childhood cancer.

“Thank Wyatt and his family for their passionate public service,” Coleman urged the applauding crowd.

Coleman went on to say that Americans and Minnesotans are looking for “problem-solvers and not angry sloganeers” – another not-so-veiled reference to Franken.

The senator talked about how Republicans need “to re-establish” their bond with the American people. He quoted Winston Churchill, who told the British people, “When you are going through hell, keep going.”

He urged Republicans to “be straight” with the American people. “We’ve violated the fiscal discipline” that is supposed to be the hallmark of Republicans.

Coleman mentioned the war in Iraq. Trying to distance himself a bit from President Bush, Coleman said, almost defensively, to a few catcalls, “We stuck with a flawed strategy for too long … we failed to see the insurgency coming.”

But he then praised the more recent success of Bush’s surge strategy, describing how he took a walk a few months ago in Falluja without body armor.

“Minnesotans want to see our troops brought home safely without sacrificing” gains made in the war on terror, Coleman said.

In the closing part of his speech, Coleman, the former Democrat, urged his now-fellow Republicans to do “a better job” of emphasizing the “core conservative Republican” values of individual rights, free enterprise, no taxes, protecting life “from conception to natural death” and supporting traditional marriage.

Coleman, 58, delivered a message to DFLers: “Keep your hands out of our pockets.” The crowd applauded.

He outlined his “eight-point action plan.” With the help of Republicans, and, presumably, Norm Coleman, the senator said America must:

1. Grow jobs by cutting taxes.
2. Cut wasteful Washington spending.
3. End our addiction to foreign oil. (He got big applause for this one.)
4. Develop a program for providing health care to more Americans … “without bureaucrats coming between doctors and families.”
5. Win the global economic competition.
6. Protect the environment.
7. Secure our borders.
8. Find peace through strength.

Then Coleman closed with his oft-used illusion to the sun rising in America, echoing Ronald Reagan.

“Some may believe that the sun is not rising in America, but not me and not you – we believe that hope and confidence and optimism ” are the DNA of America.

As Coleman’s speech ended and the crowd stood and applauded, the Chicago song “Feeling Stronger Every Day” began playing.

Secretary of State results:

• All MN Party Results, Index of all Presidential Preference Results
• Text-formatted results (good for Excel)
• GOP Results, DFL Results, Independence Results, Constitution Results.

For media coverage and reactions, see the Politics in Minnesota Morning Report for February 6, 2008. For our special caucus edition of the Weekly Report, see the end of February 5th's Morning Report.

We have posted more back issues of the PIM Weekly Report:

• The Weekly Report Vol. 3, Issue 28 - 1/25/2008: In This Issue: Another Commissioner Not To Be Confirmed?; Sending The Corps Marching; Drazkowski: Trial By Flood; A Four-Week Civics Lesson: Mister Dahle Goes to St. Paul; The Future of Polling; Minnesota's First Congressional District Fundraising Race; Bits & Pieces; Confessions Of A Sex Ed Teacher; Lobbyist Watch.
• The Weekly Report Vol. 3, Issue 27 - 1/18/2008: In This Issue: Big Win For Franken; City Of Blinding Lobbyists; Name That Legislator; Not-So-Hot-House; Independence Party To Look Into National Campaign; Republican National Convention Websites Multiply!; Liberal Think Tank & Organizers Staff Up For 2008; Walz Brings The Beltway Cash Back To First CD; Ads In The U.S. Senate Race; Remembering Bill Brooks; Bits & Pieces; Lobbyist Watch.
• The Weekly Report Vol. 3, Issue 26 - 1/11/08: In this issue: Mark On The Mark; Class Act In Politics In Minnesota; Keeping The Faith; Ciresi On The Air; Capitol Coverage; Capitol Credentials; Trocaderos Fights For Your Right To Party -- And Wins!; Bully For Gregg; Wal-Mart Watch; Bits & Pieces; Calling All Helpful Hearts.
• The Weekly Report Vol. 3, Issue 25 - 1/4/2008: In this issue: The 2007 PIM Politician Of The Year, A Significant Senate Victory, What The Huck?, Bits & Pieces, Past PIM Politicians Of The Year, Lobbyist Watch.

The Politics in Minnesota website is steadily picking up steam, a day at a time. We are adding several new blogs across the spectrum to our blogroll today, and in the next few days we will join the nationwide Hotline Political Network, a loosely affiliated set of independent political reporting operations from California to New Hampshire. Hotline, published by the National Journal, is a well-regarded hub for national political news, drawing upon thousands of media sources.

Our new political blogs for the Minnesota political blog directory:

• Under journalist blogs: HometownSource.com/blogs, the ECM Hometown Source blog, which brings together four blogs written by the staff at HometownSource.com: The Upsider Blog by Patrick Tepoorten, Infinite Learning - Endless Possibilities by Elyse Kaner, The Howzer Connection by Howard Lestrud and Places I Remember by H Burke.
• Under conservative blogs: ChisagoGOP.blogspot.com is holding it down for the GOP in Chisago County, with four regular contributors.
• Under liberal blogs: Minnesota Farmer-Labor Caucus is keeping an eye on State House races and holding DFL pols accountable to progressive values.
• Under liberal blogs: LiberalMediaElite.com, which described itself in a pretty awesome way: "...a foul-mouthed political blog from America’s Heartland. Since we’re from the Midwest—the Heartland, that is—we have considerable moral weight. Because Midwesterners are the simple, yet trustworthy and moral, idiots savant of the American imagination. It’s true. Look it up."
• Under conservative blogs: GopConventionReport.com by Nicole Russell tackles the staffing and bits and pieces of early news about the 2008 Republican National Convention on its way to St. Paul.
• Under liberal blogs: MnImmigrantRights.net is covering immigrants' rights events in Minnesota, mostly event notifications. Runs on the Drupal engine, just like PIM!
• Under conservative blogs: M4GW.com, Minnesotans for Global Warming, an alternative conservative take on climate change, with funny images and material available, by Elmer Beauregard.
• Under conservative blogs: NorthStatesman.ning.com, "Save the USA while it still exists," looking out for globalization trends like the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP), the NAFTA Superhighway, the U.S. Rep. Ron Paul presidential campaign, offbeat conservative and tech news. [Also Ning.com is a nifty base service to build a social networking site like NorthStatesman from.]

Those are all the blogs to add that we've got right now. If you have already sent a blog notification into staff@politicsinminnesota.com and it's not here, it must have gotten lost in the shuffle, so send us another note!

If you have a blog we already listed, we'd really appreciate it if you returned the favor and add PoliticsInMinnesota.com to your own blogroll, and perhaps even a handy link to the well-rounded daily material of the PIM Morning Report, a helpful link for readers of any political orientation!

Update 10/19: We just posted two more back issues of the PIM Weekly Report:

• Politics in Minnesota: The Weekly Report - Vol. 3, Issue 13 - 8/10/07: In This Issue: The Race to Replace Ramstad; The Rammer is Rich; More Big Changes At The Star Tribune; A Modest Edina Media Spectacle; Larry Craig: Whose Waterloo?; Bits & Pieces; Lobbyist Watch.
• Politics in Minnesota: The Weekly Report - Vol. 3, Issue 12 - 9/21/07: In this issue: The 3rd: Ramstad Retires; The 1990 Ramstad GOP Endorsement Victory Redux; The 2008 GOP & DFL Endorsing Contests; Who Wins?; MnDOT's Travelin' Gal; Media Machinations; Back in Black: Blogger With PR Machine; Tunheim Acquires New School; Bits & Pieces; More Web Media Is Good Web Media; Stillwater Levy Blog Wars Get Way Too Personal; Lobbyist Watch.

We still have to dig up and post Vol. 3, Issue 11, a task for next week!