I will be supporting her - she's from the burbs just like Chip.  Of the mentioned locals, nobody has any real appeal except Jeff.  Pretty sure he would be drowned in an ocean of Iron Range homophobia which could easily derail his campaign.  Also - he's just not really a scrapper.

Clark will get the support of the party regulars - just like she did in the primary against Colleen Reed (who was honestly a much better candidate).  Karen Diver is interesting - but she has made too many people mad in her fight with the mayor.

Politics is a profession.  Hillary Clinton was a carpetbagger - so was Bobby Kennedy.  But remember the origin of the term.  There was nobody in the South capable and willing to represent the federal govt.

If we just accept the inevitable that she will take the primary and save up our energy for the real race, we will all be happier - I think. Just my .02.

OGDuluthian is correct.  I'm sure it is true that "all the voters" he encounters like Cravaack, but most of the people I mix with in real life and online do not like him at all. Many absolutely despise him so OG is not getting a representative sample, and I'm probably not either.  

However, his more important correct point is about mining.  This is why I mention Rukavina and Bakk, they are both pro-mining (generally speaking).  The sulfide/wild rice/fracking issue has the potential to, well, "frack" the NE MN DFL, too.  This is a party that includes environmentalists and labor among other groups, and on the surface anyway those 2 groups may be diametrically (and passionately) opposed to each other on mining.  Clark apparently is working for an environmental firm up here, so she is presumably not going to be getting many of the pro-mining votes for that issues alone, not to mention the "carpet bagging."

I agree with Carla on homophobia and racism and casino conflicts, those things will turn some voters off.  Sad that when there is so much meaty policy affected by the election things are so surfacy, but then I raised the issue of residency and to some that is a surfacy non-issue, too.  To me it's a bread and butter issue where a person comes from and where they have put down roots and what they've done on their journey that lies in between, that's important, too.

Just to clear up a common misconception, Chisago City is in no way a suburb of the Twin Cities. Anyone that states that it is a suburb is either a)dumb, or b)very bitter that the 8CD is not represented by a Duluthian or Iron Ranger. 

As a Republican, I would love to see Clark get the nomination. Cravaack will always be vulnerable, so fundamentally flawed opponents like Clark (carpetbagger) are welcomed. Come on DFLers, I know you can screw this one up!

P.S., keep treating Iron Rangers like a bunch of backward hillbillies too. Thanks!

@ scott...

correction: Chip will give you what HE *thinks* you need.

I think that a lot of Rangers who voted for the Crack are currently having buyer's remorse over his stand on issues like collective bargaining, Social Security and Medicare. The DFL race, regardless of who takes the primary, will be competitive.

I kind of took Tony Sertich's decision not to run for reelection as a de facto admission of his intent to run against Cravaack.  I realize being commissioner of the IRRRB is a big deal, but I assume he's not done with elected office.  I'd heard his name being floated for years.  At that time it was assumed to be when Oberstar retired, not running against someone who actually beat him.

Deuces,

I don't want to have to point it out again, but I'm kind of offended, and Chisago City is most certainly in the metro area.  It is in the metro area in a legal sense, in that it is part of the 7-county metro and is part of the Metropolitan Council taxing area - which includes the state fiscal disparities act and a requirement to comply with metro-area regulations.  Statistically it is considered by the US Census as part Minneapolis/St. Paul Metropolitan area.  It is also home to a not insignificant number of people who would not live in Chisago City but for their jobs in cities closer (or in) the core cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul.  So by those metrics, anyway, I would suggest that you're wrong.  

So, as is typical, it is nice to be called dumb by an ignorant individual who just happens to be a republican.  Not trying to be inflammatory here.  Just sayin'.

Thank you, Sean. This is why Tea Party types like Deuces drive me nuts --  they're always blatantly lying about things that are easily proved or disproved. They never let the facts get in their way. I'd never paid attention before the election as to where Chisago City was. After the election, I was driving home from the Cities and was shocked when I realized it's in the metro area.

I know Tarryl Clark has good politics, is smart, and she knows how to run a campaign. But I'd have more respect for her campaign if she and her family actually sold their house in St. Cloud and bought a house here in this district and really moved here. After all, that's what Hillary Clinton did in NY.

Claire:  duces might not be lying.  It may be garden variety ignorance, or willful ignorance.

I hope republicans gerrymander the eighth to include St. Cloud.

I was disappointed to see Clark has decided to buy a condo in Duluth and run against Chip.  If she wins the nomination, I'll vote for her.  But, I find it arrogant that she seems to think no one who really lives in the 8th is qualified to take on Chip.  And, this isn't like Hilary Clinton or RFK moving to New York.  They actually moved to New York; she's just buying an address in Duluth, but keeping her primary home in St. Cloud and her husband will continue to live and work in St. Cloud.  With that kind of attitude going in, does anyone really think she'd represent the 8th district if she won?  She strikes me as someone who just really wants to serve in elected office.  And, she must think Chip is easier to beat than Michelle.  If she'd stay in her home district and run against Michelle again, that would make more sense.  But, this just feels like someone taking advantage of her ability to own a home in St. Cloud and buy a condo in Duluth so she can run against someone she thinks she can beat.  I don't get the sense that she cares about helping the 8th district, or even responding to our needs.  Disappointing.

The question is... will Tarryl Clark now run against Chip Cravaack, as St. Cloud will now be part of the district in which he lives?

Tom, it'll be interesting to see how this shakes out then. That'd be a trip if St. Cloud and Duluth ended up in the same district. Talk about two  polar opposite kinds of places.

Jim, Chippie won b/c he was at the right place at the right time. And he lied to get elected, when he wasn't committing the sin of omission, that is. Plus, Oberstar ran a terrible campaign.

Oberstar ran a campaign?

I am so glad you brought this up.  It is sad to think that someone can just buy a condo in Duluth and then think they can run as a 'Duluthian' for this seat in congress.  I would hope Duluthians would be smarter than to fall for that but I am afraid they won't.

Tarryl Clark has purchased a condo in Duluth and is looking forward to becoming an Iron Ranger. Does she realize that Duluth is not on the Iron Range. Duluthians and Rangers alike can be offended by this comment. She clearly doesn't get the area as she is just an opportunist trying to win an election. She wasn't welcome in St Cloud as she lost handily there. I am interested in what the other 2 candidates have to say as they better represent the area.

Tom: "I personally would still rather see Clark running in her home district. I've been highly critical of Cravaack for living in the Twin Cities and "representing" Northern Minnesota, so I'd be a hypocrite for thinking Clark could do an adequate job up here when she's new to the area. I'd rather see someone like Jeff Anderson take on Cravaack."

THIS.  That's absolutely where I'm at on this too.  I like Tarryl Clark, but I'm not at all comfortable with her potentially moving here simply to run for office.  Hopefully everything shakes out with someone like Anderson with a decent shot.

"I am so glad you brought this up. It is sad to think that someone can just buy a condo in Duluth and then think they can run as a 'Duluthian' for this seat in congress"

Hey! I've been here 19.5 years and have owned a home the whole time!!11¡¡!1! I could run! (Or it could give me the runs.)

Or... m0Ar of you 'authentic' Dull-uthians could run! Or 'give' us the runs.

Pros *weighs it all out* cons.

They'd supportcha. Yayoubetcha!

But ruby, you hate it here.

Taryl Clark gave one of the worst political speeches I've ever seen at the Duluth DFL City convention a few weeks ago.  It was uninspiring and unfocused.  


Right now there are three for sure candidates for the DFL nominations (Taryl Clark, Jeff Anderson, and Rick Nolan) and one possible (Daniel Fanning).  Personally, I plan to hold back to give them all a chance to prove themselves.  We need to make sure that whoever we nominate will: 1) be an excellent member of Congress, and 2) be able to win.  For me, it is too early to decide who that right person is.

"2) be able to win"  

That's one point that always makes me a little nervous, though, when I hear it brought up in the context of nomination processes and primary elections.  Does that mean not voting for someone (be it in a convention or election) who you agree with most on policy issues, and instead voting for someone if they may appeal to a broader electorate?  

I understand the desire to replace Cravaack, but in this and other elections, we need to be careful not to replace a stooge with a stooge.  I think your first criterion "be an excellent member of Congress" is dead-on accurate and what we should primarily be aiming for.  

Sure, I understand we don't necessarily want an arm-waving lunatic to get nominated.  But don't be afraid to truly vote your conscience.  

Speaking of lunatics, as far as Bachmann goes, I hope her (soon to be) failure of a presidential run is the end of her political career...or at least in the electoral realm.

The Tea Party only existed to mobilize the extremist fringe of the right wing. If Bachmann truly identified as a Tea Partyist, she would be running under that name, but as it sits, there's still a big "R" behind her name.

Chad-- I share your concern regarding electing "stooges" just because they are "electable."  That's why I listed two criteria, the first of which is being an excellent representative.  "Be able to win," to me, isn't about going for the mushy middle.  "Be able to win" is, for me, about being able to connect effectively with voters.  The candidates I devote my time and energy on are those that I truly believe in and who also have the skills to be politically effective.  Life's too short to waste on either candidates I don't believe in or who lack the skills to be politically effective.  We need candidates who are both.

Thanks Jim for the uplifting, hopeful message. The "We Are Broke" lament is so tired and rote. Craavack would be a bit more tolerable if he was able to think on his own rather than adhere to the T-P script - kinda like you do, Jimmy.

Jim - I expect you to refute this as you so eloquently repeat:

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/05/chart-bush-policies-dominant-cause-of-debt.php

Attention:  Ronald Reagan raised taxes

Now back to the issue of the potential challengers in Minnesota's 8th Congressional District.  People can debate the merits of Ronald Reagan, the Tea Party, Noam Chomsky, Malthusian economics and the Federal Deficit ad nauseum anywhere.  Perfect Duluth Day is a perfect place to share "local" perspectives without getting mired in the circuitous arguments feeding the 24 hour, 60 minute an hour cable news cycle.  Ideally, that is.

Well, that's an interesting story in today's DNT about Chipster moving his family to New Hampshire, while he buys a home in North Branch. He claims he's going to spend Saturdays in the 8th District and Sundays in New Hampshire. Of course, he'll be in DC the rest of the week. Really? Really? Didn't Cravaack run on a platform of claims that Jim Oberstar didn't really live in the 8th because he moved his family to DC and visited the 8th? What a hypocrite Cravaack is -- and what an owner of a lot of homes! Wow, I only have one home and it's plenty enough for me.

I think we can do better here in the 8th than to have someone representing us who really lives in New Hampshire! And people were complaining that Tarryl Clark really lives in St. Cloud b/c that's where her husband works and they own a home? At least it's in-state! Cravaack's wife is working in Boston and the family will live in New Hampshire!

I also found it interesting that Cravaack was claiming that his responsibilities as a father take precedence over everything. Well, I think his kids would be a lot happier if they saw him more than one day a week. It sounds to me like Cravaack wants it all -- being a father, being a Congressman. Sometimes, you just can't do it all, and in trying to do it all, you actually accomplish nothing. 

For his own sake, and for his children's sake, I urge voters to vote for anyone but Cravaack next election. We can do better.

afaik still no offices in Duluth

Amen on the criticisms of Cravaack for now moving his family to NH but claiming residence in Minnesota.

Zra, it's *not* the same thing Oberstar and others have had to do during their tenure. There's a big difference between moving your family to DC so you can be a parent to them, as opposed to moving your family to another state in a different region of the country from DC or Minny, and then claiming you will still represent Minny -- one day a week, with one other day reserved for your family. 

It's karma: Chip and his people made a big deal of Oberstar moving his family to DC, and then Chip figures out after being elected that maybe Oberstar did the right thing by his family.

Just in case anyone reads the Area Voices blog like Willie suggests and thinks the "claire" posting a comment sympathetic to Cravaaaaack is me, it's not me. I am glad for his sake, tough, that the incident with his son was a wake-up call to him and his wife that they're letting their parenting responsibilities slide, by never being around for their kids, with him being in DC and her in Boston. 

But I feel that Cravaaaaack should have worried more about being a good parent to his kids before he ran for office than afterwards. He's beginning to strike me as someone who doesn't really think things through -- sort of like his initial opposition to the DLH airport expansion.

I feel kinda lonesome out here as the only Clark supporter.  I agree with Joel that she can sometimes take a while to get to the point.  But I have listened to her talk a coupla times and spoken to her personally a few times and here is what I think: she is a smart woman with a law degree and right positions on choice, on economics, on guns, on workers' rights, on education and health.  That is good enough for me.  Because I am not from here somebody running for office has to have more to say to me than: "I'm from here."  I really don't care if somebody does or does not get the subtleties of Iron Range culture.  I care if they can take messages that I believe in to Washington (this is a national race - not a local one) and put them in to law.

I think Clark is an ok candidate, if she makes it through the primary I would most likely vote for her, with little reservation, I don't think (at this point) she will be my first choice on the primary ballot though. The carpetbagging is an issue. Yes it is a national office, but it is a national office meant to represent a specific part of the country. And if you don't really live there how are you going to represent that area? As they say, all politics are local. This is kind of what got Chippers in a spot of hot water earlier by opposing the airport expansion (and the rail project). Living in a TC suburb he had no notion of what those projects meant to his constituents. 

As an aside, it really is a joke that the 8th is such a large encompassing district. I-falls has little in common with Chippers home base, but that really is the fault of whomever drew the lines last time, and as noted it is possible that the lines will be redrawn this time to make Clark's move superfluous.