I got surprising hope for taking out ultra-conservative creationist Bush groupie, Representative Michelle Bachmann (R-MN) this morning from her challenger, Elwyn Tinklenberg:
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee announced today that El Tinklenberg has been added to their top-tier Red to Blue program as a candidate for change. The announcement follows Tinklenberg's financial report which shows $469,000 raised in the third quarter and $1,000,065 raised this cycle. Tinklenberg filed with $356,631 cash on hand.
The DCCC suddenly took another look at Tinklenberg after realizing that his last three month haul was twice what he'd picked up in the last two quarters combined. His problem so far has been that it's hard to get his message out. Now he hopefully can. We may have a race, people.
You may remember Michelle Bachmann from such hits as:
Benefitting from a NRCC smear campaign on Patty (mother of Jacob) Wetterling.
Clinging to Bush like a rabid fangirl.
Being told by God (through her husband) to run for Congress after three days of fasting and prayer.
Promoting Creationism and Intelligent Design in schools.
Classy lady, right? I have to give some credit for the audacity of finally getting over her schoolgirl crush on Bush by opposing the bailout, calling it the "Democrat-Bush" proposal.
Anyway, enough about the harpy. Let's talk about El Tinklenberg. He was endorsed by the Independence Party of Minnesota, and no surprise (even though the Independance Party actually has a candidate in this race, Bob Anderson), since he was the state's Secretary of Transportation under Governor Ventura. Knowledge of transit issues is crucial to Minnesota, since so many of our major issues are transit-related. Conversely, Bachmann has assisted in the witch hunt against the Republicans who helped override Tim Pawlenty's transit veto and saved our infrastructure, ensuring some hard feelings with the Republicans. She also opposes the North Star light rail line, which many believe is the future of our community.
Moving on, Tinklenberg's a former Methodist minister, which essentially takes Bachmann's "God endorsement" off the table. In fairness, I do have to report that Tinklenberg is a Bob Casey, Jr.-style Democrat who is pro-gun and pro-life, but remember what the Red-to-Blue project is all about: getting Democrats that fit their districts. The 6th is a very conservative area, and if Patty Wetterling, a national icon and legendary childrens' advocate, loses to a creep like Bachmann by 8%, we need to change tactics.
The truth of the matter is that El Tinklenberg is a good man and a skilled technocrat in an age where we need exactly that sort of person in office. Michelle Bachmann is a lunatic fringe fundamentalist Republican who has tied her future to the McCain/Palin ticket and has already benefitted from her similarity to Sarah Palin in the chattering head sector.
The choice is clear. Polling on this scale is often inaccurate, but Tinklenberg is starting to close the gap, thanks to the financial crisis and all of Bachmann's burning bridges. Send a couple dollars to El Tinklenberg if you have any to spare