Ok.Ok.Ok.Ok...that sounds like a trick question. Let me clarify. We have an embarrasment of riches here. Since Elwyn Tinklenberg dropped out of the primary, Bachmann's Democratic opponent will be either Tarryl Clark or Maureen Reed.
The reason I am putting this up now is that I believe we have to pick ONE candidate to champion so we don't repeat recent historical debacles. The sooner, the better. Here's a quick primer on Minnesota politics as I understand it, along with some background on the two women vying to face Bachmann. After looking things over, I have come down clearly behind one of these two women.
If I get anything wrong, I'm sure it will be quickly pointed out in the comments so I can fix it.
HISTORY:
Minnesota has an unusually well-organized and effective third party presence. In addition to the Republican Party and the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL), there is also the Independence Party.
The DFL is the result of a merger back in the 1940s between the populist Farmer-Labor Party and the traditional Democratic Party. The Farmer-Labor Party played a dominant role in Minnesota politics during the 1930s This merger was engineered by a young Hubert Humphrey. He built his political career on that foundation. Other candidates from the DFL include Walter Mondale, Eugene McCarthy and Paul Wellstone. Mondale could be considered more in tune with the Democratic part of the DFL, while Wellstone was pure Farmer-Labor.
The Independence Party is what remained after the failure of Perot's Reform Party. It's one of the few major third party players in the US. It's greatest success to date was the election of Jesse Ventura as governor. It has to be considered because it is a stable presence at the state level.
In the case of recent Minnesota politics for national seats, the Independence Party has played the role of spoiler more than anything else. This is a double-edged sword. The last election cycle demonstrates this pretty clearly. We all remember the cliff hanger between Franken and Coleman. It appears that Barkley took more votes from Coleman than he did from Franken. In the case of Bachmann's challenge from Tinklenberg, it appears that Anderson took more from Tinklenberg than he did from Bachmann, but that is not conclusive.
CANDIDATES:
Anderson is considering a re-match, only this time he will do it with the endorsement of the Independence Party. In 2008, the Independence Party "cross-endorsed" Tinklenberg and left their slot on the ballot open. That enabled Anderson to run as an "unendorsed" Independence Party candidate. Even without the party's endorsement he got about 10% of the vote. A candidate with the party endorsement would presumably do even better.
This brings us to Reed and Clark.
Reed is a former Lt. Governor candidate for the Independence Party. She is a practicing physician (internal medicine) and former Medical Director for HealthPartners, a MN-based nonprofit HMO. She has held a variety of appointed political positions, but has never won a contested election.
Clark is currently a state senator and majority whip in the Minnesota Senate. She is in her second term.
When I look at their records, I focus on two things:
- HealthPartners Health Plan - because Reed was Medical Director of HealthPartners for almost a decade and she bills herself as "The Health Care Candidate" in this election.
- Clark's Legislative Record - because she has one.
- Anderson's political career - non-existent. I am not considering him at all because I think he is a spoiler -- at best.
Two things strike me about HealthPartners plan. When you look at their OB-GYN services, abortion is not covered under any plans or under any circumstances. Even more disturbing is how they deal with treatment of newborns to HIV-positive mothers. If you have the EXPANDED plan, it is covered. If you have the Basic, Basic plus one, or Basic plus two it is not. That strikes me as profoundly discriminatory and leaves a real bad taste in my mouth. If you are well-off and HIV-positive, they will cover you. If you are not well-off, they won't. Which group do you think is more likely to have HIV-positive mothers in it?
Couple this with Reed's interview (audio link at bottom of page) and there is little cause for optimism when it comes to matters of choice. At best, she is vague. This is important because she bills herself as The Health Care Candidate.
Although she speaks well, and is clearly intelligent, I don't hear anything concrete. She notes that administrative costs are out of control and medical costs are out of control. She focuses on expenses, but says nothing about guaranteeing access. She also makes it clear that she is not wedded to any approach to solving the problem, which sounds reasonable but at the same time brings back the basic problem I have which is her vagueness.
Looking at Clark's record, it is impressive to see the number of bills she authored. They cover a range of issues in diverse areas. These include education, health care, transportation, jobs and economic development. She has gotten legislation passed that seeks to rein in abusive insurance industry practices. She is also unabashedly pro-choice. Here's one of many youtubes for Clark:
What is clear here is the level of detail she can bring to an issue. This example shows her talking about a transportation bill. I include it because one of Clark's other strenghts is her diversity of topics. Reed certainly knows Health Care, but I don't know if she knows legislation.
Given Clark's rapid rise, her demonstrated effectiveness, and her clearly stated positions, I am inclined to throw support to her early on. This is important, because one of Reed's selling points is that she was able to raise over $200,000 shortly after announcing her intention to run. Fundraising potential will be important in this race because we know Bachamann is one of the cash magnets for the national wingnut base. I don't know what Clark's fundraising has been to date, but I do know she has a lot of support within the DFL and was even considering a run at governor before focusing on this race. Her appeal to a national constituency will be key if she is going to match Bachmann. I think she is ready for primetime, as you can see in this interview.
In the end, I keep coming back to Clark for a variety of reasons.
She has a track record of successful legislation.
She is well regarded by her peers.
She speaks in detail on a variety of issues.
She is not squeamish about staking out a clear position.
She is not a polarizing figure.
Replacing Bachmann is not just about ridding congress of her vile and corrosive influence. It is also about putting in a progressive democrat who will stand for change. Progressives love Alan Grayson and Anthony Weiner because they are clear and focused. But they came prepared to do battle. They have more than an agenda or a desire. They also have skills that make them effective. At this point in time, I don't think we can afford the luxury of considering congressional seats as training positions. We need people who can hit the groudn running on day one.
ENDORSEMENT:
For all those reasons, I am lining up behind Clark and putting my money where my mouth is. If you agree, go to ActBlue and donate. I'm in for $20.10, what about you?