True North

This past Saturday night, I had the privilege of introducing Sen. Norm Coleman at the SD-15 GOP BPOU fundraiser. The event was well-attended, even drawing the attention of MPR's Tim Pugmire. The event was attended by several gubernatorial candidates, including top tier candidates Tom Emmer and Marty Seifert.

In introducing Norm, I noted that "Tonight, I have the privilege of introducing a man doesn't need an introduction, a man who's voted for legislation that's actually created jobs, a man who's voted to confirm judges that the Constitution means what it says and says what it means and, most importantly, a man who's earned the reputation of listening to his constituents."

Norm quickly noted that he wouldn't have been there that night if not for Facebook, noting that that's how I contacted him, then noting that "kids probably won't think it's cool anymore because we're using it, too." In noting the Facebook connection, Norm suggested to the many local candidates that they needed to take full advantage of the social networking software.

Norm quickly noted that "2010 is our year." He said that Byron Dorgan wouldn't have retired if not for the unpopular votes he's made for health care. He quickly noted that "people are worried, maybe even a little afraid," about terrorism. The inference that Janet Napolitano isn't as competent as Tom Ridge wasn't lost on the audience.

Throughout the night, one local candidate after another made presentations to the activists attending the event. First amongst the candidates was John Pederson, who's announced in November that he's running for the SD-15 Senate seat currently held by Tarryl Clark. (It'll be a privilege being represented by John.) Next up was State Rep. Steve Gottwalt, who told the crowd that he "needs more reinforcements in St. Paul."

That's likely to happen now that Tom Ellenbecker has announced he's running for the seat currently held by Assistant Majority Leader Larry Hosch. I noted in this post that Tom is "a small businessman who understands the importance of low taxes and small government" and that Rep. Emmer has "pledged his full support for Ellenbecker." Larry's a likeable guy but he'll face a stiff challenge with Tom.

Sartell Mayor Tim O'Driscoll also spoke to the audience. Mayor O'Driscoll is running for the seat that Rep. Dan Severson currently holds. Mayor O'Driscoll tipped his hat to SD-15 for giving warm welcomes to SD-14 candidates like himself and Tom Ellenbecker, noting that it was a good sign that we're heading for a big year in Central Minnesota.

State Reps. Laura Brod, Matt Dean and Dan Severson also attended. Dan's now running for Minnesota Secretary of State. St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis and former Lt. Gov. Joanne Benson also attended Saturday night's event.

After the official program, I made the most of the opportunity to talk with a number of the out-of-town visitors, including Rep. Matt Dean, who is chairing the House Republican Campaign Committee and Rep. Laura Brod. Matt said that they've recruited alot of high quality candidates, including Tom Ellenbecker. He said that recruitment this year has been easier this cycle than in the past because it's shaping up to be a strong GOP cycle.

After introducing Norm, I was seated at Rep. Brod's table, where Laura had the opportunity to visit with some women from the Central Minnesota Republican Women's group. These women were impressed with Laura's understanding of health care-related issues.

Wherever I went, I found people excited about 2010. I told the candidates that I'd worked with Derek Brigham on this campaign slogan for this cycle:

The candidates that I talked with liked the slogan, saying that it described the differing mindsets perfectly. I think I can speak for Derek in saying that we heartily agree with these candidates.

Before leaving, I talked with King about the event. I thanked him for all the work he did putting the event together. We agreed that the enthusiasm level at the event was high and that it was a great way to kick off this election cycle.

Thanks also go out to local radio talk show host Dan Ochsner for emceeing the event and to Barbara Banaian whose idea it was to hold a fundraiser heading into the new year. The point is that alot of people pitched in.

That's local activism at its finest.

Comments welcome at LFR.

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