Bachmann Amendment DOA in MN Senate Declares Wingman

Here. Sen. Michele Bachmann (R-Stillwater), the apparent front-runner for the Republican nomination for Mark Kennedy's congressional seat, is the lead sponsor of the amendment. Her success for her campaign for Congress may largely depend on the survival on the marriage amendment in the Minnesota Senate. If Bachmann had been willing to compromise, there would have been an amendment on the ballot in 2004. Bachmann did not want Sen. Betzold's compromise version which would have said Minnesota Judges couldn't rule on issues related to gay marriage - or legal equivalents. Wingman also notes: One source close to the Minnesota Senate informs me that there was bare majority support to pass the amendment last session, but senators (even DFLers who supported it) did not want to vote on it during a presidential election year because if it were placed on the ballot, Bush could carry the state with increased social conservative voter turnout. Well duh - the vehimence of DFL opposition in the Senate didn't have to do with the issue - but more because they saw the amendment as bad for DFLers. DFLers like house minority leader Matt Entenza try to have it both ways on this issue. Wingman also gives his two cents on the results of the recent special elections. In Senate District 15 (St Cloud), the Republican candidates tried to use the Bachmann amendment as an issue to galvanize the base. It didn't work. In Senate District 43 (Minnetonka/Plymouth), Plymouth Mayor Judy Johnson came out in support of the Bachmann amendment (with some reservations about the "legal equivalent" language). In the end, Johnson blew an answer to a question about Intelligent Design Creationism at a Chamber of Commerce Debate. Because Intelligent Design creationist, Dave Eaton has been embarrassing the Minnetonka School District by pushing for IDiocy to get taught in the Minnetonka public schools - Judy got cauht in the crossfire. Wingman doesn't mention one key point about this senate district - and that is that it's a strongly pro-choice district. Judy's stance on abortion hurt her in this election. When David Gaither ran, he managed to obscure that issue. Judy Johnson did not do so.

Michele Bachmann Updates Her Blog

It's now up to 3 posts over there - since the blog first appeared on the scene about a month ago. The posts are duplicated over at the Student For Bachmann's blog. Blogger Berg seems rather defensive about being called on the regular parrotting of talking points on his blog. The Pioneer Press has an article which discusses the effects of blogs on the 2006 races. In April, when blogs published photos of state Sen. Michele Bachmann — the sponsor of a constitutional amendment to define marriage as the union of one man and one woman — observing a gay-rights rally from behind a row of bushes, both the Pioneer Press and Star Tribune responded with articles. It's interesting that the article mentioned that the Republican Convention had a blogger section, but didn't mention that the Democratic Convention had the same. The article missed totally the role of blogs in the recent special elections.