Posts by Paul Schmelzer

While Minnesota’s drawn-out 2008 Senate election didn’t top MAD Magazine’s upcoming “MAD 20″ list of the “dumbest people, events and things” of 2009, the issue does promise a cure for “electile dysfunction” — in the form of a fake ad for “Democra-cialis,” showing Al Franken and Norm Coleman in side-by-side bathtubs.

Last week, Gov. Tim Pawlenty phoned his congratulations to the newly elected mayor of Manchester, New Hampshire. But perhaps next month he can extend his wishes in person: Pawlenty will be headlining a GOP fundraiser in nearby Concord. Following up last weekend’s speech in Iowa — home to the first caucuses for the 2012 presidential [...]

At Ft. Hood Army Base today, President Obama honored the thirteen people killed Thursday in a shooting spree there, including St. Paul’s Pfc. Kham Xiong. Obama told of Xiong, a 23-year-old married father of three, who “came to America from Thailand as a small child” and later “followed his brother into the military because his [...]

As expected Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak won re-election by a landslide last night. So what does the mainstream media want to know most about his victory? If he’s running for governor.

Another “awesome” Minneapolis ballot getting a bit of Lizard People–style attention is that of mayoral hopeful John Charles Wilson, who’s running as the “Edgertonite National Party” candidate. Boingboing, the country’s number-five blog, picks up on it today, noting that the story of Wilson’s party affiliation makes the ballot even more interesting. As MnIndy’s Andy Birkey [...]

MPR’s Bob Collins catches a Lizard People–like ballot entry in today’s Minneapolis election: Running for mayor is one Joey Lombard. His party affiliation makes a nifty sentence on the ballot:

See the full ballot, via MPR, after the jump.

Does Rep. Michele Bachmann coronate kings? If it’s Iowa Republican Rep. Steve King, perhaps. It was Bachmann who first floated the notion of a presidential run by King, and now he says he won’t rule out the possibility.

US Bank is putting its brand on nine banks, but it’s not necessarily an indicator of a robust economy: the Minneapolis-based bank, a division of US Bancorp, is assuming the assets and most of the debts of nine banks that closed on Friday. It was a record-setting day: It’s the most banks closed by the [...]

While Rep. Michele Bachmann doesn’t get a shout-out as a “hero” in rightwing rapper Hi-Caliber’s new video (that distinction goes to Joe “You Lie” Wilson, yo), our fair state does merit a mention — as the place where President Obama was “hiding” — in plain sight — during the 9/12 “tea party” march on Washington.
After [...]

After seeing high-profile Republicans like Rep. Michele Bachmann and Sarah Palin side with her Conservative Party challenger, GOP-endorsed candidate Dede Scozzafava has suspended her campaign to win the special election in New York’s 23rd Congressional District. On news of her party’s candidate bowing out, Bachmann issued another statement of support for the remaining rightwing candidate, [...]