Bonoff: People Want Change, Leaders Aren’t Listening

In early September, Terri Bonoff was focusing on her work in the state Senate, but when Jim Ramstad announced his retirement from Congress, reporters started calling her almost immediately.

Her first question for them was,…

Why Didn’t Ciresi Go Public with his Early Opposition to the Iraq War?

DFL U.S. Senate candidate Mike Ciresi has been on the attack lately against his chief rival for the DFL endorsement, Al Franken, over Franken’s early support for the decision to invade Iraq. Ciresi has said that he opposed the…

Coleman Floats Plan to Withdraw Troops After Bush Leaves Office

Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn., was among a group of Republican moderates championing a new compromise measure on the Iraq war.  But the measure quickly drew brickbats from Democrats, including one of Coleman’s challengers in 2008.

The proposal,…

Minnesota Children Exchange Letters — and Hope — with Iraqi Children

As an Iraqi-American, Sami Rasouli felt that adults in the two countries “failed to bring peace and stability.” So he and an American friend turned to the children of the two countries to open a dialogue about…

Coleman Criticized for Iraq Vote

Activists and the campaigns of DFL Senate candidates Al Franken and Mike Ciresi denounced Republican Sen. Norm Coleman for his vote against ending debate on a measure aimed at ending the war in Iraq.

“Senator Coleman says…

Dems Iraq Debate Decoded

The Iraq debate and the media coverage are being conducted substantially in code and shorthand. If you’re not alert, you can easily be misled. For example:

Remember on July 9, when Democratic presidential frontrunners…

When Benchmarks Measure Nothing

As Congress prepares for a new raft of votes on funding for Iraq, an unnamed White House official tells the Associated Press that President Bush will have to acknowledge shortly that progress in…

Waste

Three thousand, four hundred and fifty-four American soldiers have died in Iraq since March 21, 2003.

You know that, of course.  You may not have known the exact figure, but you probably knew it was somewhere between…

Congress OKs Iraq Supplemental Funding; Minnesota Delegation Largely Supportive

Both the House and Senate passed through a supplemental funding bill for the Iraq war Thursday night, bringing to an end for the moment a standoff between Congress and the White House over continued funding of the war.

The measure…

Walz to Vote for Iraq Supplemental

Rep. Tim Walz, D-Minn., will break with fellow Democrats and vote for supplemental funding for the Iraq war.

The vote puts him at odds with the leader of his caucus, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and with…