paul koering

Sen. Paul Koering, R-Fort Ripley, abandoned his exploratory committee for governor yesterday, citing fundraising difficulties and a refusal of many Republican activists to support an openly gay candidate, ECM Publishers reports.

“I believe the election was stolen away from [Norm Coleman].”
That’s just one of the strong statements from state Rep. Paul Koering in response to the Minnesota Supreme Court ruling in Al Franken’s favor and Coleman conceding defeat. ”I feel there was some fraud going on,” Koering continued.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s announcement earlier this month that he will not seek a third term has unleashed a political gold rush among Republican politicians in the state. Minnesota’s current political landscape includes an eye-popping 18 declared and possible gubernatorial contenders.

Democrat Tom Bakk is running for governor. The state senator from Virginia made it official yesterday. Bakk originally set up an exploratory committee and began raising money roughly a year ago. The chair of the Senate’s Taxes Committee was a strong advocate during the recently completed legislative session for increasing taxes on the state’s wealthiest [...]

Sen. Paul Koering, R-Fort Ripley, told the Pioneer Press he’s thinking about jumping into the race for governor in 2010. Koering, a gay man, opened up about his sexual orientation in 2005 during a bitter debate over a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.

Carl Walker-Hoover, an 11-year old charter school student from Massachusetts, took his own life last week after incessant taunting by fellow students. His story served as an example of the eminent danger some students face as the Minnesota Senate debated — and passed on Thursday — a measure to guide school districts in addressing bullying. It’s a measure that Senate Republicans vociferously opposed.

State Sen. Paul Koering took a lot of flack from marriage equality advocates and progressive bloggers in recent weeks because he says he won’t vote for a bill to extend marriage rights to gay and lesbian couples. In an interview with CNN last weekend, Koering explained his position in greater depth.
“Just because I’m gay that doesn’t [...]

The Minnesota chapter of the Log Cabin Republicans, an organization dedicated to working within the Republican party to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, responded to reports that Republican state Sen. Paul Koering would vote against a marriage equality bill introduced in the Minnesota Senate.
Calling Koering a “respected and hard-working legislator,” the [...]

A statement by state Sen. Paul Koering raised eyebrows two weeks ago when the gay Republican indicated he would vote against the Marriage and Family Protection Act, a bill to make Minnesota’s marriage laws gender-neutral, allowing same-sex couples to take advantage of the benefits of marriage. His excuse? The state faces more pressing issues.
But some [...]

The office of state Sen. Paul Koering, a gay Republican representing a district near Brainerd, Minn., is responding by e-mail to criticisms over his decision not to vote for the Marriage and Family Protection Act, a bill that would make gay marriage legal in Minnesota. The gist? Legislators can’t “waste their time” with “pointless legislation.”