True North

It isn't a secret that some within the GOP establishment prefer keeping Michele Bachmann arm's distance away. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if Michele wore that as a badge of honor. Nonetheless, the establishment snipers persist like they did in this City Pages hit piece:

But more importantly, many worry that those and similar remarks are detrimental to the national Republican Party's credibility, which is why not everyone inside the GOP is thrilled at the prospect of Bachmann becoming the face of their party. One senior Republican strategist, speaking on condition of anonymity, concedes that there's some trepidation within the GOP establishment.

"I can tell you she has a few quiet detractors within the Republican Party," says the strategist. "Put it this way: There've been some who've raised an eyebrow over the things she's said."

The problem with the GOP, both locally and nationally, is that strategists like this coward won't fight for their principles in public. They'd rather be quoted anonymously than fight on the battlefield of ideas. It's quite likely that they don't like fighting for their principles because their principles are constantly shifting and/or indefensible.

I've respected people of different political persuasions if they've fought intelligent fights for their principles and their priorities. When two sides passionately clash in that setting, both sides learn, often causing each side to sharpen their arguments.

Based on these paragraphs, the DFL doesn't get it:

"There are certainly people inside the DFL who think she's good for the party," says Jeremy Powers, a DFL chair in Bachmann's district. "Some think fighting for the Sixth District isn't worth it, because the sum advantage of having her around is better than ousting her."

It's a point DFL Party Chair Brian Melendez concedes but doesn't endorse.

"While obviously I like being able to raise money against Republican candidates, and while I like for there to be a convenient boogeyman like her, the price of having an ineffective representative for an entire congressional district is just too high."

What DFL Chairman Melendez calls ineffective representation, most people think of as fiscal conservatism at a time when the Obama administration and the Democratic congress are spending money and piling up deficits that'd make President Bush and the last GOP majority look like spendthrifts.

That's why Tarryl Clark is such a bad fit for the district. To be fair, Tarryl has a fairly loyal base of support. That base is as big as it'll get, though, because she isn't a fiscal conservative at a time when fiscal conservatism is badly needed. Michele's principled leadership on fiscal accountability fits the Sixth District and this elction cycle perfectly.

In the other corner you have state Sen. Tarryl Clark, a DFL up-and-comer who, by virtue of having nabbed labor union endorsements, appears to be the frontrunner. Like Reed, she might be handicapped by an overreliance on wonky pragmatism in a district that seems to perennially reward folksy pathos.

"If you're looking to fire someone, you need a reason," she says of the incumbent. "She's not doing her job. She's not helping to secure Medicare, or lowering tuition, or ensuring health care for veterans. 'No' is not an answer. You have to be willing to work toward a solution."

Tarryl's worked hard to portray herself as a moderate. Voting for every major tax increase in Minnesota history isn't a great way of building up a person's moderate credentials. Coupling that voting record with Tarryl's quiet approval of a single-payer health care system is a fine if you're running in Keith Ellison's district and possibly Betty McCollum's district but that's about it.

Here in the Sixth District, we call people with that voting record a full-fledged liberal.

Despite all the whining from cowardly GOP strategists and the attacks from DFL attack puppies like Chairman Melendez, Michele Bachmann has a strong and growing base of support in the Sixth District. That's why, on Election Night, 2010, we'll call Michele our representative in DC for the next 2 years.

Comments welcome at LFR.