Minn. GOP Desperately Seeking Strong Klobuchar Foe
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- Tim Pawlenty is out. Norm Coleman has been out for months. A gallery of rising stars and lesser names have said no, and none of Minnesota's four Republicans in Congress seem interested.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar is looking more formidable by the day in her pursuit of a second term. Despite a perpetually struggling economy and the GOP's fervent wish to take a majority in the U.S. Senate, Klobuchar has yet to draw a challenge from a Republican who inspires confidence.
Her only declared candidate, a retired state legislator, has one statewide loss on his record and so far has raised only a few thousand dollars.
"I think the field is wide open at this point," said Ben Golnik, a Minnesota Republican strategist.
Despite her popularity in polls and her strong fundraising, Republicans insist Klobuchar is beatable. They say she's avoided controversy by focusing on consumer-oriented legislation, largely steering clear of more polarizing issues like taxes and spending, the national debt and foreign policy. And they point to voter displeasure nationwide with incumbents.
"Her support is a mile wide but an inch deep," said state GOP Chairman Tony Sutton. "She's been a lapdog for the administration, the economy is flailing and what has she done? She's talking about regulating video games."
The confident talk hasn't translated to any marquee names for Sutton's party, with former Gov. Pawlenty ruling out a run shortly after pulling the plug on his presidential bid.
Klobuchar campaign spokesman Justin Buoen said the senator was unavailable for an interview Friday. He said she's focused less on next year's campaign and more on private-sector job creation, economic growth and deficit reduction.
"She has made helping people in our state her top priority since she got to the Senate, and that will continue to be her top priority -- election year or no election year," Buoen said.
The only serious Republican candidate in the race is Dan Severson, a former four-term state House member who lost the 2010 race for secretary of state to Democrat Mark Ritchie, the incumbent. In July, Severson said he had raised $3,700. Klobuchar has more than $3.3 million in the bank.
Severson admitted that fundraising has been a struggle -- and said some traditionally Republican donors from the state's business community told him they would be supporting Klobuchar instead.
"I had one corporate donor tell me, she's going to be in there for as long as she wants, so we might as well support her even if she votes wrong," Severson said. "If that's the case, we might as well start considering ourselves something other than a republic that's representative of the people."
Minnesota Republicans are quick to praise Severson's character and work ethic, but that's usually followed by a desire for more options: someone with name recognition and the ability to raise money, or a wealthy person who could self-fund.
Who that might be is an open question. Sutton said the state party has a task force recruiting potential candidates, but neither he nor other Republican officials contacted for this story would disclose prospects.
Another Republican was reportedly close to joining the race: Joe Arwood, a city council member in the small Hennepin County town of St. Bonifacius. That community's mayor, Rick Weible, said on Saturday that Arwood was likely to announce his plans Monday evening; his name is not well-known, even in political circles.
Sutton and Hennepin County Commissioner Jeff Johnson, the state's Republican national committeeman, previously said they hoped to have several candidates in the race by Labor Day. But Sutton said Friday that he believed a serious candidate could get in the race as late as next spring and still mount a serious challenge.
Klobuchar, a former Hennepin County prosecutor, was elected to the Senate handily in 2006 over Mark Kennedy, then a Republican member of Congress. Since then she's never dipped below 50 percent in a public opinion poll, cultivating a centrist image and earning headlines for shepherding common-sense legislation that included better regulation of swimming pools and toys imported from China.
"I call her our consumer advocate instead of our senator," said former Republican Sen. Rod Grams, who held Klobuchar's seat from 1995 to 2001. "Everyone likes what she's done, but when you put it in a basket it doesn't amount to much compared to the problems our country is facing."
Grams said he's had discussions with several former supporters about the race but that he's not inclined to run.
State Democratic Chairman Ken Martin said Republicans make light of Klobuchar's accomplishments at their own risk.
"She's not a hyper-partisan," Martin said. "She takes on issues that all Minnesotans care about, not just what the party hacks want. She realizes that once the campaign is over, you pursue the common good and that's what she's done."
Several Republican strategists expressed hope that, if the U.S. economy continues to struggle and incumbents nationwide appear increasingly vulnerable, that even a big name like Pawlenty or Coleman will reconsider. They point to recent examples of incumbents like Minnesota's Jim Oberstar and Wisconsin's Russ Feingold who once seemed safe but were knocked out by little-known Republicans last fall.
Gregg Peppin, a Republican strategist, pointed to another example. "When Paul Wellstone ran against Rudy Boschwitz the first time, Boschwitz outspent him something like seven to one. So you can't say there's not an opening."
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