Election world turned on its head in Minnesota

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Limits in Iraq
While praising U.S. soldiers for doing “a marvelous job” in Iraq, he noted that “they don’t speak the language and they don’t understand the culture. So there are limits as to what our soldiers can do in policing the streets.”

When Walz calls for “robust diplomacy” to help pacify Iraq, Gutknecht asks, “How do you negotiate with people who strap bombs onto 14-year old kids and send them into busy marketplaces?”

Walz’s answer: “He doesn’t understand diplomacy.” His goal: Get Egypt, Jordan, and others to take over the training of the police and army in Iraq.

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In his day of campaigning Monday, Gutknecht spoke at a Rotary Club luncheon in Fairmont, Minn., where insurance man Randy Quiring asked him, “What about Iraq? Where do we go from here? It hasn’t worked out great so far. I think we’re probably doing the right thing, but where do we go from here?”

Gutknecht warned that if Bush pulled U.S. troops out of Iraq, “We would then be responsible for a bloodbath that, frankly, I don’t want on my conscience.”

Asked what he thought of Gutknecht’s answer, Quiring said, “I know he hasn’t been 100 percent in favor of the way things have been going over there. He speaks honestly about it. I believe he’s right: if we leave now, it’ll be a bloodbath.”

Quiring said he’s likely to vote for Gutknecht because “he’s done a good job for us.”

But Democrats in the district are showing enthusiasm: a rally in Rochester, Minn., the district’s biggest city, on Monday night drew about 3,000 fired-up loyalists, partly attracted by the guest star, Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois and by Senate candidate Amy Klobuchar.

Walz has capitalized on the opposition in Rochester to a project by the DM&E Railroad that would transport coal from Wyoming, along tracks that run through the city.

“The congressman was asleep at the switch and is unwilling to admit that this is the wrong way for government to work,” said Walz, referring to Gutknecht’s vote for a bill that included a federal loan to the railroad to rebuild and add track.

“He will lose over that issue,” predicted Walz. “It brought home to roost how broken the Congress is, how it is being done behind closed doors with lobbyists writing the bills.”

Gutknecht campaign spokesman Bryan Anderson said it was “problematic” that the DM&E Railroad loan provision “was placed in the transportation spending bill late at night without a lot of members knowing about it.” Gutknecht was one who didn’t know about it.

But Anderson said Gutknecht has been meeting with all sides in the controversy to seek a solution, rather than simply railing against the project.

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