Clark kicks off 6th district campaign
State Sen. Tarryl Clark, DFL-St. Cloud, has officially launched the 6th district congressional campaign that she started last summer.
She held a kickoff event today at the State Capitol. Clark is out to unseat Republican Congresswoman Michele Bachmann in the fall, but first she'll have to win a DFL primary. The other DFL candidate, Maureen Reed, claims she has a better chance to attract 6th district independent voters. But Clark disagreed.
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"I'm the one that's in office," Clark said. " And I've proven that you can win in a tough district where you have to bring Democrats, Republicans and independents together. And that's what we've done time over time."
Clark didn't want to talk about Reed. She said her attention is on Bachmann, who Clark claims isn't fighting for the 6th district.
"While I eliminated my own office mailing budget, she spent more than $100,000 on taxpayer funded mailings, more than any other representative in Minnesota, to send self-promoting mail to people who don't even live in the district, who don't even live in the state," Calrk said.
A state Republican party official said Clark has been on the wrong side of every tax and spending issue in the Legislature. And he claimed Bachmann is the clear favorite to win a third term.
We'll have video of the Clark event once it's converted.
UPDATE
Maureen Reed's campaign manager, Jason Isaacson, responded to the Clark announcement with this statement:
The Maureen Reed campaign is energized and excited to see the 6th Congressional race come into full swing. In this race it is clear there is one candidate who can defeat Michele Bachmann. There is one candidate who has a path to victory. While both campaigns have shown an equal aptitude for fundraising, there is one candidate that is running her campaign the old fashion way without big-name endorsements; relying on hard work and grassroots politics. Maureen Reed is engaging the voters in a dialogue of hope and cooperation to find solutions to the problems that face the Sixth district. We welcome Clark and her six day tour across the district. For over 8 months now, Maureen has traveled the district from Stillwater to St Cloud, talking to voters about the issues that matter to them. Everywhere we've gone, we've gotten a tremendous response to our message and Maureen's background outside of politics.
We are also excited to announce that the first debate between the two DFL candidates will be held at Senate District 19's convention on February 20th. Maureen is a candidate with real world experience in health care, education, business and non-profits, and we're confident voters will see the difference once they have a chance to hear from her directly.
We also heard from Bachmann spokesman Dave Dziok, who refuted Clark's allegation about the mailing costs:
It looks like this is going to be one long year of smears, lies, half-truths, and gutter politics from the Democrats. Constituent outreach has always been a priority for Congresswoman Bachmann throughout her two terms in Congress, and will continue to be a priority going forward.