Franken and Klobuchar voted against long-term FAA funding because the bill contained an anti-union provision.

​The bill providing long-term funding for the Federal Aviation Administration is a case study in how complicated legislation coming before the U.S. Senate can be.

As a condition of funding the FAA long-term, congressional Republicans demanded that the percentage of transportation workers' signatures required to petition for a union to be formed increase from 35 to 50. Unsurprisingly, Al Franken and Amy Klobuchar oppose that provision, but the bill also contained two separate provisions each of the Minnesota senators support -- protecting funding for small, rural airports in Minnesota, and funding to hasten the transition to a satellite-based air traffic control navigation system that's expected to reduce delays and lower pollution.

In the end, Franken and Klobuchar determined that the anti-union provision was the most crucial aspect of the bill, which they voted against. The bill ended up passing by a vote of 75-20, with five Republicans joining 15 Democrats in opposition.

More >>

Though their support for PIPA angered some, our senators appear to be in very good political shape.

​Apparently the PIPA debacle hasn't significantly hurt the political fortunes of Al Franken or Amy Klobuchar.

A new Public Policy Polling poll conducted over last weekend concludes that Klobuchar will be very tough to beat this year. Franken's favorable numbers, while weaker than Klobuchar's, indicate more Minnesotans approve of him than don't.

It looks like it may be difficult for Republicans to wrest control of either of Minnesota's senate seats from Democrats anytime soon, though Franken still has a couple more years before the 2014 election for PIPA-style missteps.

More >>

Franken and Klobuchar has received considerable financial support from the media industry.

​It's a cliche, but true -- when trying to figure out the whys and wherefores of politics, you should follow the money. And in the case of Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken's support for the now-stalled PIPA legislation, the money trail appears to lead back to big media.

Campaign finance records indicate that big media companies have been huge supporters of both of our senators -- and big media, of course, stands to gain from PIPA through more stringent copyright regulations meant to wipe pirated content off the internet.

Could our senators' support for PIPA have been bought and paid for?

More >>

Though they aren't quite ready to admit PIPA was a bad idea, our senators are now open to "compromise."

​Yesterday's online blackouts protesting SOPA and PIPA haven't been ignored by Senators Al Franken and Amy Klobuchar, both of whom are co-sponsors of PIPA.

Though both continue to support some form of legislation aimed at curbing foreign piracy, spokesmen for each said that the Senators are now interested in a "compromise."

All the other members of Minnesota's congressional indicated that they either oppose the proposed legislation or are at least leaning toward opposing it.

More >>

Joe Arwood has enough money to buy an old Honda or a new suit.

​Joe Arwood is a Republican candidate for Amy Klobuchar's U.S. Senate seat. To describe Arwood as a potential "dark horse" candidate is an insult to both darkness and horses. At this point, it's safe to think of Arwood as a no-hoper.

That's more or less confirmed in Arwood's fundraising numbers, which he has released on his website in some bizarre form of protest.

Somehow, Arwood has convinced a few people to give him money, and he's now sitting on more than $7,000 in the bank. That means he's only about $3,993,000 behind Amy Klobuchar.

So, yes, Klobuchar has a slight fundraising edge, but at this point, it's really too close to call.
More >>

Amy Klobuchar: Heel, boy.

​Amy Klobuchar is substantive, smart, hard-working, avoids controversy, rarely makes a public verbal misstep -- save for the vaguely northern accent, she's sort of the anti-Sarah Palin. But now Minnesota's respectable senator has revealed what she has in common with Alaska's inescapable former governor: An insatiable thirst for wolf blood.

We might be overselling this just a bit. But try telling that to the wolves. (Actually, don't. They will eat you.)

Yesterday, Klobuchar said that Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack will support a renewed pledge to trap and kill hundreds of Minnesota's wolves. The announcement came just days after a lack of funding brought an end to a federal program of wolf-trapping, which had, typically thanks to legislators' earmarks, gone on for 33 years.

Now, Klobuchar tells the Duluth News Tribune that she not only wants to bring back funding for the program, but also to take the wolf off the endangered species list. Perhaps in its place we could put "environmentalist politicians."
More >>

Klobuchar steps to the line.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar has been mentioned as presidential material and Supreme Court material, but we now have video evidence that it's pretty clear she isn't NBA material. Maybe not even elementary school hoops material.

Klobuchar gamely took part in a congressional free throw competition with Olympic and Paralympic athletes to support the U.S. Olympic Committee and its supporters in Congress. When it came her turn to stand at the line, she missed every shot.

More >>

Rich Stanek: He beat Kitten. Is Klobuchar next?

​Norm Coleman generated some headlines the other day when he confirmed that he has no intention of running against Sen. Amy Klobuchar when she's up for re-election in 2012.

So, who will? MPR asked around and found buzz building for Hennepin County Sheriff Rich Stanek.

More >>

Amy Klobuchar: What's not to love?

We knew Amy Klobuchar was funny, maybe even funnier than Al Franken, but now we've learned that she's popular, too.

And more popular than Franken.

More >>

Image via Wikipedia

Erin Andrews goes to bat for Amy Klobuchar

Erin Andrews knows a thing or two about stalkers. A guy named Michael David Barrett once secretly videotaped the ESPN sportscaster through a hotel peepholes -- in one, she was buck naked, curling her hair -- and then posted the clips online. Millions of guys' hearts raced before the clips were pulled down, but Andrews wasn't amused -- Barrett went to jail, and she sued the hotels involved. Now she's huddling with Sen. Amy Klobuchar to move tough new anti-stalking legislation through Congress.

More >>