July 31, 2000 - Recent polls have found more people recognize former State Auditor Mark Dayton than any of the other DFL U.S.Senate candidates. Dayton is a politician who's run in 5 statewide elections, but perhaps more importantly, his name calls to mind the department store his family founded. He came in fourth in the DFL gubernatorial primary two years ago, but this time, many observers think he's got a good shot at winning the Senate primary. In the first of our series of candidate profiles, Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum looks at Mark Dayton's career and campaign...
July 25, 2000 - The high cost of prescription drugs has become one of the top political issues this year - candidate after candidate has expressed outrage over senior citizens forced to choose between buying food and buying medicine. It's a key issue In Minnesota's U-S Senate race, with all of the major D-F-L candidates and Republican Senator Rod Grams calling for changes to make prescription drugs more affordable for seniors. In part two of our series Prescription for Change, Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum looks at the Senate candidates' proposals, and whether they're more than just election year rhetoric...
July 17, 2000 - DFL Senate candidate Mike Ciresi says he believes Republican Senator Rod Grams' campaign is behind a series of negative e-mails about Ciresi. The Minneapolis trial lawyer is asking the Anoka County attorney to investigate whether the e-mails - sent to DFL activists under the name "Katie Stevens" - violate state campaign law, which requires campaign materials to disclose who sent them. Grams won't say whether he knew anything about the e-mails. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports.
July 14, 2000 - A new poll shows most Minnesotans worry Social Security won't be there for them when they retire, and many want to use the federal budget surplus to shore up the program. The poll conducted for Minnesota Public Radio, the St. Paul Pioneer Press and KARE-11 TV also finds many of those polled want to let workers put some of their social security money into the stock market. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports.
July 13, 2000 - DFL Senate candidate Mark Dayton has started his advertising blitz, spending more than 300-thousand dollars on television ads running statewide this week. Dayton is the third Democrat to buy up large chunks of airtime before the September primary. Attorney Michael Ciresi has had ads on the air for months, and DFL'er Rebecca Yanisch just finished a big television ad buy. In the latest in our series of Ad Watches, Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum talks with analyst Dean Alger about the Dayton and Yanisch ads...
July 11, 2000 - ** note host outcue ** With nine weeks to go until the September primary, D-F-L voters are still undecided and divided about the U-S Senate race. That's according to a poll conducted last week for Minnesota Public Radio, the St. Paul Pioneer Press and KARE-11 T-V. None of the four major D-F-L candidates captures more than a fourth of the likely Democratic voters polled. MInnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports...
July 7, 2000 - A federal judge has dismissed Minnesota's lawsuit over disparities in Medicare reimbursement. Minnesota Attorney General Mike Hatch and the Minnesota Senior Federation sued the federal government, arguing that the formula used to pay HMO's to provide Medicare is unconstitutional, because it results in seniors in some states paying higher premiums and getting fewer benefits than seniors in more populous states. But the judge ruled the formula is a matter for Congress, not the courts, to resolve. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports...
July 4, 2000 - The Fourth of July means fireworks, parades, and - in an election year - politicians. Minnesota candidates worked the crowds at parades around the state today . Many of them could be seen at one of the state's biggest parades in Forest Lake. The primary is ten weeks from today, and although voters may not be paying attention yet, that's not stopping the candidates in Minnesota's U-S Senate race. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports...
July 3, 2000 - ** Note host outcue ** The hotly-contested D-F-L primary for U-S Senate is generating some hefty campaign war chests. Three of the contenders vying to run against Republican Senator Rod Grams have raised a combined five-million dollars since the campaign began. Two of them - trial attorney Michael Ciresi and former state auditor Mark Dayton - are heavily financing their own campaigns with their personal wealth. But the D-F-L's endorsed candidate - state Senator Jerry Janezich of Chisholm - lags far behind in the money chase, and political observers say he'll have to start catching up to mount a credible campaign. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports...
June 27, 2000 - D-F-L Senate candidate Mark Dayton is taking a busload of Minnesota seniors to Canada later this week to buy cheaper medicine. The former state auditor wants to highlight what's becoming a key campaign issue in the Senate race - the high cost of prescription drugs in the U-S. But his publicity stunt has raised questions about whether Dayton is trying to buy votes by providing free transportation. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports...