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Editorial: No pick in Third; Tinklenberg in Sixth

Last update: October 27, 2008 - 6:26 PM

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Third District: No endorsement

All three candidates in the race to replace Republican Jim Ramstad in the Third District are competent. But none inspired the critical mass of confidence required for our endorsement.

David Dillon, an entrepreneur and CEO of Meyers Printing Companies Inc., has grown into an impressive, multifaceted candidate. At debates, the Independence Party candidate demonstrated a deep grasp of the issues. He’s smart, likable and genuine, offering up real-world perspective as a businessman who’s grappled with health care costs and immigration. He also gets points for telling the brutal truth about ballooning federal entitlements.

In a race where the other candidates have cast themselves as Ramstad moderates, Dillon most deserves that label. But his call for himself and others to never vote for “unbalanced” budgets (deficit spending) seem naive and would undercut his effectiveness. Not having a party to caucus with would further limit him.

Ashwin Madia, an Iraq veteran and Democrat, is young, bright and energetic. A vote for Madia is a vote for potential. He gets it right on energy policy, and his military service gives him welcome foreign policy perspective.

At the same time, we can’t quite shake concerns that Madia’s knowledge of key issues is wide, but not deep enough. Health care reform requires more than the efficiencies he emphasizes. His call for more education funding is good, but money alone won’t solve school ills. And how does this new funding square with his call to cut spending?

At the last debate, Madia was less polished on policy than his two rivals and repeated an error made in his endorsement interview — that the Employee Free Choice Act would not allow a unionization drive to bypass a secret ballot.

The candidacy of Eden Prairie Republican Erik Paulsen generated significant reservations. Paulsen has an impressive political pedigree, serving as the Minnesota House Majority leader from 2003 through 2006. He was awarded a prestigious fellowship that took him to India and China.

But Paulsen’s endorsement interview was disappointing. His answers on energy, health care and foreign policy lacked depth, detail and vision. Paulsen performed better at debates, but did not make the case that he has the depth needed to be a strong, independent leader in Congress.

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Opinion Exchange is produced by the Editorial Department, which is dedicated to hosting the discussion on a range of issues of interest to Star Tribune readers online and in print. In its new format, it's our hope that Opinion Exhange will create a more dynamic dialogue between Star Tribune readers and the Editorial Board. Many individual posts will be written and signed by members of the Editorial Board and will reflect their own opinions. Daily editorials will continue to represent the institutional voice of the newspaper and be researched and written by the Editorial Department, which is independent of the newsroom.

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