6th District race for Congress: Reed says she’ll run in DFL primary if necessary

DFL efforts to unseat U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann likely will be delayed by an intra-party primary struggle between state Sen. Tarryl Clark and Dr. Maureen Reed.

Reed said late Wednesday that if she does not receive the party’s endorsement at its spring convention, she will take her campaign to a late-summer primary.

“It’s been a gradual decision,’’ said Reed, choosing her words carefully. “It’s been evolving ... Endorsing is an important part of the process, but it’s only part of the process. It does not always lead to the selection of the best candidate.’’

The Clark campaign was not exactly shocked by the development, nor were Clark backers making any brazen public statements about the Reed decision, which she announced to her supporters Wednesday evening.

“We’re focused on winning endorsement and beating Michele Bachmann,’’ said Andrea Mokros, spokeswoman for the Clark campaign.

And that’s all she’d say. 

Reed was the first candidate into the 6th District race. But when Clark entered the fray several weeks later, the traditional DFL power structure — elected officials and labor unions — rallied around her making it all but a formality that Clark will win endorsement.

So rapid was the rush to Clark that some unions didn’t even bother inviting Reed to be screened.

“I anticipated the process would be more open than it turned out to be,’’ said Reed. “I’m comfortable as a DFLer because I see it as the party of the big tent. What I learned in late summer and early fall is that some groups were not even letting us know that they were doing endorsing. We wouldn’t find out about it until we read it in the paper. It gave me pause. This process isn’t as open as I thought.’’

Many unions — the AFL-CIO, AFSCME, Education Minnesota,  among them — did at least invite Reed to screenings.

“I was treated very respectfully by them,’’ she said.

But according to her campaign staff, the Minnesota Building and Construction Trades Council, the Service Employees Union, even a college Democratic club at St. Cloud State, didn’t bother inviting Reed for a hearing.

Will seek endorsement at convention

Despite the rush of the party establishment to Clark, Reed says she will go to the party convention, she will seek endorsement, she will try to convince the delegates that she is “the more electable’’ candidate — and all the while, she’ll try not to offend.

“I have nothing but respect for the people” who have worked for years in the party, she said of the endorsement process. “... But I think the larger groups of voters need to have a voice, too.’’

Though she’s well-spoken, bright, a resume filled with public service (she was a member of the University of Minnesota Board of Regents) and, as a physician, has an insider’s understanding of the great medical-care debates of our day, Reed does have rather short DFL roots.

In fact, in the last election she ran as the lieutenant governor candidate on the Independence Party ticket with Peter Hutchinson. Many DFLers believe it’s the IP that has made winning races in the 6th District so difficult.

But Reed said she believes her IP experience should be valued by those DFLers whose top priority is knocking off  Republican Bachmann.

She said that the Democratic Party Index in the 6th District is 43 (percent).

“I look at what happened in 08,’’ she said. “El Tinklenberg got 43 percent. That’s exactly what the performance index says. It means that if you get all the DFL vote and nothing more, you lose.’’

Despite the fact that the Independence Party will not cross endorse in 2010 (in the ’08 election, the IP’s official endorsement went to Tinklenberg), Reed said it’s hugely important for any DFL candidate to appeal to independent voters and to moderate Republicans if Bachmann is to be sent packing.

“In the end, the issue is electability,’’ she said. “I can appeal to the middle group of voters.’’

But, of course, Clark claims she is the candidate who has proven she can win over the middle grounders. She won her Senate seat, which traditionally had gone to a Republican, in a special election in 2005 and was re-elected, by a convincing 13-point margin, in 2006.

And the fact that it appears there likely will be a primary will cause great concern among many who believed that the well-financed Bachmann will be hard enough to beat even without a primary, which will burn up both money and energy.

Problems for DFL

The 6th does pose huge problems for the DFL. President Obama, for example, easily won Minnesota, but lost to John McCain, 53-45, in the 6th.  Former Sen. Norm Coleman defeated Al Franken by 16 points in the 6th. Bachmann has won in the 6th, despite statements that would have ended the careers of most pols in most districts. 

Reed, who talks often of the need to get the “vicious, paralyzing rhetoric’’ out of politics, may talk courteously, but it’s clear she’ll run a tough primary campaign.

Listen, for example, to her description of one of the things people want to see in their elected officials:

“They want people in Washington with deep backgrounds,’’ Reed said. “What we have now are professional politicians. They go to law school, do some community work, get elected to county or state government, and then it’s off to Congress.’’

This is said softly. But it’s tough stuff when you look at Clark’s resume: She has a law degree, she was a lobbyist for such organizations as the Children’s Defense Fund, and after two failed tries, she was elected to the state Senate. Now, she wants to go to Congress.

It should be noted that Bachmann has a similar pedigree to Clark’s, though a vastly different political philosophy.

Reed says what’s different about her is that she’s dealt with huge public budgets at the University of Minnesota, she’s dealt with smaller budgets of non-profits, the business aspects of medicine as well as being a physician.

“I can bring people together,’’ she said.

But the activists have come together around Clark. So no matter what happens at the convention, Reed’s determined to go to a primary.

“Although I know not everyone will agree with my decision,’’ she told her supporters in an e-mail, “I feel that it is necessary to get Michele Bachmann out of office.’’

 Doug Grow writes about public affairs, state politics and other topics. He can be reached at dgrow [at] minnpost [dot] com.