Mike McFadden, the Republican, has accused Democratic incumbent Sen. Al Franken of failing to stop Minnesota from becoming a recruiting ground for extremists, and this week he released his own plan to combat propaganda and recruiting campaigns by the Islamic State, Somalia-based Al Shabab and other Islamist organizations aimed at Minnesota immigrant young people.
Franken, who is finishing his first term, counters that he's been on top of the issue for years. McFadden argues that Franken--and the Obama administration as a whole--have not done enough to stop the trend.
Franken countered that he pressed the FBI and US Justice Department to focus more resources to crack down on terrorist recruitment. Franken said McFadden last year ducked a question on what action to take after Syrian President Bashar Assad was believed to have used chemical weapons on his own people. "He refused to answer because it was a tough call," Franken said. "It is easy to score political points from the bleachers. This is a serious job. You've got to make real choices in real time."
The ad followed similar remarks by Ed Gillespie, a Republican running for Senate in Virginia, and Mike McFadden, who is challenging Sen. Al Franken (D-MN). "It probably defangs this increasingly concerted effort by the political left to caricature male Republican politicians as anti-woman, anti-birth control, anti-rainbows and sunshine," said a Republican pollster who specializes in women voters.
"It's disappointing that President Obama says 'we don't have a strategy' to deal with ISIS even though the situation in Iraq remains unstable and our military is continuing with air strikes," said McFadden. "Between Ukraine, Syria and Iraq, we are seeing first hand the consequences of not having a coherent foreign policy agenda. It began in Benghazi and continues to this day with the rise of ISIS. Senator Franken has supported President Obama's foreign policy blunders every step of the way. He's kept his head down and supported a President who is making the world a more dangerous place. It's time for a change."
President Obama on ISIS: "'I don't want to put the cart before the horse,' Obama told reporters during a White House news briefing. 'We don't have a strategy yet.'" (CNN, Aug. 29, 2014)
When we live in a world where a handful of terrorists could soon send a note with some authenticity to the White House saying, "Surrender today or we will nuke New York," or some other city, shouldn't somebody who wants to be a U.S. senator be thoroughly screened about their views on foreign policy?
Check out the campaign web sites of Franken and McFadden. Look under issues. Neither one has a word to say about foreign policy. Not one.
One would think a gratuitous sentence or two describing their visions for America's role in the world would be merited.
McFadden may have suffered a self-inflicted wound last week, when in his support for the Keystone Pipeline he said he would opt for building it with Chinese steel over U.S. steel if the import was cheaper. That prompted tirades from union activists on an issue of sensitivity to Minnesota's Iron Range; McFadden said he places a high value on being "cost competitive" on projects that use taxpayer money.
McFadden said the Obama administration and congressional Democrats have presided over a regulatory agenda that has stifled the recovery. He cited a major Minnesota copper and nickel-mining project that has been stalled while its proponents await approval from seven regulatory agencies, "which is crazy."
"I believe there's a better way," he added. "Through smarter regulation and a little common sense, we can develop our natural resources in a way that creates jobs and protects the environment."
The PolyMet mine in Hoyt Lakes is the perfect example of a project that will create jobs while still allowing us to preserve the natural resources that make Minnesota such a great place to live. Projects like PolyMet will put Minnesotans back to work and get our economy moving again.
He called for the repeal of the federal Common Core education standards for states and bashed so-called ObamaCare, but didn't call for a full-on repeal of the healthcare program.
A: One is approve the Keystone pipeline, which has thoroughly passed multiple environmental reviews. Two is natural gas. There are 24 [LNG liquefied and natural gas plants] around the country that have applied for permits. I would fast-track the permitting process. If we had these LNG plants up and running, we actually could export to Europe.
Q: Natural gas may contribute to climate change.
A: There's a false choice out there. You're either for the environment, or you're for the economic growth or business growth. You can do both. You grow; you develop in a responsible way. I'm a big proponent of all forms of energy. Let the market determine what's the most efficient way to provide energy sources. Look at the improvements we made in the coal industry in terms of what we've been able to do there. Whether its coal, nuclear, natural gas, propane--let's promote it in a responsible way.
A: I'm very disappointed in the current administration in terms of their foreign policy. I think they've put the U.S. in a place where we are in a less safe, more dangerous position today that when they got elected into office. Let's look at Benghazi. A US ambassador was murdered. We had an aircraft carrier in the Mediterranean. We did nothing. Then we drew a red line in the sand in Syria. They crossed it. We did nothing. So no one should be surprised by what Putin did in the Ukraine.
Q: Do you advocate a more muscular US policy in this situation?
A: I advocate a more clear policy. I would have started in Benghazi. I would have sent a very strong message that we're going to protect our embassies. We find ourselves in a situation in the Ukraine. I would have immediately kicked Russia out of the G-8. I would consider taking the 2018 World Cup from them immediately. I'm a big proponent of economic sanctions.
The candidate wouldn't say whether he supports a state-based effort to increase Minnesota's minimum wage to $9.50 an hour. He called the vote concerning gender-based pay discrimination an election-year trick and said personhood legislation, which seeks to give fetuses the same rights as people, is a "polarizing" issue that he wouldn't focus on. When asked about the minimum wage, he said it was "the wrong question."
"What I think is really important with politicians and with leaders [is] you understand their overriding philosophies--how do they make decisions?" McFadden said. "And so I've been very specific in this campaign as to how I make decisions and it begins with my view of government, my philosophy of government."
Under the current rules, children from families with incomes below $30,615 for a family of 4 are eligible for free meals; those with incomes below $43,568 for a family of 4 are eligible for reduced-price meals. Franken is re-introducing legislation, the Expand School Meals Act, to pay the rest of the cost for those students who only qualify for the reduced-price meals.
Businessman Mike McFadden said the matter of paying for school lunches should be left to the states to handle. The Minnesota House did, in fact, vote last week to set aside $3.5 million a year to cover the cost of reduced-price lunches.
McFadden said while he personally believes that marriage is "a sacrament" between a man and a woman, he is "fine" with Minnesota's decision to legalize gay marriage. On abortion, McFadden said he is "pro-life, but my focus is on getting kids educated."
Asked how limited government should be--drowned in bathtub? Slightly smaller than current? Would he close federal departments? -- McFadden demurred, "my focus is going to be on making things more effective."
"Politics is the art of the possible not the art of the pure," he said. "And I think what's happened in Washington is we've had too much purity on both ends of the spectrum."
He spoke admiringly of the work Sens. Bob Corker (R,TN) and John Hoeven (R, ND) on immigration. "There is a group of senators that have led, taken a lot of arrows for leading, but they have led. They've come forward with a bill that is not perfect but they acknowledge that we have to address this," he said.
McFadden and his partners built a business while Abeler and Ortman were serving in the Legislature. Although Abeler and Ortman have been high-profile legislators, McFadden is lesser known to the general public.
"It does bother me that someone who couldn't pass a background check at Walmart could then go right down to a gun show and buy a gun," McFadden said. "So I would consider expanded background checks, specifically closing that gun show loophole."
"As Republicans, we need to get our arms around this," McFadden said. He said he wants to see "outreach to the Hispanic community, because if they're not already Republicans they have the potential to be great Republicans because they have strong family values, they're entrepreneurial, they work hard, they're industrious. We need to appeal to them."
But he steered a middle course on some hot-button issues. On immigration, McFadden said any changes to immigration law would have to start with securing U.S. borders, but said he isn't opposed to finding a way for millions of immigrants now here illegally to obtain citizenship.
A: We're looking at close to $17 trillion in debt now. It represents almost 80% of our GDP, and that's problematic. As it comes to debt ceiling negotiations, I would be front and center in any part of those negotiations, and I think what needs to be measured is, on one hand, we need to provide some fiscal constraint in terms of government spending. We've been spending like a drunken sailor and we have to stop that. That's got to be measured against what that does to our credit in the world market for borrowing money if we violate our debt covenants.
A: One assignment I clearly want is a seat on the Education Committee. I've been very involved with inner-city education. What that's allowed me to see is, we can do better. We can achieve better results with a little bit more focus. I compare our results to similar results in the inner-city high schools, then I look at how much money we've spent on those schools. So, I want to focus on allocating our dollars to areas that work. I want to measure and do better in education. We have to do it; the status quo is not an option.
Q: What about "No Child Left Behind"?
Q: I don't believe the federal government should be dictating what second graders should be reading. I'd like to see some changes in simple things, such as, there is a program in Minnesota called "Minnesota Reading Corps." Their philosophy is, first you learn to read, then you read to learn. It's really simple: By third grade, you need to learn to read at a third-grade level.
A: I'm a strong believer in the Second Amendment, and the right to bear arms. It does concern me that someone that's not allowed to buy a gun at Wal-Mart because they didn't pass a background check is allowed to go and purchase one at a gun show. I would be open to looking at expanding background checks.
A: I have great concerns about the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Even Democratic senators have said it's going to be a train wreck. I am as frustrated with the Republican Party in that we have not come forward with a solution, an alternative solution to health care. It's not enough just to say no to ObamaCare. We need to provide an alternative. And we will, and we're working on that.
Q: The Senate has taken votes to just repeal it straight up without a replacement on the other end. How would you have voted on that?
A: I would have had to look at all the options on the table, but I would have been adamant that we need a solution. Repeal ObamaCare, but here's a solution. The fact that there's people with pre-existing conditions that can't get access to health care, that have participated in the system, that have been good citizens, that's wrong. We have to address more than just repeal.
A: First of all, the status quo is not acceptable, having 11 million illegal immigrants in this country is de facto amnesty, and that doesn't work, so we need to find a solution. I applaud members of the Senate for trying to find that solution. The solution needs to begin with securing the borders, it needs to stop further illegal immigration, so that's my first principle. My second principle is: We need something that addresses the 21st century and our economic needs in this country. The fact that we're educating PhDs in math and hard sciences and not allowing them to stay in this country when they're needed, does not make economic sense. We need to address that. I'm still reviewing the Senate bill. I look forward to seeing what comes out of the House.
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The above quotations are from 2014 Minnesota Senate debates.
Click here for other excerpts from 2014 Minnesota Senate debates. Click here for other excerpts by Mike McFadden. Click here for a profile of Mike McFadden.
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