Sunday, March 10, 2013
Fifth District Rep. Keith Ellison hasn’t received any contributions from the gun rights group, but others in Minnesota's congressional delegation have gotten thousands of dollars.
The Sandy Hook school shooting may have added new fuel to the gun control debate, but advocacy groups have given hundreds of thousands of dollars to federal legislators since 2009, according to a report released Friday. Nonpartisan research organization MapLight, in coordination with Tableau Software, compiled contribution totals for the leading advocacy groups in the gun control debate—the National Rifle Association and the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. The NRA’s Political Action Committee dwarfs the Brady Campaign’s in terms of contributions to legislators. It gave about $1.5 million to legislators compared to the Brady Campaign’s $5,900. In Minnesota, the NRA gave nearly $30,000 to legislators—ranking the state 20th in NRA …
Monday, January 14, 2013
The fifth district congressman tackled two complex issues over the last several days.
In the aftermath of news that 35 Pakistanis have been killed so far this year by unmanned U.S. aerial vehicles—drones—Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) is calling on Congress to play a role in reforming existing policy governing the machines. Ellison addressed the matter in an opinion piece published in The Washington Post, noting that drones have yielded positive results for the military. Still, he said it's time for Congress to "exercise oversight and craft policies that govern the use of lethal force." The heart of the problem is that our technological capability has far surpassed our policy. As things stand, the executive branch exercises unilateral authority over drone strikes against terrorists abroad. In some cases, President Obama approves…
Monday, October 29, 2012
The Twin Cities publication had kind words for both candidates, but ultimately said Ellison was a better fit for the job.
The Star Tribune believes Keith Ellison (DFL) would best serve Minnesota's 5th Congressional District, according to an editorial penned Sunday. While the publication ultimately endorsed Ellison over Chris Fields (R), the editorial does praise the Republican newcomer as "impressive." "[Fields] needs to invest more time in the community before he's ready for Congress," the editorial reads. The endorsement does mention the volatile KFAI debate between the two candidates, admitting Ellison "failed to meet his own standards of decorum" in calling Fields a "lowlife scumbag." That said, the Strib argues the meltdown was out of character for Ellison—who apologized for the outburst—and that voters should "give Ellison a pass this time and send him …
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Congressman later apologizes for incivility against Republican Chris Fields in a debate hosted by KFAI-FM and Patch.com.
MINNEAPOLIS -- Incumbent DFL Congressman U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison twice called his Republican opponent Chris Fields a "lowlife scumbag" in an extremely contentious, personal and at times uncivil debate Thursday morning that at one point led to a local radio station cutting away to dead air until tempers had cooled. LISTEN TO THE ARCHIVED AUDIO OF ELLISON-FIELDS DEBATE The debate, co-sponsored by KFAI (90.3 or 106.7), Patch.com and Mature Voices MN, was in the Minneapolis studios of KFAI and moderated by former KFAI news director Ahndi Fridell. Midway into the debate Fields alluded to recent DFL research into Fields' 2006 divorce, the heated words were exchanged, and KFAI News Director Dale Connelly cut the audio feed in the studio while he…
Thursday, August 16, 2012
The Democratic incumbent is running again this election season in Minnesota's Fifth Congressional District.
Editor's Note: 5th District Patches recently asked readers to pose questions to incumbent Rep. Keith Ellison and challenger Chris Fields. This week, we are running the candidates' answers to some of the best questions we received. Today, we're featuring Part Two of our interview with Ellison. You can read Part One here. Our interview with Fields ran on Monday and Tuesday. Here is Part One and Part Two of that conversation. *** Spirit Medicine asks: There are some who are concerned with the continual growth in the powers claimed by the executive branch of the United States—expansions of authority not isolated to the current administration. What, if anything, are some things that the executive branch under the U.S. Constitution should never …
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
The Democratic incumbent is running again this election season in Minnesota's Fifth Congressional District.
Editor's Note: 5th District Patches recently asked readers to pose questions to incumbent Rep. Keith Ellison and challenger Chris Fields. This week, we are running the candidates' answers to some of the best questions we received. Today, we're featuring Part One of our interview with Ellison. Part Two will run tomorrow. Our interview with Fields ran on Monday and Tuesday. Here is Part One and Part Two of that conversation. *** Lauren asks: Do you plan to vote yes or no on the voter ID amendment? Why or why not? Ellison: I’m going to vote “no.” And I’m going to vote no because there are a lot of Minnesotans who are fully eligible to vote yet who may not posses a driver’s license or a Minnesota state ID. Because of that, I think that …
Monday, August 13, 2012
The Republican is challenging incumbent Rep. Keith Ellison in Minnesota's 5th Congressional District.
Editor's Note: 5th District Patches recently asked readers to pose questions to incumbent Rep. Keith Ellison and challenger Chris Fields. This week, we are running the candidates' answers to some of the best questions we received. Today, we're featuring Part One of our interview with Fields. Part Two will run tomorrow. Our interview with Ellison will run on Wednesday and Thursday *** Lauren asks: Do you plan to vote yes or no on the voter ID amendment? Why or why not? Fields: I plan to vote yes. It’s just common sense. There’s nothing I’ve read that suggests that people can’t vote. If you don’t have the proper photo ID that day, it’s a provisional ballot. In some of these races that are lopsided, that provisional ballot will never come …
Monday, August 6, 2012
Humphrey-Mondale Dinner, Chick-Fil-A and other food for thought on the Fifth District campaign trail with Keith Ellison and Chris Fields.
If the embedded Storify post above about the Fifth District congressional race in Minnesota with DFL incumbent Keith Ellison and GOP challenger Chris Fields doesn't show up on your mobile device, please try viewing it at Storify.com.
Monday, July 9, 2012
The local congressman joined other Democrats in saying the U.S. Attorney General is being attacked for legal challenges to voter suppression laws.
Rep. Keith Ellison joined several other congressional Democrats last week in saying that U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder was held in contempt by the House for more than just “Fast and Furious.” The House voted June 28 to hold Holder in contempt for failing to disclose internal Justice Department documents tied to a House committee investigation into the sting operation on gun running from the United States into Mexico. But Ellison—who walked out during the contempt vote in protest—said the move was a politically motivated response to Holder’s office’s legal challenges to voter suppression laws. “We’re in a struggle over power,” Ellison is quoted as saying by Politic365, arguing that the efforts to impose restrictions on the vote are …
Monday, June 18, 2012
The Fifth District congressman also received criticism from Republican challenger Chris Fields over his fundraising.
Congressman Keith Ellison is calling for a list of members and donors behind the National Federation of Independent Business, an organization currently challenging the federal Affordable Care Act. According to a recent article in the Star Tribune, the paper reports Ellison's proposed disclosure is not likely to happen. The NFIB has not directly responded to Ellison's request for information. A spokeswoman for the NFIB said the organization has no plans to disclose its donor or member lists, adding that the allegations contained in Ellison's letter are without merit. Ellison and Congressional Progressive Caucus co-chair Raul Grijalva sent a letter to the National Federation of Independent Business' president, calling on the organization to …
mike savick
11:37 am on Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Actually many of us who are neither "pro-gun" or "anti-gun" but, want sensible background checks on everyone who purchases a weapon, belong to neither organizations. Children who are shooting victimes have no choice of organizations. Many of us repect the rights of hunters, recreational shooters, home defenders, but not unlimited access to military style lethal toys with large magazines and … more ›