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What was Tom Emmer thinking when he applied for a faculty position at Hamline University? Surely he knows that our campus intelligentsia generally view conservatives like him as knuckle-dragging Neanderthals. At many campuses, Emmer might have made it to the second round of interviews if he had been a disabled "person of color" or confused about his sexuality. But even then he probably couldn't have overcome the cardinal rule of campus "diversity" -- diversity of political views will not be tolerated. Given his rejection by Hamline (after he thought he had a job), Emmer might be pleased to know that...

“At Hamline, students collaborate with professors invested in their success. They are challenged in and out of the classroom to create and apply knowledge in local and global contexts, while cultivating an ethic of civic responsibility, social justice, and inclusive leadership and service.” – From the Hamline University website Hamline University is not a liberal arts college as it claims to be. It is an illiberal arts college that has just disgraced itself in the national court of public opinion. Former Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer was hired to teach at the school but then abruptly canned by those who...

[ . . . ] In last year's campaign, Republican candidates across Minnesota ran on a very clear message: We have too much government; it is time to reduce its size and impact on our daily lives, liberties and economic freedom. We need to shrink the size of the bureaucracies, streamline government regulation and reduce taxes to jump-start our private economy. Mark Dayton campaigned on a different message: We must raise taxes to continue to grow government, and I will tax only the richest Minnesotans. DFL candidates across Minnesota campaigned on the same message: We must raise taxes, but don't...

It's over. Republican Tom Emmer will concede the 2010 Minnesota governor's race this morning to Democrat Mark Dayton, a Republican source with direct knowledge confirmed to the Pioneer Press. Emmer's 10:30 a.m. concession means he will not contest the election in court — thus averting a scenario that could have kept Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty in office past the scheduled Jan. 3 swearing-in of the next governor, the source said. Emmer's announcement will take place at his Delano home, multiple sources said. Emmer couldn't be immediately reached for comment.

ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Republican Party of Minnesota took the governor's race to the state Supreme Court on Wednesday, seeking to shrink the ballot pool in the undecided contest between Democrat Mark Dayton and RepublicanTom Emmer before a recount begins after Thanksgiving. A person with direct knowledge of the filing told The Associated Press that the GOP was asking the high court to force election officials to remove ballots in all precincts statewide where more votes were cast than the number of voters recorded.

With only a half of a percentage point separating DFL candidate Mark Dayton and Republican candidate Tom Emmer, Minnesota Republican leaders say they will pursue the recount until every single vote is counted. "We believe that we owe it not just to the Republican party and Tom Emmer, we owe it to the state to make sure this is done correctly," State Chair Tony Sutton told reporters Wednesday. "What I'd like to make sure is that the votes are counted and that everything is done correctly to make sure people aren't being disenfranchised." Sutton says the party wants assurances that...

The Minnesota governor's race is so close it has come to this: another recount appears almost certain. With 99 percent of precincts reporting, DFLer Mark Dayton leads Republican Tom Emmer by less than one half of 1 percent -- 43.67% to 43.24%. For any race where the margin is less than one half of 1 percent, there is an automatic recount, as happened two years ago in Minnesota's U.S. Senate race. "It looks like it's recount part II: And this time it's personal," said state Republican Party Chair Tony Sutton.

Mark Dayton is the slight favorite heading into the final three days of the Minnesota Governor's race but Tom Emmer's close enough that he could still come from behind to win...

A new KSTP/SurveyUSA poll shows Republican Tom Emmer and DFLer Mark Dayton in a dead heat in the race for governor. Released Thursday, the poll results show Dayton with a razor-thin, one-point lead of 39 to 38 percent. Independence Party candidate Tom Horner sits at 13 percent. The poll's margin of error is plus or minus four percent. It includes two percent more Republicans than Democrats, which is consistent with national polling. The poll shows Emmer has expanded his lead among men by two points, while Dayton's lead among women has fallen 14 points since earlier this month. Emmer leads...

In the closing days of his campaign to become Minnesota's next governor, Republican nominee Tom Emmer has been working on turning out his party's core voters, speaking at Republican-sponsored rallies throughout the Twin Cities suburbs. Over the past two months, Emmer has been steady in both his campaign attire and his talking points. Clad in khaki pants, a button down shirt and a rugged barn coat, the state representative from Delano insists that he's the only candidate who would cut taxes and reduce government regulations. Emmer has been encouraging Republicans to make phone calls and remind their friends to vote....

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie endorses Tom Emmer for governor of Minnesota.

More and more life long DFLers are backing liberal Tom Horner over Mark Dayton.  This time, Mark Dayton’s cousin Toby has earned Horner’s support. From Doug Grow at MinnPost.com And then, the Independence Party Daytons, which at the moment include one publicly announced member — Toby, a cousin, who on Tuesday sent out an e-mail to associates expressing his support for the IP’s Tom Horner and asking them to spread the word. Wrote Toby, who describes himself as a strong DFLer: “Unless asked (or provoked), I’m not typically one that aggressively pushes my political views on others … but this...

When he was elected in 2000, Minnesota Democrat Mark Dayton seemed well prepared, having worked as an aide to Walter Mondale in the 1970s. But he has exhibited erratic behavior since then: ...In February Dayton, 59, made another notable blunder. The Mayo Clinic, which is in Rochester, Minn., was opposed to a South Dakota — based company's plan to expand its railroads into Rochester because it would mean dozens of trains passing by the clinic each day. Dayton told FORTUNE magazine the Mayo Clinic is "worth a hell of a lot more than the whole state of South Dakota." He...

St. Paul, Minn. - FOX 9 hosts "Minnesota's Next Leader: The Debate," a 60-minute commercial-free debate with the three major candidates in Minnesota's Gubernatorial race. Broadcast live from Hamline University, the debate will explore the latest issues in the race for governor. The debate begins immediately after FOX 9 News at 5:00, or 5:58 p.m., and will run until 7:00 p.m. Jeff Passolt and Marni Hughes will host the debate, and FOX 9's political reporter Jeff Goldberg is one of three journalists asking the three gubernatorial candidates questions. Rachel E. Stassen-Berger, from the Star-Tribune, and Bill Salisbury, from the Pioneer...

Democrat Mark Dayton and Republican Tom Emmer are still in a virtual tie in Minnesota’s gubernatorial contest. The latest Rasmussen Reports statewide telephone survey of Likely Voters shows Dayton picking up 40% of the vote, while Emmer draws support from 38%. Independence Party candidate Tom Horner remains a distant third with 15%. One percent (1%) prefer a different candidate, and five percent (5%) are still undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.) This race remains a Toss-Up in the Rasmussen Reports Election 2010 Gubernatorial Scorecard.

Friday October 8, 2010 Pro-Life, Pro-Family Challenger in Dead Heat for Minnesota Governor Race By Peter J. SmithST. PAUL, Minnesota, October 8, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) – A Republican pro-life, pro-family candidate for governor has now pulled into a statistical dead heat with his two pro-abortion, pro-homosexual challengers, with less than a month left before the November general election.GOP’s Tom Emmer has pulled within two percentage points of pro-abortion Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party candidate Mark Dayton, according to Rasmussen Reports. In a survey of 750 likely voters, the polling firm places Emmer at 38 percent, while Dayton leads with 40 percent of the...

As a self-appointed Minnesota "journalist" for this 2010 campaign season, I've been doing some research on DFL candidate for Governor, Mark Dayton. As I've said many times, I find it amazing that we know so little about this 63-year-old man who has been running for statewide office on-and-off for nearly thirty years. Two of the campaign anecdotes that Mr. Dayton shares over-and-over again are: 1. That he worked in the New York Public School system post-college and 2. That he lived with a family on welfare while in New York I'm particularily interested in the welfare story and thought I'd...

ST. PAUL, Minn. — A new TV ad from the liberal advocacy group MoveOn.org goes after Target Corp. for making a political campaign donation in Minnesota. MoveOn.org spokeswoman Ilyse Hogue said Tuesday that the group will spend $35,000 to air the ad for a week on three networks in Minnesota and on the MSNBC cable channel nationally.

ST. PAUL — With bruising campaign ads already looping on Minnesota TV, Democratic nominee Mark Dayton urged a "cease-fire" Thursday on independently run attack ads in the Minnesota governor's race. Two days after winning his party's nod, Dayton said he wants to keep the race with Republican Tom Emmer and the Independence Party's Tom Horner from falling into the "political sewer."

MINNEAPOLIS -- State Rep. Tom Emmer has coasted to victory in Minnesota's Republican primary for governor. --snip-- Emmer faced his stiffest GOP opposition in April, winning his party's endorsement over a fellow House member a day after receiving Sarah Palin's endorsement.

Target has now apologized for contributing to a pro-business, pro-Tom Emmer for Governor in Minnesota group, which gives me a second reason not to shop in the store that banned the Salvation Army at Christmas a few years back. Would it have been that hard for the CEO to say that the company believes in free enterprise and especially in these times the home to its headquarters needs a competent governor committed to economic growth? Emmer deserves all the support that timid business execs won't give him, so please stop by his website and contribute. I will try and get...

In a significant reversal, Target Corp. is apologizing for a political donation to a conservative group that angered some employees and sparked talk of a customer boycott.

"Last week Target Corporation gave $150,000 to Minnesota Forward, which i using the money to run TV ads for Republican Tom Emmer's campaign for Minnesota governor. Emmer has connections to anti-gay groups. This donation, clearly acceptable under the new Citizens United Supreme Court ruling angered many in the state, seeing this as a $150,000 contribution to fund ant-gay politics. One Eden Prairie mom and grandmother took her anger directly to a Target. Her repeated attempts to get to Target executives failed so she took her Target Charge Card. A $226 purchase on that card was immediately returned for credit and...

ST. PAUL, Minn.—Target Corp. on Tuesday defended the use of its new freedom to spend money on political campaigns as employees and gay organizations criticized a $150,000 donation that will help a Minnesota GOP gubernatorial candidate who opposes gay marriage. Chief Executive Officer Gregg Steinhafel assured employees at the company's Minneapolis headquarters in an e-mail that the discount retailer's support of the gay community is "unwavering." He said employees, some gay, raised concerns that the money is helping state Rep. Tom Emmer, a fiery conservative who is his party's likely nominee for governor. Target's headache illustrates the potential risks for...

State Rep. Tom Emmer captured the GOP endorsement for Minnesota governor on Friday, blitzing establishment candidate Marty Seifert in a mere two ballots at the party's state convention. Neither held a clear lead going into the convention, raising the prospect of an extended floor battle. But Emmer, who steadily gained ground on Seifert in recent months and was endorsed a day before the convention by Sarah Palin, jumped out to lead Seifert 53 percent to 43 percent on the first ballot. When Emmer stretched his lead on the second ballot, it was over for Seifert. He took the podium to...