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Rowley defends campaign
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Race
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| Contributor | Eric |
| Last Edited | Eric Dec 02, 2005 02:55pm |
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| Category | News |
| Media | Newspaper - St. Paul Pioneer Press |
| News Date | Friday, December 2, 2005 08:00:00 PM UTC0:0 |
| Description | Retired FBI agent Coleen Rowley's run for Congress — her first foray into politics — certainly made a splash when she jumped into the race.
A 2002 Time Magazine Person of the Year, Rowley gained fame as a whistleblower, pointing out flaws in her agency's pre-Sept. 11 operations. She netted live network television interviews the day she announced her candidacy and write-ups in national magazines. She remains a popular public speaker across the country on national security issues.
But her campaign's initial splash is now a political ripple, some analysts say. She has yet to translate her fame and smarts into a formidable campaign to take on sitting Rep. John Kline, a Republican from Lakeville.
Rowley strongly defends her performance as a candidate. But others point to alleged weaknesses. Her fundraising has been disappointing, some say. They say she has failed to listen to the political pros or expand her campaign message beyond national security. And at least two other politicians — a Burnsville City Council member and a state senator from Cottage Grove — are considering challenging her from within the Democratic-Farmer Labor Party.
"I don't really hear as much buzz about this race as I did initially… I guess she's not as far along as I thought she might be as a campaign, as a candidate," said Stu Rothenberg, publisher of a nonpartisan Washington, D.C., newsletter that analyzes politics.
Rowley, who lives in Apple Valley, counters that she is running a strong campaign for this stage in the race.
"Right now, if you compare me to the other challengers out there, I'm doing very well," she said.
With her husband piping in his wisdom in the background, she said during a phone interview that she "vociferously" objected to a political analyst who called her fundraising numbers "anemic" in another newspaper.
She said she will have enough money to be competitive and expects to have at least $160,000 raised by the end of the year. |
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