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Archive for August, 2009

Aug 22nd, 2009

Summary: Politico reports that Charlie Cook has sent out a special update to Cook Political Report in which he envisions a scenario in which Democratic House losses could exceed 20 seats in 2010. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on the 39th day of his campaign against U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination as House of Representatives candidate in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Aubrey Immelman started his second walking tour — a 50-mile campaign swing down Minnesota Highway 23 from Foley in the east through St. Cloud, Waite Park, Rockville, Cold Spring, and Richmond to Paynesville on the western boundary of the Sixth Congressional District.


Aug 21st, 2009

Summary: Former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge claims in a new book that he was pressured by other members of President George W. Bush’s Cabinet to raise the nation’s terror alert level just before the 2004 presidential election. … One-year retrospective: On the 38th day of his campaign against U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination as House of Representatives candidate in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Aubrey Immelman announced the August 22 kick-off of a second walking tour, this time a 50-mile campaign swing from Foley in the east to Paynesville on the western boundary of the Sixth Congressional District. … In line with his campaign focus on national security, he also featured a Newsweek interview with Gen. David Petraeus, in which the former U.S. commander in Iraq explained why vigilance was still needed in Iraq and why Afghanistan in some ways poses an even greater security dilemma for the United States.



Summary: A new Washington Post-ABC News poll shows a majority of Americans now see the war in Afghanistan as not worth fighting, and just a quarter say more U.S. troops should be sent to Afghanistan. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on the 37th day of his campaign against U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination as House of Representatives candidate in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Aubrey Immelman focused on national security issues, including the increasing sophistication of Taliban fighters in Afghanistan to mount complex, coordinated attacks; and the precarious security situation in northern Iraq.


Aug 19th, 2009

Summary: In the deadliest coordinated attack in Iraq since U.S. troops withdrew from urban centers at the end of June 2009 — and one of the deadliest of the war — a wave of bombings and mortar attacks in Baghdad have killed nearly 100 and wounded approximately 1,000. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on then the 36th day of his campaign against U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination as House of Representatives candidate in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Aubrey Immelman issued instructions regarding voter registration to citizens not already registered to vote in the Minnesota state primary election. He also issued an explanation to all prospective voters regarding Minnesota’s open primary system, which allows citizens to vote in the partisan primary of their choice — irrespective of whether they consider themselves Republican, Democrat, or independent.


Aug 18th, 2009

Summary: Weekly report of U.S. military deaths in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan), compiled from U.S. Department of Defense News Releases. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on the 35th day of his campaign against U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination as House of Representatives candidate in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Aubrey Immelman was working to catch up on campaign office business after completing his one-week, 100-mile walking tour the length of the Sixth District from Freeport in Central Minnesota to Stillwater on the Wisconsin border.


Aug 17th, 2009

Summary: U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) expressed criticism of those comparing Democratic leaders to Nazis in the healthcare debate. … U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Bill Cahir, 40, a journalist who enlisted at the age of 34 after 9/11, has been killed by enemy gunfire in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on the 34th day of his campaign against U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination as House of Representatives candidate in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Aubrey Immelman attended the annual St. Francis Xavier Parish Fall Festival in Sartell, Minn.


Aug 16th, 2009

Summary: Bombs hidden in plastic bags exploded at a market in a mainly Shiite area of Baghdad on Sunday, August 16, 2009, killing at least eight civilians and wounding 19. It was the latest in a series of bombings targeting Shiites and minorities in the capital and northern Iraq that have killed more than 160 people since August 7. Meanwhile, the first national census since 1987 has been postponed indefinitely amid fears it could stoke sectarian tensions. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on the 33rd day of his campaign against U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination as House of Representatives candidate in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Aubrey Immelman completed the final leg of his 100-mile Sixth District walking tour, setting out from Centerville and walking to Hugo and Stillwater. He concluded the day’s activities meeting with supporters and local residents at Little Rock Lake in Benton County to discuss constituent and campaign issues.


Aug 15th, 2009

Summary: Five days before Afghanistan’s presidential election, a suicide car bomb explodes outside the main gate of NATO’s headquarters in Kabul, killing 7 and wounding 91 in the biggest attack in the Afghan capital in six months. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on the 32nd day of his campaign against U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination as House of Representatives candidate in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Aubrey Immelman resumed his Sixth District walking tour, setting out on foot from Anoka and proceeding to Blaine, Lino Lakes, and Centerville.


Aug 14th, 2009

Summary: Bachmann is at it again, making false or outrageous claims in the national media and then playing the victim by leveraging her disingenuousness, incendiary rhetoric and political paranoia into campaign cash. … One year ago today, on the 31st day of his campaign against U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination as House of Representatives candidate in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Aubrey Immelman took a one-day break from his Sixth District walking tour to rest his feet and catch up on administrative matters and correspondence while tracking international developments relevant to his campaign focus on national security — specifically, the Russian invasion of Georgia and the emerging threat of female suicide bombers in Iraq.


Aug 13th, 2009

Summary: One week before the August 20, 2009 presidential and provincial elections in Afghanistan, U.S. Marines surging into southern Afghanistan to protect citizens are meeting with fierce resistance from the Taliban. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on the 30th day of his campaign against U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination as House of Representatives candidate in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Aubrey Immelman continued his 100-mile Sixth District Walking Tour, setting out on foot from Salida and proceeding south along Highway 10 to Big Lake, Elk River, Ramsey, and Anoka. ECM Capitol reporter Tim Budig chronicled the day’s events.