Energy policy is the number one issue in elections nationwide and the Minnesota Senate race is no different. Yet the specifics of the issues have moved to more personal attacks rather than a debate on policies. Democratic challenger Al Franken has claimed that Republican incumbent Norm Coleman has taken $245,000 from the oil and natural gas industry. Coleman has also been linked to Ted Stevens' Northern Lights PAC, going on fully paid fishing trips with indicted VECO executives. Coleman donated $20,000 of money he claimed he received to children's cancer research. As Franken attacks Coleman, the voters of Minnesota are unsure of the truth regarding the incumbent's connections to Big Oil.

Funny man Al Franken’s bid for a U.S. Senate position is no joke. Not only is he taking it seriously, but so is former vice president Al Gore. Gore recently endorsed the candidate saying “he’ll make a fantastic Senator at a time when we could sure use a few more fantastic Senators.”

Franken’s website reveals that he plans to spend money on renewable energy to solve our energy problem, support the withdrawal of troops from Iraq, and fight for universal healthcare. He also has plans to help give relief to the middle class and aims to tackle consumer credit problems.

Franken’s candidacy is no laughing matter.

Minnesota's Senate race has moved to the Internet. Incumbent Norm Coleman(R) and challenger Al Franken(D) were the first in the country to take part in the YouChoose2008 forum from YouTube, the online video site. The debate, featuring questions from participants via webcam will impact Franken's campaign more positively than Coleman's. Franken enjoys a lead amongst younger more progressive voters more likely to participate and tune into an online forum and this offers the challenger an opportunity to shore up that support.

Norm Coleman is weak on foreign policy. He was wrong on Iraq--twice. He voted for the Iraq War, a conflicted generally agreed by Americans to have been a mistake, and then twice voted against the presumably successful troop surge.

Furthermore, given that Norm Coleman supported the Iraq War, his refusal to support the troop surge begs the question: Was Norm Coleman voting on principle or voting purely out of political expediency?

Note Norm Coleman's votes in the link below.

For years, the Minnesota State Fair has been grounds for a traditional Senatorial debate between the candidates. However, this year's great Minnesota get together will not feature a debate between incumbent Norm Coleman(R) and challenger Al Franken(D). According to Coleman's campaign manager, Cullen Sheehan, “we intend to hold off on committing to any specific debates until after the September Primary.”

One Minnesota State Fair attendee stated his disappointment, “I think that Coleman lost the last debate to Franken and wants to distance himself from the facts as much as possible.”

Coleman's decision to not take part in the debate has drawn much criticism from operatives on either campaign and may impact his reelection bid.

In a Rasmussen poll conducted on Aug. 13, 2008, Norm Coleman and Al Franken are running neck and neck at 45% each. However, of the 700 people polled 20% viewed Coleman somewhat unfavorably and another 24% viewed him very unfavorably. The numbers have remained steady in the past 7 months, giving light to Coleman's vulnerability in the November election. In a traditional Senate race, an incumbent without a lead over 50% has a very good chance of losing the race. Coleman was elected in 2002 by a non majority and will need to consolidate the electorate in order to hold his seat.

Democratic challenger for Minnesota's Senate seat, Al Franken, has enlisted the help of Texas businessman Bob Meaders, a well known Republican. Meaders' grandson was being deployed to Iraq for a tour of duty and he was unhappy with the quality of the helmets issued to the soldiers.

After contacting Franken via his radio show, Meaders joined with the nominee to raise money to purchase new helmets for the soldiers being deployed to the battlefront. As of last month almost 40,000 helmets have been purchased and put into the hands of the troops.

Al supports working middle class America. That means good jobs, affordable education, affordable housing, and accessible health care for all.

Al's not in the pockets of big oil and lobbyists and supports creating more jobs here in Minnesota.

The crap about taxes, his accountant does the paperwork, but gees, he overpaid Minnesota, so will Minnesota give his money back to him to redistribute?

The fact that Coleman advocates shale oil as an "alternative" fuel speaks volumes. Though he talks about cellulosic and sugar ethanol incentives (which he did support in the farm bill), he refers to alternative energy forms as merely compliments to drilling off the continental shelf, and has accepted more donations from oil companies than any Minnesota politician in history. Franken not only supports renewable fuels, he has incorporated them into the Minnesota economy via a plan to issue earned income tax credits to farmers for wind power. Franken also offers plans to enhance mass transit in Minnesota by way of light rail, and electric hybrid car investments for rural areas.

After the recent tomato and jalapeño scares, Democratic lawmakers are pushing for legislation of Country of Origin Labeling known as COOL. Citing added costs to producers, Republican Senator Norm Coleman supports a voluntary labeling procedure rather than, as he puts it, another unfunded mandate. “Implementing the system as it's proposed would have a significant cost on the producer, and that concerns me greatly.”

Consumer advocate groups believe its important to make the system mandatory in order to determine facts when a situation like the recent food scare happens.

The Campaign to Defend America has come out against Senator Norm Coleman in his support for the occupation of Iraq. Pointing out that Coleman voted against a timetable for withdrawel and supports the sustainment of business as usual in the War on Terror. He also voted for the initial invasion, but didn't support the Surge.

The cost to taxpayers has been $9 billion per month. Over 4000 service members have died according to the Department of Defense.

The latest ad shows children in uniforms, preparing for the military.

Okay, there are all the so-called serious reasons to vote for Franken- and those are valid. He's smarter, wiser, and better looking than his opponent. But on top of that- he's funny, he's been on SNL, and he was in Trading Places. The country is heading for some bad times, I think- economy failing, environment gone bananas, wars unending- there is going to be a desperate need for someone who will know how and when to break things up, to crack a joke or tell a story about what it was like to work with Eddie Murphy.

I'd vote for Al Franken just based on his comedy routines. He would bring a huge amount of common sense to the Senate, which is something that is greatly needed at this point.

Democratic challenger Al Franken has blasted Republican incumbent Norm Coleman for his support of the Central American Free Trade Act(CAFTA). CAFTA allows an additional 110,000 metric tons of sugar to be imported into the United States, offsetting the cost of sugar to consumers, but impacting farmers in the Midwest. Coming to office on a platform of rejecting CAFTA, Coleman ended up voting for the measure in 2005.

In a meeting with the Minn-Dak Farmers Cooperative board in 2006, Coleman addressed concerns to sugar beet farmers in Minnesota. He stated that there was more to CAFTA than sugar imports, however that did little to comfort struggling farmers.

"We're extremely disappointed he didn't stay with his commitment to us," said Mike Hasbargen, a sugar beet farmer in Breckenridge.

Senator Norm Coleman has come under scrutiny for his relationship with indicted Senator Ted Stevens. Coleman joined VECO executives for fishing trips to Alaska where he received money from Stevens' Northern Lights PAC. Coleman admitted receiving the funds and donated $20,000 of the money to children's cancer research.

The latest ad portrays Coleman as being in the pocket of Big Oil and features a fish telling the story of the Senator leaving the Land of 10,000 Lakes for Alaska. Coleman's challenger, Democratic candidate Al Franken questions whether he is working for Minnesotans in Washington or fellow Republicans in Alaska.

Senate candidate Al Franken has employed the help of his 4th grade teacher, Mrs. Molin. In a mostly biographical analysis of Franken, she tells of his story growing up in St. Louis Park and going to Harvard. She tells of his career with Saturday Night Live, the books he's written, and hosting an Air America talk show.

Franken has employed the talents of those around him on other advertisements, but the ability to incorporate an elementary school teacher and politics showcases his ability to mix business with humor.

Minnesota's Senatorial candidates, incumbent Norm Coleman and challenger Al Franken, have both run into a sticky problem in their respective bids for the seat. That problem is the fact of their residences and their origins.

Coleman was born in New York, where attended school, college, and for his 20th birthday, Woodstock. He didn't move to Minnesota until the 1980's where he made a bid for and won the mayoral election in St. Paul.

Franken was born in St. Louis Park, MN, where he attended school until he left for Harvard. He has residences in both Minnesota and New York, however, he did not return to make Minnesota his primary residence until his bid for the Senate seat.

An independent campaign committee has put out what may be one of the more interesting political ads in this cycles' Minnesota Senatorial campaign. The ad portrays Norm Coleman as a man running away from his past.

Pointing out his 87% support for the Bush Administration and his failure to vote for a timeline for exit from Iraq War, the 527 believes that by making a visually appealing, almost theatrical video may swing votes in November.

527's have become more prevalent as the months go on in this race, and what brand of advertisement is next is keeping Minnesota's voters intrigued.

Al Franken (D) hit the campaign trail this week launching an attack against what he argues to be Republican Senator Norm Coleman's failure to investigate profiteering in the Iraq War during the Senator's term as chairman over the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations.

Franken claims, ""Norm Coleman was the Senate's oversight czar, and he did nothing while at least $15 billion in taxpayer money went missing." According to Franken, Coleman has "let our country down. We paid a steep price. Now it falls to the people of Minnesota to hold him accountable."

The incumbent Senator and the Democratic hopeful will have plenty of time to hash this issue out as they have agreed to three more debates before the November 4th election.

The first debate will be held on October 5th in Rochester.

The second will occur on October 11th in the Twin Cities.

The third debate will take place on October 16th in Duluth.

Two of the debates will be televised and broadcast across the state and the other one will be aired on Minnesota Public Radio (MPR).

Nancy and Claremont Anderson of Hoffman, MN, parents of Major Stuart M. Anderson, have spoken out against Senator Norm Coleman in th latest television spot from the Democratic Senatorial Election Committee.

They point to what the Democrats Coleman's lack of judgment in supporting President Bush's actions to continue the occupation of Iraq. Calling him a “Yes Man” and stating that they don't blame the Army for their son's death, but Norm Coleman, the ad makes a chilling attack at the sitting Senator in his bid for reelection.

As a member of four unions himself, Franken is proud to endorse the Employee Free Choice Act which allows Union members to vote without authoritarian pressure from their employers. Coleman openly opposes the Act, saying that the bill is a misnomer and that union employees actually prefer the secret ballot. Franken states the opposite.

Franken: "The National Labor Relations Board is responsible for preventing intimidation of workers whether is be by unions or by employers."

After donating money to Democratic candidate Al Franken, Priscilla Lord Farris has launched a campaign against Franken and incumbent Norm Coleman. After Franken was named the presumptive candidate at Minnesota's DFL Convention, he has failed to overtake Coleman in the polls. Farris, daughter of retired attorney general and federal judge, Miles Lord, entered the Senate race to specifically attack Franken. Having only minimal city council experience, her attacks, although thus far ineffective, may prove to be detrimental to Franken's campaign in the long run.