Almanac: At the Capitol

It's just hours after Terri Bonoff officially announced her campaign for the 3rd Congressional District to replace Congressman Jim Ramstad and the war of words has begun. In this district where a Democrat hasn't won in decades, but now appears in play, Bonoff will try to cast herself as a moderate.

“This is a critical time for us as Minnesotans and Americans: an unending war, a healthcare crisis and a transportation system that has been starved of the necessary resources for even the most basic construction and repairs. We need strong voices in Washington. But we also need people who are willing to listen and bring people together to create a common vision,” said Bonoff.

But minutes after that statement arrived the Republican Party fired off this press release:

No matter how extreme the makeover she attempts during this campaign, Terri Bonoff won’t be able to convince voters that she is a bipartisan problem solver and moderate in the tradition of Jim Ramstad. All of the out of state big money in the world she is raising can’t obscure the fact that Bonoff is too partisan and too liberal for the Third.