Talk:Norm Coleman

Congress 'made Wikipedia changes' -

"Online reference site Wikipedia blames US Congress staff for partisan changes to a number of political biographies." [1] — Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.108.253.186 (talk) 16:33, 9 February 2006 (UTC)

College activism

I noticed that some really interesting information has been removed from this article. The following quote is from a 2007 version of the article. I did not contribute it, but I thought it was a fascinating look at how Coleman changed from an anti-war activist to a high-profile conservative. The pictures, now gone from Wikipedia, can be found here and here.

I would propose adding some of this back to the article - to the extent that it can be sourced. Cheers, MakeBelieveMonster (talk) 01:05, 17 June 2009 (UTC)

Old text...

File:ColemanHangsFlag.jpg

Norm Coleman (on the left) hanging an anti-war flag at an anti-Vietnam War rally

File:ColemanBullhorn.jpg

Norm Coleman campaigning at Hofstra University for Student Senate President

Coleman's politics have changed dramatically throughout his political career. In college, Coleman was a liberal Democrat and was actively involved in the anti-war movement of the early 1970s. He ran for student senate and opined in the school newspaper that his fellow students should vote for him because he knew that "these conservative kids don't fuck or get high like we do (purity, you know)... Already the cries of motherhood, apple pie, and Jim Buckley reverberate thorough the halls of the Student Center. Everyone watch out, the 1950s bobby-sox generation is about to take over."

He was once suspended from Hofstra University on New York's Long Island for participating in a sit-in protest against student exclusion from the University faculty club.

When first elected mayor of the City of Saint Paul in 1993, Coleman was a member of the DFL and considered left-of-center politically, but gradually shifted to much more conservative positions on many issues during his tenure.

While running for Mayor of Saint Paul in 1993, Coleman wrote in a letter to the City Convention Delegates: "I have never sought any other political office. I have no other ambition other than to be mayor." He goes on in the same letter to say:

I am a lifelong Democrat. Some accuse me of being the fiscal conservative in this race — I plead guilty! I'm not afraid to be tight with your tax dollars.

Yet, my fiscal conservatism does not mean I am any less progressive in my Democratic ideals. From Bobby Kennedy to George McGovern to Warren Spannaus to Hubert Humphrey to Walter Mondale — my commitment to the great values of our party has remained solid.

In December 1996 Coleman announced he was leaving the DFL party to join the Republican Party. Coleman cited his views on abortion and homosexuality as factors in the switch. He also cited his frustrations with the Democratic Party and his belief that the Republican Party offered the best chance to continue his efforts to hold the line on taxes and grow jobs. [2]

Some of Coleman's critics in Minnesota speculated that his switch was motivated by his known aspirations for statewide office — something that would have been difficult considering distrust of him by DFL party leaders. As an abortion opponent, a frequent adversary of public employee unions and a close ally of entrepreneurs, Coleman’s positions put him at odds with the DFL Party in Minnesota and aligned him more closely with Republicans. In a letter to supporters announcing the switch, Coleman wrote that “while the political party to changes, nothing about how I govern or what I believe changes at all.”

References