The senate candidates in Minnesota --GOP incumbent Norm Coleman, Democrat Al Franken, and Independent Party candidate Dean Barkley -- debated last night. Here's the Strib's (that's Minneapolis Star-Tribune in long-hand) write-up.
Franken has a margin-of-error lead over Coleman, as you can see from this clickable map. One big question in the race has been which major-party candidate Barkley would steal more votes from. The conventional wisdom has said Franken. Last night, it seems clear that Barkley attacked Coleman pretty heavily. That a) could benefit him at Franken's expense, or b) could benefit Franken on the old theory that when candidate C attacks candidate A, candidate B benefits.
Minnesota, by the way, is also being inundated with anti-Obama robo-calls on the usual subjects of his alleged terrorism and so forth. I've always found it hard to imagine that anyone with an IQ above about 85 takes seriously what a recorded voice says in a voice-mail message, but we are constantly reminded of course not to underestimate these things.
