Politics

(WCCO) Former Sen. Dean Barkley doesn't have millions of dollars for advertising, and he's the first to admit he's a long shot to win Minnesota's U.S. Senate. He's run before, and lost. But Independence Party candidate Barkley is suddenly a factor in the race this year because he's NOT the other guys.

His 16-year political voyage has taken him to places he never thought he'd experience. And from the vantage point of his modest Minnesota pontoon boat, Barkley sees a political system sinking from corruption and neglect.

"They're both at fault," Barkley said. "This meltdown, they both did it. They're both asleep. Democrats wanted everyone to have a house whether they could afford it or not so they looked the other way. And Republicans, their Wall Street buddies were getting rich so they looked the other way. And look what we got. We got a mess."

Barkley's hoping to replicate the success of former wrestler Jesse Ventura, who won an improbable Independent victory for governor of Minnesota in 1998.

Ventura said many of the circumstances this year are similar.

"Well, I think the anger's there," said Ventura. "I think the anger's even worse today than it was in '98. And my campaign slogan in '98 was Retaliate in '98."

"Would it be the same today?" asked a reporter.

"Yeah," said Ventura. "I would say it is Retaliate in '08."

Ventura appointed Barkley to the U.S. Senate to serve out the last sad days of the late Paul Wellstone's term. And Barkley made the most of it.

During 62 days in Washington, D.C., Sen. Barkley was the deciding vote to create the Department of Homeland Security. He also secured funding for the Paul and Sheila Wellstone Community Center and negotiated a deal to send extra money to Minnesota for poor families.

But Barkley's life after the Senate hit rough waters.

With his Independent credentials in hand, Barkley briefly served as campaign manager for Arianna Huffington's California U.S. Senate race. He also ran Kinky Friedman's unsuccessful race for Texas governor.

But this year, low on money and no health insurance, Barkley took a job as a Metro Mobility bus driver.

"I went through some rotten times a few years back," said Barkley.

Barkley talks more easily now about what he calls his "demons." A recent divorce, his mother's death from Lou Gehrig's disease and depression.

"I was dealing with depression, that it was an issue, that I had to deal with. I'm not perfect, I've got faults like everybody else," said Barkley. "But I think the good story is that I dealt with it and I'm fine now. And I don't think I'll ever go back now that I've uncovered the demons and faced them. And got over it. And now I can just live my life and get on with it."

"Do you feel like you're a real person, a real, regular guy?" asked WCCO-TV reporter Pat Kessler.

"Well I always have," said Barkley. "People go, how could you drive a Metro Mobility bus. Well, what's wrong with that? I felt good. That was a fun job."

In this year's Senate race, Barkley's making every moment count. He's gone as high as 19 percent in public opinion polling -- ahead of where Jesse Ventura was at this time in the campaign.

At a recent debate, he hit Republican candidate Norm Coleman for many issues including the war in Iraq.

"I think that was his first trillion dollar mistake," said Barkley during the debate. "And the second was his failure to watch over the financial industry, so that was your second trillion dollar mistake. My question is how many more trillion dollar mistakes do we have to put up with?"

But it's not easy running a third-party Senate race. And Barkley's navigating in unchartered waters -- a campaign of unexpected fits and starts. That was literally brought home during Kessler's visit when his pontoon ran out of gas in the middle of the lake.

"Uh oh," said Barkley. "You drive and I'll pump. Keep close to shore so if we have to have someone bring us gas we can do it. This is funny, running out of gas."

However, like Barkley's other campaigns, what could have been a problem became a problem solved.

"I just completely ran out of gas," Barkley shouted to a man on shore. "Is there any chance you got just a little gas?"

Without hesitation, Barkley jumps in the water up the hill to a stranger.

"You're a problem solver Senator," said Kessler.

Within minutes, smooth sailing again. A symbol, Barkley hopes, for his Independent voyage to win the U.S. Senate.

 

(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

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