Trial lawyer Ciresi, exploring U.S. Senate run

02/12/2007

BY RACHEL E. STASSEN-BERGER
Pioneer Press


Democratic trial lawyer Mike Ciresi is readying himself for a 2008 bid against Republican U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman.

Ciresi ran for Senate in 2000 but lost the primary to former U.S. Sen. Mark Dayton.

This time around, unlike 2000, Ciresi said he would honor the Democratic-Farmer-Labor endorsement, meaning he would drop out of the race unless DFL delegates pick him.

He'll likely have a challenge for the endorsement from radio host and comedian Al Franken, who is expected to announce his Senate bid Wednesday, and potentially from state Rep. Joe Atkins, DFL-Inver Grove Heights.

Ciresi said he doesn't plan to self-finance his 2008 race. In 2000, Ciresi, a multimillionaire who lives in Mendota Heights, spent $5.5 million on his race. More than $4.7 million of that came from his own pocket.

"In the next couple of months, there are a lot of things to accomplish," Ciresi said today. He said he was exploring a run but would decide whether to formally enter the race in a few months.

Ciresi plans to pitch himself to voters as a proven leader and advocate for the middle class.

"We've got to create a vibrant flourishing middle class again," he said. That means improving educational opportunities and access to health care.

He also believes there should be an "orderly drawdown of our troops" from Iraq. That would require more emphasis on politics and diplomacy in that war-torn country. It would also require Iraqis to take on more of the burden for their country's security.

"In many ways nations are like people. They don't do things until they have to," he said.

Ciresi represented Minnesota against tobacco companies in a 1998 suit and won the state a $6.1 billion settlement. He also represented the government of India against Union Carbide over the 1984 Bhopal gas leak, which killed thousands. That case closed in 1989 with a $470 million settlement.