This documentary covers the last three weeks of the U.S. Senate race in Minnesota, 2002. Incumbent Paul Wellstone, traveling the state in his signature green bus, was challenged by St. Paul mayor Norm Coleman, hand-picked by the White House to unseat Wellstone. Of the six national races that would decide the balance of the senate, this one provided the widest conversation about the significant issues. Wellstone, on the left end of the Democratic Party, debates vehemently with Coleman, representing a White House being pulled ever further to the right of the Republican Party. The real issues are the Iraq war and the economy. The wedge issues are guns and reproductive rights. Minnesota itself is one of the main protagonists because of its extraordinary political culture; same day registration, four viable political parties, state funding for state races, and the highest voter turnout in the country, 70-75%. The film focuses on voters and media while it moves through early debates, the efforts of the famous and not so famous to elect their man, the airplane crash which killed Paul Wellstone, the profoundly sad scramble to replace him on the ticket, the week-long campaign of Walter Mondale, and, finally, the strain of an endless election night. Run Time: 90 to 110 minutes |
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