Former U.S. Sen. Rod Grams stood in a reddening sunset recently on the family farm near Crown, talking of windstorms, pointing out an old foundation, expressing a desire to run again for public office but also a suspicion that times change.

"Maybe kids who are 20 to 35-years-old want national health care. And if they do, I'm on the dying end of this,” said the former congressman, TV anchorman and builder. "Maybe I'm out of step with the next generation. I don't know. We'll see,” said Grams.

Former U.S. Senator Rod Grams cautiously speaks of a possible run for governor in two years, but makes no effort to hide his disappointment over the perceived failings of the Republican Party. Indeed, Grams ponders whether he can call himself a Republican anymore. (Photo by T.W. Budig, ECM Capitol Reporter)

by T.W. Budig
ECM Capitol reporter

Former U.S. Sen. Rod Grams stood in a reddening sunset recently on the family farm near Crown, talking of windstorms, pointing out an old foundation, expressing a desire to run again for public office but also a suspicion that times change.

"Maybe kids who are 20 to 35-years-old want national health care. And if they do, I'm on the dying end of this,” said the former congressman, TV anchorman and builder.

Former U.S. Sen. Rod Grams makes a point as he walks about his family farm.

"Maybe I'm out of step with the next generation. I don't know. We'll see,” said Grams.

He may not be mad as hell with what he perceives as the failings of the Republican Party — ticked off, is more of an operative expression — but Grams speaks of frustration and disgust.

Not that Grams, 60, views Democrats as superior.

He styled the Democrat's idea of taxing perceived gluttonous oil company profits as reflecting "mob mentality” and argues that restricting oil price speculation is illogical and an assault on the marketplace.

Critical of Republicans

Yet some of Grams' sharpest criticisms are directed toward Republicans in Washington who he views as having flung to the ground and danced on cherished core conservative values such as smaller government, lower taxes., less government red tape.

"If I did run I don't know if I'd run as a Republican,” mused Grams during a recent interview.

"If this new phase is the Republican Party, I don't know if I'm a Republican,” he said.

Grams views U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman, R-St. Paul, as a laggard on energy and tells of how he personally once on the Senate floor warned of a narrowing energy gate and of the spectral of $4 a gallon gas.

"Norm Coleman comes out now and says, ‘We have to drill on the Outer Shelf' — where the hell has he been for six years,” said Grams.

"Where the hell was he just six months ago,” he said of recent energy legislation.

Grams indicated that his support for some Republican candidates is fluid.

May not vote at all

"It could be that I don't vote at all,” said Grams. "I'll go vote, but there may be candidates that I just don't check off,” he said.

"I won't say I won't vote for Norm. I won't say I won't vote for (presumptive Republican presidential candidate) John McCain,” said Grams. "But I've got to see what's going on over the next three months of this campaign,” he said.

Some friends urged him, said Grams, to run for the U.S. Senate this election and he "thought hard and strong about it,” he explained.

But Grams ruled out a run because he had too many irons in the fire, he said.

"And my wife (Chris) would have killed me if I would of, because of some things that we're doing,” said Grams with a smile.

Grams own three radio stations in Little Falls.

"It was just too hard to do it,” Grams concluded.

Could run for governor in 2 years

He could make a run for governor in two years under the right circumstances, Grams indicated.

But Grams quickly added that the personal commitments that keep him out of the U.S. Senate race had to be weighed. "It's awfully hard to try to jump in and out of this,” he said. "So a run two years from now might be impractical — but never say never,” said Grams.

Although Grams assumes that Gov. Tim Pawlenty would be absorbed into a McCain Administration — he deems the governor a good pick as running mate for McCain — Grams talks of a hypothetical gubernatorial race regardless whether Pawlenty seeks a third term or not.

"I don't say that I will. But I would watch and see what he does in the next couple of years,” said Grams.

"I'm not going to stand in front of somebody who'd be doing something I agree with,” he said.

"In fact, I'd get out and wholeheartedly support him,” he said.

But Grams verbally shrugged his shoulders over comments Pawlenty recently made in Washington, suggesting the need for a Big Tent Republican Party.

"So he wants to be like a Democrat,” Grams quipped.

Adhering to basic conservative core beliefs to will help women and minority groups, he argued.

"You want to balance the budget, you want strong borders, you want to lower taxes, smaller, efficient government,” he said.

How do you exclude women

"If you take that as your position, how do you exclude women? How do you exclude blacks? How do you exclude Hispanics,” he asked.

"How do you exclude young people — you don't,” he said.

Grams' angst over Republican politics dates back to his leaving the U.S. Senate — former U.S. Senator Mark Dayton defeated Grams in 2000 by winning about 49 percent of the vote.

But Grams thought that Texas Gov. George Bush winning the White House would keep the conservative flame flickering — he recalled meeting the presidential hopeful with a handful of other senators and being impressed by Bush knowing everyone's first name.

But the passage of No Child Left Behind, the federal testing program Grams had fought during the Clinton years, disillusioned Grams among other things.

Grams tagged the Republicans who voted for No Child as "spineless.”

"Where was their rudder — there wasn't any. They were doing it all for politics,” he said.

Watching Washington politics

Watching Washington politics is especially vexing to Grams because he's been there, he said, and knows how things work.

"To me it's like watching a play I've seen before and I know the ending,” said Grams.

But if the former senator questions the timing of a possible re-entry into politics, so do others.

Many new people have come into the Minnesota Republican Party since Grams was in office, said State Republican Chairman Ron Carey.

Grams would have to introduce himself to them, Carey opined.

Grams has a large collection of tractors in a pole shed on his farm located at Crown, just northwest of St. Francis.

University of Minnesota Humphrey Institute Political Science Professor Larry Jacobs views the political ground as shifting under Grams.

"Tim Pawlenty's NPC (National Press Club) speech last week and McCain's campaign are clear evidence that conviction conservatism is being tamed down,” said Jacobs in an email.

"All are playing up pragmatism and downplaying conservative policy agenda. The Governor (Pawlenty) actually said that he loved Reagan but want to modernize the party,” said Jacobs.

Party makeup has changed

Grams concedes the makeup of Minnesota Republican Party has changed over time and that he'd have an awful lot of work to do introducing himself to newcomers.

"I wouldn't see myself waltzing in and being looked at as the Messiah — like (Sen. Barack) Obama thinks he is,” said Grams.

But Grams asks why should young people — his children, grandchildren, others — be saddled with the financial burdens of uncontrolled Washington spending.

It's the younger generation that he's thinking about, said Grams.

Meanwhile Grams and his wife will continue to made the long drives to Little Falls to the radio station from their Crown home northwest of St. Francis.

Grams has worked as a lobbyist but grew weary of flying back and forth from Washington, he explained.

In 2006 Grams ran against Congressman Jim Oberstar, DFL-Chisholm, in the 8th Congressional District and was soundly defeated.

In part he blames the loss on conservatives, disgusted by Washington, staying home and not voting.

It's a hard fall

"When you leave the Senate, especially when you lose — you're not planning to leave — to come back into the private sector, it's a hard fall,” said Grams.

"There's not too many who want to hire an ex-senator,” he said.

"I'm not a lawyer or a doctor — when you're a pretty-faced camera guy who's getting older,” said Grams self-depreciatingly, leaving the sentence unfinished.

One early evening had Grams watering the flowers on the farm and filling a livestock tank.

Both the new farm house and barn on the farm match original structures — the house is almost a replica of the original 1902 house whose stone foundation still defines the front lawn.

Grams' collection of tractors is neatly parked in the barn.

There was a dog and a cat in the yard and both followed the senator with a wave of his arm.

Sipping a beer on the patio, Grams answered an obvious question.

"I love politics,” he said.

"Oh yeah, I miss it,” said Grams.

(Photos by T.W. Budig, ECM Capitol Reporter)