A year ago our family went to see the holiday movie "Polar Express." When we were leaving the movie theater, my daughter, then 9, tugged at my husband's arm and said "you know dad, there was one thing in that movie that wasn't true."

And I thought to myself, what could be the "untrue" thing? Could it be the way the lakes froze to glaciers just as the train was approaching? Was it the convention of 1,000,000 elves at the North Pole? Just what "one thing" about the two-hour movie wasn't true?

"It was the part at the end," she said, "when the conductor (the Tom Hanks character) says to the kid, 'get on the train kid.' And the kid pauses. And then the conductors says, 'come on kid, get on the train, what's important is that you get on the train...it doesn't matter which way the train is going...what matters is that you get on the train.'"

Our daughter looked up at us thoughtfully and said, "you know, that's just not true. It DOES matter which direction the train is going."

I think that's something we know all too well. The direction that the train is going matters.

I'm running for the United States Senate because I believe the direction that the train is going matters. I believe the direction that the country is going matters. I believe Minnesotans deserve a Senator who is going to put the interests of the people of this state before the interests of the giant pharmaceutical companies and the big oil companies and all the thousands of expensive lobbyists that visit the halls of Congress every day.

The Direction: Solutions for People, For a Change

We must head in the direction of energy independence, health care reform, tax fairness, and international and economic security. We must fight for solutions for people, for a change.

Last month I had the amazing opportunity to visit the backyard wind turbine at the farm of former Minnesota Agriculture Commissioner Jim Nichols. If you haven't been inside a wind turbine, you need to do it. Jim's wind turbine alone provides enough electricity for 500 homes. Our "Energy Freedom and Opportunity" tour took us to Jim's farm, more wind energy development in Pipestone, and an ethanol plant in Luverne. Energy independence means investing in renewable energy and jobs in the Midwest, not oil cartels and royal families in the Mideast. Check out my proposals in the energy area by clicking here .

Whenever we prosecute someone who is wealthy and connected, the courtroom is packed with their friends, but when it is someone who's poor, he's lucky if his mom can take off work to stand behind him in the courtroom. I figure my job is to even the playing field, to treat people fairly no matter who they know and who they can call. That's not happening right now in Washington. If it were, we'd have real health care reform, with a cost crackdown on expenses and a focus on universal healthcare instead of insulating the giant prescription drug companies from competition. It's getting harder and harder for small businesses in Minnesota to afford health care and we all know something needs to change. But when the pharmaceutical lobbyists outnumber the members of Congress, nothing seems to get done. I will fight for real health care reform.

I recently read that for families making more than $1 million per year, taxes went down at a rate ten times more than the middle class. Tax fairness means not giving an outsized portion of the tax cuts to the wealthiest among us. It means being fiscally responsible. It means getting rid of loopholes. To get our country back on track and reduce the deficit, among other things, we need to (1) go back to the pay-as-you-go rules we had during the Clinton administration; (2) reduce discretionary spending on things like bridges to nowhere so we can focus on big ideas and big challenges; (3) negotiate with the prescription drug companies to reduce prices; and (4) roll back the oversized tax cuts for the wealthiest.

Finally, our reform agenda must include economic and international security. Economic security means making Social Security a guarantee and not a gamble, and fighting for quality, affordable education and good-paying jobs for the people of this state. International security means setting our priorities straight and using our unique power and influence to protect our national interests both at home and abroad, while also engaging in diplomacy and international alliances. We must protect our troops and herald them as heroes, not send them overseas without a plan to bring them home safely.

The Campaign: town by town, street by street, house by house

If we want solutions for people, for a change, we need to win this election. Our campaign has the momentum, the grass roots support, and the will to do it, no matter how many visits my Republican opponent receives from George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Dennis Hastert or Bill Frist. In the last few months, I have traveled this state, meeting with Democrats, Independents and Republicans. I have talked CAFTA with farmers in Clay County, health care with small business owners in Rochester, and education funding with college students at the University of Minnesota.

I am running this race as a grassroots general election campaign, and not waiting until after the party endorsing convention to reach out to the citizens of this state. The race against Mark Kennedy is not going to begin on June 11th (the day after the party endorsing convention), nor is it going to begin on September 13th (the day after the primary): the race against Mark Kennedy has already begun.

I am proud and honored to have the support of 65 state legislators, and the endorsements of such important groups as the Steelworkers, Hotel/ Restaurant workers, and the Minnesota Women's Campaign Fund. And with the help of people like you we have raised more than $2 million with house parties, grassroots internet fundraising, and just plain hard work.

A campaign like this can seem larger-than-life sometimes, and I am always thankful to my family for keeping my feet firmly on the ground. When a recent poll from St. Cloud State showed that I have a high approval rating in Minnesota, I went outside and showed the newspaper to my husband, John, who at the time was perched precariously on a ladder rearranging some Christmas lights which I had told him seemed a little "thin." When I told him about the poll, all he said from the top of the ladder was, "well that's nice, but did they survey the spouses?"

As we approach this holiday season, may we all keep our feet on the ground, our eye to a better future, and our arms around those whom we love very much.