By Brian Melendez, Guest Column

In a recent op-ed piece about the U.S. Senate race (Albert Lea Tribune, Nov. 16), Minnesota Republican Party Chairman Ron Carey devotes just a couple paragraphs to defending Republican Sen. Norm Coleman.

But that&8217;s understandable. Sen. Coleman&8217;s record &8212; for starters, on veterans&8217; issues &8212; is not pretty. Coleman consistently says one thing and does another. He remains President Bush&8217;s faithful servant, and he puts corporate and moneyed interests ahead of working Minnesotans.

Sen. Coleman has had the opportunity, 10 times, to improve healthcare for veterans by closing corporate tax loopholes and cutting, limiting or deferring various tax breaks for the rich. But Coleman voted against every one of those measures to improve veterans&8217; healthcare. Ten times, Coleman put tax breaks for corporate interests and the wealthy ahead of funding veterans&8217; hospitals, military retirees&8217; healthcare and veterans&8217; mental-healthcare, among other common-sense solutions for honoring the men and women who have served our country.

In 2005, the Bush Administration admitted that it was underfunding veterans&8217; health care by $1 billion. Even after that startling admission, Sen. Coleman voted seven more times against granting the Department of Veterans Affairs the resources that it needs to help our returning soldiers and sailors.

And when faced with a proposal that would ensure access to health care and prescription drugs for all veterans, Coleman actually voted to keep it from coming to a vote. Even though the American Legion, the Disabled American Veterans and the Veterans of Foreign Wars all supported the bill, which would let another 3 million veterans get health care from the VA.

Minnesotans deserve the truth about Sen. Coleman&8217;s record on veterans&8217; issues, especially that his votes were party-line votes. Every single time Coleman voted for corporate interests instead of our veterans&8217; health and well being, he voted with nearly every other Republican, and against nearly every other Democrat. How&8217;s that for bipartisanship?

Sen. Coleman&8217;s record of misdirection and of blind followership behind President Bush and corporate interests doesn&8217;t end there. He voted for the Central American Free Trade Agreement, which hurts Minnesota farmers. He voted with the pharmaceutical industry to keep Medicare from negotiating lower prescription-drug prices.

And he has voted over and over again to support President Bush&8217;s failed strategy in the Iraq war. Ten times this year alone, Coleman could have voted to change course in this war &8212; but, marching in lockstep with Bush, 10 times he opposed it.

No amount of spin or distraction can change the fact that Coleman consistently says one thing and does another, remains a loyal servant to President Bush, and puts the interests of the wealthy and corporations ahead of Minnesota.

No wonder Ron Carey spends so little time defending Coleman&8217;s record. I&8217;d want to change the subject, too.

Brian Melendez is chairman of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party.