The jockeying and name dropping come as U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar vets candidates for the marshal's post, political opponents of Sheriff Bob Fletcher search for his challenger in 2010, and speculation surfaces about the future of St. Paul Police Chief John Harrington, whose term expires in 2010.
U.S. Marshal Mike McGinn is seeking to continue his tenure; Fletcher plans to run for a fifth term; and Harrington couldn't be reached for comment by deadline Tuesday.
Meanwhile, St. Paul Assistant Police Chief Matt Bostrom said he hasn't made up his mind about whether he'll seek the sheriff or police chief positions. He said he hasn't applied to be marshal.
Finney, who retired from the police department in 2004 and nearly eked out a win for sheriff in 2006, was approached to interview for the marshal position, said Sheldon Anderson, a friend and Finney's campaign manager in his bid to become sheriff.
Finney, 60, couldn't be reached for comment Tuesday.
McGinn said several people, including himself, have been invited to interview for marshal. He said he didn't know how many people were in the mix.
"It's very early in the process," McGinn said Tuesday. Klobuchar, D-Minn., has a screening committee, and "all the potential candidates will be invited to visit with them," he said.
Traditionally, the state's ranking U.S. senator of the president's party makes a recommendation for marshal, who is appointed by the president, said McGinn, 61.
Linden Zakula, Klobuchar spokesman, said "many qualified people have applied for the marshal position and the senator's office is reviewing them."
President George W. Bush appointed McGinn, a former Minnesota state senator and retired St. Paul police commander, on May 20, 2008, and the U.S. Senate confirmed him May 28, 2008. He replaced acting U.S. Marshal Ben Kates.
McGinn said the process before he became marshal took about a year, including a "very extensive background investigation."
Asked if his background as a Republican senator would deter a Democrat from nominating him, McGinn said he thought his work as a police commander would offset politics.
"I've worked with politicians from both parties, especially during my stint with the city police," he said. "I think I've done it well."
The U.S. Marshal's Service provides security to federal judges, attorneys and witnesses and at federal courthouses, McGinn said. The service hunts down fugitives and seizes property as ordered by the court.
In January 2001, Finney was a finalist for U.S. marshal and said at the time that he interviewed with then-U.S. Rep. Jim Ramstad, the ranking Republican congressman in Minnesota. Later in the year, Finney said he was no longer in the running.
Sheriff And Police Chief / Finney also hasn't ruled out running for sheriff again in 2010, Anderson said. Fletcher said Tuesday that he has "every intention" of seeking another term.
Fletcher, 54, beat Finney by 1,133 votes — less than 1 percent of votes cast — in a bitter faceoff in 2006.
Some Democratic-Farmer-Labor rivals of Fletcher's are pinning their hopes on Bostrom's rising star. Bostrom, 47, was St. Paul's lead official in charge of security for last year's Republican National Convention, a formidable task that brought criticism from the party's left but admiration from mainstream DFLers, including Mayor Chris Coleman.
Bostrom said Tuesday that he's not ready to decide whether he wants to battle for sheriff, although "there have been some people I respect who have encouraged me to run."
Bostrom, the son of veteran St. Paul City Council Member Dan Bostrom, has never run for elected office but was a candidate for police chief in 2004. He said he wouldn't rule out seeking that position but also said it's too early to speculate about what he described as "things that can become political."
Bostrom said speculation appears to be moving faster than his comfort level, personally and professionally.
"If I start thinking in those terms, this will hurt my ability to do my job that I love," he said. "Maybe that means I'm not a viable candidate — that I'm not talking about it full-force a year and a half out. Maybe if that's true, then so be it."
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