Political Notebook

Elementary school teacher to run against Quam

Kasson-Mantorville Elementary School teacher John Vossen announced Friday he is running for the Minnesota House.

Vossen, 40, said he is becoming increasingly concerned about the inability of state lawmakers to work together.

"I've been working with colleagues, and we work together to come to solutions and this is what we expect of our kids is to work together," he said. "But it seems at the Capitol and in the news people can't work together for the common good. It is just for their own agenda."

The new legislative boundaries will not be known until the courts release the final redistricting maps on Feb. 21. But under the current boundaries, the DFL candidate would be taking on first-term Republican Rep. Duane Quam of Byron.

Vossen has spent 15 years teaching in the Kasson-Mantorville school district. He graduated from Hutchinson Senior High School and went on to earn a bachelor of sciene degree in eduation from Minnesota State University in Moorhead. He has a master's degree from Winona State University.

He said he is very concerned about rising tuition at colleges and universities and how that is putting pressure on middle class families. If elected, he would also focus on getting funding to finish upgrading U.S. 14 because it has become a major public safety threat.

Klobuchar to visit Rochester, Austin today

DFL Sen. Amy Klobuchar will be making several stops in southeast Minnesota today. Her day starts with a stop in Rochester to visit Lincoln K-8 Choice School. She plans to tour the school and discuss the important of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education. The school has teamed up with Mayo Clinic to launch a science curriculum called InSciEd Out.

Klobuchar will participate in Mayo Clinic's recognition of National Wear Red Day. This is a national event that encourages people to wear red to help raise awareness about the threat heart disease poses for women.

In the afternoon, Klobuchar will tour the Austin Packaging Company, which processes and packages food products. She will also tour Minnesota Corrugated Box Inc. in Albert Lea. These stops are part of the DFL senator's "Made in America" tour, which aims to highlight successful Minnesota businesses and job creation. Since late October, she has visited  more than 30 businesses across the state.

 

 

Liebling considering run for the Senate

DFL Rep. Tina Liebling said today she is seriously considering a run for the Minnesota Senate.

If redistricting results in a Senate district that is mostly contained within the city of Rochester and she lives within the district, Liebling said she plans to run for the seat.

"I feel that Rochester needs strong, effective representation in the Senate," she said. "The GOP has not been strong and out front working for Rochester, and we really need that."

This sets up the potential for a DFL endorsement battle. Rochester attorney Ken Moen announced last fall he was running for the Senate seat. Moen said he has no plans to drop out of the race if Liebling decides to run.

"It's not changing anything I do," he said. "My hope would have been that she would use her seniority and stay in the House. If she chooses not to that it is her choice and may be our loss as a party."

Depending on the new Senate district boundaries, the Democrats  would likely be taking on Republican Sen. Carla Nelson. If Liebling did win the party's endorsement, this would be the fourth-time the two had faced off. In 2002, Nelson defeated Liebling and Independence Party candidate Joe Duffy to win the House District 30A seat. Two years later, Liebling beat Nelson. The two faced off again in 2006 and Liebling beat Nelson again.

Nelson won election to the Senate in 2010 after deating DFL Sen. Ann Lynch. She said she would welcome another match up with Liebling.

"Voters will have a great choice before them. There's one person who has solved budget deficits without increasing taxes and another who I think has supported every tax increase that has come before her," Nelson said.

 

 

Walz tries to force vote on STOCK Act

1st District Rep. Tim Walz is trying force a vote on his bill to ban insider trading among members of Congress.

Walz and bill co-sponsor Louise Slaughter, D-N.Y., announced today they would file a discharge petition to bring the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act to the House floor.

"With 271 cosponsors, including 92 Republicans, it is past time to bring the STOCK Act to the House floor for a clean, up or down vote," Walz said in a statement. "No more delays. No more partisan games. No more brinkmanship. Let's pass the STOCK Act in the House to make it clear that Members of Congress must play by the same rules as everyone else."

This move comes as the bill has stalled in House committees. The House Financial Services Committee was scheduled to vote on the measure in December until House Majority Leader Eric Cantor reportedly ordered the committee chairman to delay the vote because he had not run it by GOP leadership first.

In order for the STOCK Act to be brought to the floor, the discharge petition needs 218 signatures. The big question is whether Republicans who are co-sponsoring the bill will be willing to sign the petition.