Minnesotans have distinguished themselves in military service since shortly after statehood, when the First Minnesota Volunteer Infantry mustered out of Fort Snelling and played the pivotal role, at enormous human cost, in the Union Army’s victory at Gettysburg.
The four major wars of the last century claimed just under 10,000 Minnesota lives. And something close to 250,000 Minnesotans served.
Monuments and memorials all around our state honor the courage and the sacrifice of the men and women who defended our freedoms and our way of life. And for most our lifetimes, we’ve set aside the 11th day of November for a recognition.
But our duty to Minnesota’s veterans is very much part of our present. Over 400,000 veterans and their families now live in Minnesota. and more than 15,000 Minnesotans currently serve in our military. Many will return home only after surviving brutal armed conflict 7000 miles away.
They will come back to Minnesota in need of basic health care and social services, community support, educational opportunities, and above all state and local leadership that values what they have done and what they can do now in their communities.
I’m proud to have played a part in honoring military service. Fighting in the legislature to make sure that homeless veterans get the help that they need. And advocating so that returning vets get rapid job training, building on skills they learned in the service to help serve our communities.
And if you look, there’s something else to see here. As I helped dedicate this site in Richfield on a windy afternoon this past Memorial Day, I was struck by how these enduring symbols of our civic sentiment are not just about the past, but also about our investment in future generations, in the future of our state, and in our country.
We belong to something larger than ourselves: to a family, to a community, and to a country. And that belonging is more than just about identity and privilege but also about responsibility and service.
We must always work to make our communities and our state something worth serving, and something that continues to be worth believing in.
Pressville, Carleton College
11/11/09
BY LEAF ELHAI
Two days after Minnesotans went to the polls on Nov. 3 to elect a new slate of local officials, one politician, DFL Rep. Paul Thissen, was still hard on the campaign trail.
Speaking to an intimate gathering of Carleton College students and faculty members last Thursday, Thissen (pronounced “T-sun”) discussed his candidacy for governor and fielded questions on policy issues.
Students stopped in on the meet-and-greet session on their way to afternoon classes, settling into armchairs arranged in a circle in Carleton’s Sayles-Hill Lounge as the legislator spoke frankly about the 2010 Minnesota governor’s race.
“Our strategy is very much about being a grassroots effort,” said Thissen.
Well, you know that your sense of distance has been skewed when the 80 mile trip to Rochester seems like a quick trip around the block! Our family made a Saturday evening trip to Rochester together, but Paul actually drove about 920 miles around Minnesota this weekend (including Rochester, Winona, Breckenridge, Moorhead and Rochester again).
The kids and I had fun accompanying Paul to the Senate District 29 and 30 Chili and Chocolate Cookoff. Paul sampled and judged all the chili, and I spent much of my time making sure the kids didn’t eat all the chocolate before it could be judged!
We talked with a lot of great southeastern Minnesota DFLers, and as always the kids made friends of their own. It was also great to be able to remind them as we passed the Mayo Clinic that they were looking at one of the very best hospitals in the whole world.
As always, we look forward to seeing you on the campaign trail soon!
The Federal Health Insurance bill passed by the US House of Representatives late last night is an important first step to reforming our health care system. As I’ve traveled around the state, the biggest concerns facing Minnesotans is the high and accelerating cost of health care and the denial of coverage for pre-existing conditions. I want to thank our federal partners for their leadership on those issues, including making sure a public option was included in the bills final passage.
Of course, this bill is not without its flaws and I’m hopeful that after conference committee, more aggressive payment reform measures are included. We need to reduce costs by paying for the right things and the federal government should look to Minnesota for successful ideas. The final bill also needs to make sure Medicare geographic payment inequity is addressed in a meaningful way.
Much will remain to be done in Minnesota, but this first step from the Federal Government is welcome help to the aggressive health care reform we already have underway here in Minnesota.
With Governor Pawlenty out of the running, there are plenty of DFL’ers looking to take over. Tonight in Le Sueur, a handful of the candidates were on display for the community. News 12′s Ryan Gustafson has the story.
The sparsely populated auditorium at Le Sueur-Henderson High School gave way to some big names tonight. The party’s faithful were able to meet the candidates beforehand, and see them in action on the big stage. Here’s a peek at the potential candidates:
Paul Thissen says, “We need to be talking about and thinking about 2015 and 2020 and 2025 and if we do that, that’s the way we’re going to deliver both for Minnesotans, and deliver the governorship for the Democrats, which I think is fundamentally important.”
Well, you know that your sense of distance has been skewed when the 80 mile trip to Rochester seems like a quick trip around the block! Our family made a Saturday evening trip to Rochester together, but Paul actually drove about 920 miles around Minnesota this weekend (including Rochester, Winona, Breckenridge, Moorhead and Rochester again).
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