The Political Realities of Early 2007

On occasion, I plan to offer my take on the political scene, both here in Minnesota and on the national level. In the interest of full disclosure, I am the co-chair of the Republican Party here in Steele County, so you can consider my comments in that light. By any measure, Republicans had a rough time in the 2006 elections. Gil Gutknecht, our Republican congressman for the last twelve years, was defeated for reelection. Several Republicans running for statewide office were also defeated. But our Republican governor, Tim Pawlenty, managed to win his race by 20,000 votes. We can be grateful that we have a Republican governor, considering the fact that both houses of the State Legislature are controlled by the Democrats.

Governor Pawlenty is a believer, and as part of his inaugural activities, he began the day by attending a worship service at the nondenominational evangelical Wooddale Church in Eden Prairie (see attached photo). Philosophically, Pawlenty is a moderate conservative, but more important than his political philosophy is that he is a man of his word. We need more political leaders like Governor Pawlenty; he is one class act. I am proud that he is my governor.

On the national level, President Bush's popularity has declined since his reelection in 2004. Republicans have lost their majorities in the US Senate and the US House. But now is not the time to despair. There will be another election in 2008. If Democrats in Congress overreach and engage in ultra-partisanship, then Republicans can make a comeback. I never like to see my candidates lose elections, but under our constitutional republic, the voters get to decide on who they want in office. Republicans need to do a better job of articulating what they stand for, and they need to give voters a reason to vote Republican in 2008. The Chinese proverb says, "May you live in interesting times." Stay tuned, because the next two years will be very interesting. There will be many twists and turns before we vote again in 2008.