Paid Political Letter - Please vote DFL in November

To the editor:

On November 2, we have an opportunity to reverse a decade-long trend that has taken Minnesota from the “state that works” to the state of, well… mediocrity. And the reason for this has been an unwillingness to invest in our public infrastructure.

Minnesota 2020 reported we now rank: 33rd in total state and local government revenue, per $1,000 of personal income; 34th in total state and local government expenditures, per $1,000 of personal income; 39th in employment growth; 37th in pupil-teacher ratio in public schools; 27th in road miles in poor or mediocre condition per 1,000 miles of highway. The private sector cannot flourish in the absence of a strong and viable public sector.

“Conventional wisdom” is that our taxes are too high (the lowest in 70 years), and we can no longer afford to be what we once were. A polite response to that would be, “Baloney.” We don’t want to be told we can’t do it. We can’t afford not to invest for the future.

Accordingly, please vote DFL: Jim Thoreen for Senate District 11, Bennett Smith for House District 11A, and Amy Hunter for House District 11B. Your grandchildren will thank you for it.

Tom Obert

Alexandria, MN

(A paid political letter)

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