A letter praising Congressman Walz (and a note about Bluestem)

In its earlier iteration, Bluestem Prairie focused exclusively on Minnesota's First Congressional District and Representative Tim Walz. The site has since expanded coverage to Greater Minnesota and added additional contributors, but I still keep an eye on my native Southern Minnesota.

A recent letter by my friend Liz McLoone, Walz acts on behalf of working families, caught my eye in the Mankato Free Press. Liz writes:

Any time I see a letter to the editor using terms like “left-wing agenda”, I know the writer is desperately grasping at straws.

Which was the case with Eric Anderson’s letter, published June 21, criticizing Congressman Tim Walz. As a former Mankato resident (where I lived for over 25 years) and currently one of your neighbors, I felt compelled to respond.

We are lucky to have a brave and thoughtful congressman.

In the month of May alone Walz made a trip to the Middle East, announced airport grants for southwestern Minnesota, published surface transportation requests on his website, voted to create jobs, voted to make schools more energy efficient, voted for Common Sense Financial Reforms, and promoted the $8,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers.

I don’t care what you call it Mr. Anderson, because the rest of us in southern Minnesota call it, moving in the right direction. We call it progress. We call it leadership. And we are grateful to finally have a congressman who asks for our opinion on the important matters facing working families and then acts on our behalf.

Good letter.

Bluestem will occasionally post about Congressman Walz's hard work, but we'll also be looking at Minnesota's Seventh, rural parts of the Second and Sixth, and the non-Range-Duluth-Tinberland section of the Eighth. (If you want to read about those latter, hyphenated places, quit dawdling here and go visit Minnesota Brown).

A tip jar has also been added, and in time, readers will also see ads and sponsorships. Moreover, BSP will be hosting some Country Conversations with progressives bloggers and a stab at a North-South dialogue with Aaron Brown of Minnesota Brown.

Photo: Tim Walz on the campaign trail in 2006, by Joe Lencioni of Shifting Pixel. Used with permission.