Reports about the reception Minnesota legislators met in Independence Day parades are coming in from across the state. The Mankato Free Press reports that Shutdown talk muted along parade routes in St. Peter and lovely Vernon Center. Patrick Condon at the Associated Press checked out the parade in Eagan, and tells a different story in GOP lawmaker gets earful on Minnesota shutdown.
And then there's Mark Steil's report from Blooming Prairie, Lawmaker gets earful along parade route, which notes the response State Senator Dave Senjem received in the small Southern Minnesota town. The remarkable article begins:
Blooming Prairie, Minn. — As the state government shutdown continues, Minnesota voters are weighing in on the stalemate. Many are not happy. A wide range of state services shut down last Friday when the governor and the Legislature failed to reach a budget agreement.
At the Fourth of July parade in Blooming Prairie, some in the crowd vented their frustrations.
Among the bands, classic cars, horses and floats in the parade, there was also one member of the state Legislature -- State Sen. Dave Senjem, R-Rochester. He's in his third term representing the Republican-leaning district 70 miles south of the Twin Cities. . . .
Why is this a remarkable article?
The Wikipedia entry for Blooming Prairie, Minnesota provides a clue as to why the story is awe-inspiring:
Blooming Prairie is a city in Dodge and Steele counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 1,996 at the 2010 census.[1] Most of the city lies in Steele County; only a small part of the city extends into Dodge County.
And in political terms, that means that Dave Senjem doesn't represent much of Blooming Prairie, Minnesota, since Senate District 29 doesn't include Steele County. Rather, the honor of representing the home of the Awesome Blossoms falls to none other than the Emo Senator and personal socialist Mike Parry.
A friend who lives in Senate District 26 who attended the parade noted on Facebook that Congressman Tim Walz and Senjem were the only state and federal politicians in the event. She wrote that she cheered Walz and encouraged Senjem, but no Parry.
Now, while this isn't a major fail on MPR's part, those who read the article might come away with the notion that Senjem was getting a lot of grief in his district. Bluestem suspects that the veteran lawmaker was on the receiving end of some of the grief that Mike Parry might have gotten, had he actually been on hand.
Mere happenstance or a generous act of political sin-eating for the genial Senjem? Bluestem can't judge motive.
Photo: Senator Mike Parry, who represents the lion's share of Blooming Prairie, not that you'd guess that if you'd caught this MPR story.
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