We had heard that Minnesota Governor Tim Walz was skipping the candidates' debate at Game Fair, a move that we consider an unforced error. Even more after that Governor's Fish Opener.
Why skip the chance to debate Republican endorsee Scott Jensen before an audience of outdoors enthusiasts and their loyal bird dogs? Especially when Star Tribune outdoors columnist Dennis Anderson wrote a column like this one in April, scathing legislative Republicans?
And Walz is finding time for the debate at Farm Fest, a farm show acquired by the American Farm Bureau Federation in 2013. The Farm Bureau may not be as down home as the name suggests. Game Fair? Anderson noted its humble origins in 2019's For 38th time, it's game on at Game Fair for Chuck and Loral I Delaney (sadly, Loral passed in 2021).
We're not the only one scratching our head at Walz's possible ghosting the rural Ramsey event and the voters associated with it.
In Game Fair candidate debate in 2022 hinges on Walz, a blog post at Outdoor News, editor Rob Drieslein takes a look at Walz's absence:
Most election year Augusts since the late 1990s, Outdoor News and the Minnesota Outdoor Heritage Alliance have co-hosted candidate debates at Game Fair in Ramsey. We’ve had several congenial (and a couple of semi-raucous) events with U.S. Senate and gubernatorial politicians. The forums have been well received by candidates, generated a few headlines, and provided an opportunity to get potential leaders on record regarding issues affecting hunters, anglers, and conservationists. Ron Schara and I typically pitch questions to the candidates, and we take a few from the crowd, too.
Given the short shrift the environment got during the legislative session, there are some tough topics to grill candidates about this year. But with Game Fair two weeks away, organizers remain disappointed that we haven’t yet locked in a governor’s debate. To his credit, Republican candidate Scott Jensen has told us he’ll attend a forum tentatively slated for Saturday, Aug. 20, but Gov. Tim Walz’s people say they’re struggling to fit us into the schedule.
To be fair, during the 2006 and 2014 election years, we also did not have gubernatorial forums at Game Fair. Perhaps the primary calendar dates prevented us from having candidates in place in time, I really don’t recall. Both of those years also involved incumbent governors. That said, after a couple of lousy legislative sessions, there’s a general feeling among state sportsmen that the outdoors ranks low on the priority list of politicians. Meanwhile, many candidates eagerly are promoting their attendance at Farm Fest in Redwood County, which will include a governor’s debate forum (with Walz) on Wednesday, Aug. 3.
While trying to be respectful of the GOP candidate’s willingness to attend on the 20th, we’ve stressed that Game Fair runs six days, and we’re open to finding a date that works for both candidates. Game Fair owner Chuck Delaney repeatedly has said his operation remains flexible and will find a slot for the forum, even last minute. Organizers, including yours truly, have reached out to key people in the governor’s circle multiple times to try to make this event happen, but we’re down to 14 days before the first Game Fair weekend, Aug. 12-14. We need some engagement from Gov. Walz.
Folks of all political stripes will tell you Walz turned in a solid performance during this same event at Game Fair four years ago, so we’re perplexed why he or his campaign staff haven’t made it a priority again in 2022.
What’s the story, Gov. Walz?
We reprint the column with Drieslein's permission. Consider a subscription to Outdoor News Minnesota.
Photo: The then-candidates for governor Tim Walz (DFL) and Jeff Johnson (GOP) drew a healthy crowd to Game Fair during election season 2018, and state conservation leaders would like to hold a similar discussion with candidates for the office again in 2022.
If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post.
Or you can contribute via this link to paypal; use email [email protected] as recipient.
I'm on Venmo for those who prefer to use this service: @Sally-Sorensen-6
Comments