Editorial: Our picks in hot Rochester races

10/28/2006

Wright, Norton, Liebling, Welti get our nod.

Star Tribune
Published: October 28, 2006

The dependable fortress that Rochester long provided Minnesota Republicans cracked in 2004. DFLers won two of the region’s three House seats. That year, too, Rochester state Sen. Sheila Kiscaden, elected under the Independence Party banner, was asked to leave the GOP caucus, and found a new home in the DFL.
This year, Kiscaden is retiring, as is GOP Rep. Fran Bradley. Their open seats, plus the two House seats held by first-term DFLers, are among the most fiercely contested races in the state. In those four races, here are our favorites:

Senate 30: R. Scott Wright

Seldom do Minnesotans have a chance to send a physician to the Legislature—let alone one as well schooled in public policy as is R. Scott Wright. A Republican in the mold of U.S. Rep. Jim Ramstad, Wright, 42, is a cardiology researcher, teacher and clinician at the Mayo Clinic. He would more than fill the void in health care policy leadership left by Kiscaden’s departure.

It must be acknowledged that Kiscaden is working hard for the election of Wright’s DFL opponent, Ann Lynch, who also has much to commend her. In a single term on the city’s school board, Lynch, 41, has made her mark as a tireless advocate for better education funding. She also been a voice for honest budgeting and bipartisan decisionmaking at the statehouse.

But defenders of education are not in short supply in the Senate. World-renowned cardiologists are. Wright’s ideas about how to reform health care and spur a knowledge-based economy spring from firsthand experience. His candidacy is an opportunity for the whole state that Rochester voters should seize.

House 29B: Kim Norton

It’s easy to see why DFLer Kim Norton came within 311 votes of unseating a 10-year GOP incumbent two years ago. This 49-year-old early childhood special education specialist has a stellar record of professional and community service, capped by two terms on the Rochester school board and one year as its chair. She’s more than ready for legislative service.

Her opponent is Republican Rich Decker, 60, a personable 34-year high school basketball coach and a newcomer to politics. He’s an independent thinker who would likely be a quick study at the Capitol. But Norton has already done her homework, and is better grounded in Rochester civic life. She deserves election.

House 30A: Tina Liebling

For the third straight election, District 30A voters will see the same two names on their ballot: DFLer Tina Liebling and Republican Carla Nelson. Each has served one term in the House; Nelson was the winner in 2002, Liebling, in 2004. We think voters made the wiser choice in 2004, and that they should return Liebling to the House.

Despite her opposite party affiliation, Liebling appears to stand more squarely in the progressive Rochester tradition that produced such Republican legislative giants as former Sen. Nancy Brataas and retired Rep. David Bishop. An attorney who also has a master’s degree in public health, Liebling, 53, took independent, tough votes during her first term. She voted against the Twins stadium and the University of Minnesota football stadium. But she supported the transportation funding bill that included a dime increase in the gas tax.

Nelson, 49, is a small business owner and former teacher with much community service to her credit. She’s been a prime mover in efforts to expand the University of Minnesota in Rochester. That’s why it was disappointing to hear her defend the Legislature’s budget cuts in 2003, which included deep losses for higher education, as the right way to balance the state budget. Her suggestion that Liebling, a freshman in the House minority, be blamed for the 2005 state budget shutdown ill befits someone who knows the legislative ropes.

House 30B: Andy Welti

In the Rochester area’s other rematch, we prefer Rep. Andy Welti, DFL-Plainview, over former Rep. William Kuisle, R-Rochester. It’s a closer call than the other Rochester races. At 26, Welti is the youngest member of the House. We’re troubled by his skimpy job experience. But in unseating the four-term Kuisle in 2004, he proved that he works hard and is eager to learn and listen. He’s been a dependable team player in the Rochester delegation, especially on expansion of university programs.

Kuisle, a 48-year-old farmer, was disappointing as chairman of the House transportation finance committee. He claims credit for improvements on Hwy. 52 and other Rochester-region roads. But he opposed a gas tax increase—which Welti favors—to catch up on badly needed highway and bridge work statewide. When it comes to reducing traffic congestion in the Twin Cities area, Kuisle is no friend of transit. He once suggested a second, toll-financed beltway around the metro area—a “let them eat cake” notion. Welti’s promise trumps Kuisle’s bad ideas.