For years, I have spent my free time reading, thinking and writing about two of my passions, sports and politics. When Facebook and Twitter feel too confining, I take to my blog, www.sota-sports.blogspot.com. Over the last few years, my posts have been more often political in nature, so I decided to start a second blog devoted entirely to my thoughts about political and social issues.
Welcome to www.sota-politics.blogspot.com!
While I don't plan to focus specifically on Minnesota politics, I do feel that the name is appropriate for this blog. Minnesota is an odd place politically, as most natives (and transplants like me) are probably aware. Nationally, Minnesota is fly-over country, the home of Prince, Bob Dylan, Walter Mondale, and is really, really damn cold. We aren't necessarily a liberal or conservative state, as our voting patterns and elected officials are quite broad. We generally elect people who seem trustworthy and who are practical. We voted against Trump, both in the GOP primary, which went to Marco Rubio, and in the general election, which went to Hillary Clinton. Years ago, we voted against the establishment, by electing Jesse Ventura, a former professional wrestler and movie star, as Governor. Arnie Carlson, a moderate Republican Governor, is still widely respected on both sides of the aisle.
We chose Keith Ellison to be the first Muslim U.S. Representative (MN-5), and somehow were unable to prevent Michelle Bachmann from winning multiple terms representing our state. We also elected Al Franken, a former comedian and SNL cast member to fill a seat that had previously been held by Paul Wellstone until his tragic death in a plane crash. Our current Governor is a billionaire Democrat who will soon hand off one of the healthiest economies in the country to a successor. We are a diverse state, with a diverse economy and a diverse population. I hope to bring much of that Minnesota common sense and practicality to the words on these pages in the months and years to come.
Thanks for reading!
