I saw a headline in the letter to the editor section the other day that read “Republicans will solve problems.” I had to stop and think about this for a minute.

So let’s see here. When our governor, Tim Pawlenty, took office, we were looking at a $1 billion deficit. Why wasn’t this problem fixed before the 2002 election? It was because of Pawlenty’s unwillingness to work with then-Gov. Jesse Ventura. Mr. Pawtenty had chosen to use the deficit as a campaign tool in the 2002 election.

Then the Interstate 35W bridge collapsed, and it showed to the entire nation just how badly our roads and bridges were in dire need of repair. Gov. Pawlenty vetoed a gas tax increase to fix them. Yet when seven Republicans joined the Democrats in voting to override the governor’s veto and pass a gas tax increase (the first increase in 20 years), what did our Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty do? He and Republican Minority Leader Marty Seifert did everything possible to get the seven Republicans voted out of office.

In the eight years with our Republican governor, the state’s deficit has grown from $1 billion to $6 billion. Why? Due to Gov. Pawlenty and his party’s unwillingness to compromise, we are in the financial problems that we are in today. It sure looks like the Republicans have created more problems than they have solved. It is time for a change, and the Republicans are not the answer.

Arthur A. Anderson

chairman

Freeborn County DFL Party

Albert Lea