In response to Thomas Broskoff’s letter on Oct. 16, I want to clarify that my comments about Aaron Farris’s column were in regard to the one published on Sept. 17. I submitted my letter a few days after his column ran, but my response didn’t appear in print until nearly two weeks afterward. This contributed to some confusion because Farris had another column published in the meantime on Oct. 1. Good for Farris for writing regularly; it’s a valuable skill and a discipline that few people possess at his age.

As for Broskoff’s assertion that Rep. Hagedorn’s wife should be left out of the political fray, that’s impossible when she herself has ambitiously chosen to be in the mix. Jennifer Carnahan is currently serving her second term as chairwoman of the Minnesota Republican Party.

In 2017, at least two other potential Republican candidates for the 1st District seat — Nels Pierson and Aaron Miller — expressed concern that Carnahan’s relationship with Hagedorn would give him an inside advantage to obtain the Republican nomination in 2018, and the perception may have narrowed the race.

You have to give Hagedorn credit: He maximizes insider connections, first with the family name bestowed upon him and now with his marriage to a party leader who resides in the Twin Cities. Hagedorn admitted at his Albert Lea town hall in August that he splits his time in Minnesota between his Blue Earth home and Carnahan’s home in St. Louis Park. The reduced time he spends in our district as a result is something voters deserve to be informed about.

Furthermore, when Hagedorn and Carnahan married last December, no Minnesota venue was good enough for their elaborate and expensive nuptials. They chose a California location to fete their elite guest list instead. It’s their choice, and they showed off the Canary Hotel in Santa Barbara nicely, but it was a tremendous snub to their home state.

Hagedorn takes the inside track whenever he can, and we’re the outsiders.

Jennifer Vogt-Erickson

Albert Lea