Category: Letters to the Editor

Our elected US. Rep. Erik Paulsen hasn’t had an in-person town hall with us constituents since 2011. He only comes out in public under circumstances where he can control the narrative.

Even his visit to a Chaska High School class saw him dodging important questions from students. Thank about that. He won’t even be honest with our children.

Dean Phillips, a potential challenger to Paulsen in 2018, just had a maxed-out town hall, where constituents met to discuss our needs and the future of our children. Continue reading “Voices cast into a vacuum”

I just read the letter to the editor from Christine Cleary of Shorewood and her comments about U.S. Rep. Erik Paulsen.

I, too, have found that Mr. Paulsen’s voting record and public comments are at odds with the facts.

Mr. Paulsen now has consistently either not taken a position on long-term environmental issues or simply has followed the party line and voted against these issues. Continue reading “Paulsen votes are unlike his comments”

To the editor:

June 14 marked the day when Louisiana Rep. Steve Scalise and other congressional staffers were injured in a horrific act of gun violence. I hold each of them in my thoughts and prayers for a full recovery, and thank them for their service to our country.

It was a day that I heard my representative, Erik Paulsen, take time from his schedule throughout the day to reach out through the airwaves, to speak to his constituents for updates and share his take on the day’s events. Continue reading ““Minnesota nice” is a good place to start”

Tuesday, June 13, there was another Paulsen Town Call lottery in Minnesota’s Third Congressional District.

For years now Rep. Erik Paulsen claims to have had many town hall events. What most constituents would label a Town Hall — a public, in-person meeting with plenty of notice and no entrance fee — doesn’t seem to happen. As a lottery winner on Tuesday, you would have received an unexpected, dinner-time call from an unidentified caller. Thus, to really win, you must be both available and willing to pick up that call.

Earlier this year I left my number with Paulsen’s Eden Prairie office to increase my chances of getting a call. So far, indicating an interest hasn’t garnered a call. At that time I asked about a transcript, but was told they do not have that capability. The staff member I spoke with said ‘someone’ may be recording these calls so I could try a search online. To me that suggests Mr. Paulsen is checking off a box labelled Constituent Contact with no concern for quality, accuracy or real communication. Continue reading “Constituents lose in the town call lottery”

To the Editor:

Our elected U.S. Rep. Erik Paulsen hasn’t had an in-person town hall with us constituents since 2011. He only comes out in public under circumstances where he can control the narrative.

Even his visit to a Chaska High School class saw him dodging important questions from students. Think about that. He won’t even be honest to our children. Continue reading “Voices cast into a vacuum”

As a constituent of CD3 my most direct avenue to Washington is Congressman Erik Paulsen. I was fortunate enough to have two in-person meetings with him in April. I say fortunate because, according to District Director John-Paul Yates, “it’s been a few years” since his last in-person town hall.

At my first meeting, I expressed my sleepless nights thinking about President Trump and his ties to Russia. I pleaded with him to exercise his abilities on the House Ways and Means Committee to start the process of exposing his tax returns. Unfortunately, he has voted “no” several times on this request telling me if this request is made to President Trump it could set the precedent for “any civilian.” Really, our president is “any civilian?” During my second meeting our topic was internet security. I left this meeting questioning Erik’s knowledge on the difference between ISPs and apps like Google and Facebook. He continued to ask if companies in question were “opt-in” or “opt-out.” Continue reading “Erik Paulsen, you insulted me”