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.
Mr. Paulsen repeatedly said in interviews that we must move forward from this, working together from both sides of the aisle, with civility and respectful conversations with one another. He said civil discourse is a very Minnesotan thing to do.
I wholeheartedly agree with those statements, and can only hope Rep. Paulsen will remain true to his words. This means Erik Paulsen must start listening to all voices of his constituency, not just his donors and supporters. He must agree to have town halls where he hears opinions from all perspectives, not just the ones that align with his agenda. He must accept that as an elected official, he represents all people in his district, and should not stoop to name-calling or avoiding anyone who holds a belief different than his.
He asked what we can do to make sure incidents like this never happen again. There are no easy answers, but I think he clearly answered his own question when he stated being “Minnesota nice” is a good place to start.
Jennifer Welvaert, Chaska
Chaska Herald, June 25, 2017