Tag: Rep. Paulsen

To the editor:

The three small town halls that Erik Paulsen conducted late last month were insufficient to make up for the many, many years he has not had one. The demand for them has been great. But, until he had the competition of Dean Phillip’s many town halls for the past year, he didn’t feel he needed to do one, telling us his telephone town halls were good enough for us.

I “won the lottery” last week and was able to attend Paulsen’s town hall in Chanhassen, and was even able to ask a question. Wow, I’ve waited 40 years living in Edina to be able to do that. I have called Paulsen’s office many times concerning his votes and have tried to meet with him at his office (in small groups). I’ve emailed him repeatedly. I most definitely have not felt “represented.” Paulsen seemed to have prepared answers for questions and often evaded answering the questions, or he gave what seemed dishonest answers. Continue reading “Paulsen town hall meetings insufficient”

To the Editor:

My definition of representative is one who represents a group of people. My representative, Erik Paulsen, fails to meet the basic definition as stated.

He has failed over and over again to hold town hall meetings. Finally, he [recently] held what he calls town hall meetings in three different places voters had to request a ticket to attend, and I requested a ticket at all three locations and was instantly placed on a “waiting list “… ” told via e-mail that if I did get a ticket I must present a valid ID when I arrive at the meeting. Never did get a ticket.

I learned from others that none of the meetings were filled. This is not how Americans should be treated by their elected officials. These meetings were a total sham. I have been to plenty of valid town halls to know the difference. Continue reading “A representative should engage in honest conversation”

To the Editor:

In 2008, when Erik Paulsen was asked if he believes humans are contributing to climate change, he responded by saying, “I’m not smart enough to know if that’s true or not.” For the past 10 years he has denied the existence of climate change—until recently.

A few weeks ago, we found out that Erik Paulsen believes in climate change when he joined the House Climate Solutions Caucus. So, what changed his opinion to make him suddenly believe in what scientists have been saying for years? Maybe he remembered one of the many global climate summits that have been held during his years in office. Maybe this is a tough election year and he knows that the majority of the Third Congressional District believes that climate change is real. Whatever the reason, he has changed his opinion to support the facts; however, I am not impressed.

We need a leader who will try to solve big problems like climate change when they arise, and not just when it’s politically beneficial. If Paulsen isn’t smart enough to see the facts on climate change until now, maybe he shouldn’t be representing district three in Congress.

Sydney Lewis, Minnetonka
Minnetonka Sun-Sailor, June 19, 2018

To the Editor:

At his town hall on May 30th, Congressman Erik Paulsen kept trying to portray himself as a bipartisan moderate.

Erik Paulsen has still voted with President Trump on 97.4 percent of his votes. He is not a moderate, he is not bipartisan, and he does not represent the people of our district who have overwhelmingly showed we do not support the President. Continue reading “Maple Grove needs new representative”

To the Editor:

At Erik Paulsen’s recent town halls on May 30, he was asked many questions related to the health care, an issue about which I have a good deal of interest. Naturally, I was interested to hear Congressman Paulsen’s responses to these question. I was sadly disappointed. The Congressman was asked about the possibility of Medicare negotiating directly with the drug companies, something that over 90 percent of the country supports. The Congressman claimed the Congressional Budget Office had determined there would be no effect on drug prices. Actually, Congress has the authority to amend the Medicare Act requiring negotiated drug prices, which would result in significant discounts as seen elsewhere, as in Canada, for example.

Coincidently, at the Brooklyn Park Town Hall, there was a question related to the significantly lower drug prices in Canada. Congressman Paulsen’s response implied that Canada was stealing intellectual property from the USA in this regard. This bold claim was not supported with any facts or clarification. Unfortunately, the town hall format precluded a dialog, nor has a written inquiry to his office resulted in a response. We in CD3 deserve much more from our congressman. My intention here is to neither demonize Congressman Paulsen nor to confer sainthood on Dean Phillips, but I sure hope that, between now and Nov. 6, there will be open debates between Paulsen and challenger Phillips on heath care and many more issues. Airing out these issues in public will provide an opportunity to the well-educated constituents of CD3 to help separate rumor and innuendo from facts.

Derek Roek, Plymouth
Plymouth Sun-Sailor, June 13, 2018

To the Editor:

I’m proud to be a Minnesotan. We value truth, honesty, integrity, and kindness. I sure wish my Congressional representative would stand up and “represent” those values, too.

When I asked Rep. Erik Paulsen (CD-3) at the May 30 town hall in Brooklyn Park what he’ll do in the next six months to stand up to the bully in the White House, he dove into the virtues of bipartisan legislation. Oh boy. This isn’t about legislation, it’s about principled leadership.

Minnesota’s Third Congressional District needs a bold advocate willing to stand up to the chief bully and his posse of lap dogs. Instead, we have Erik Paulsen, for now. Continue reading “Paulsen offers no solutions at town hall meetings”

To the Editor:

In a recent campaign mailing I received from my Congressman Erik Paulsen, titled “Getting Results for Minnesota Seniors,” the congressman is pictured discussing issues “including health care and the national debt” with seniors. I wonder if he told the seniors that he co-sponsored the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that added $1.5 trillion to the national debt and voted three times to repeal the Affordable Care Act that would have left 32 million Americans without health care coverage.

He touts his efforts to repeal a cap on physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech language pathology services under Medicare and quotes AARP’s positive statement on repeal of the cap, but fails to mention that his tax bill will need to take millions of dollars from programs like Medicare to fund the tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations. According to a letter sent to Congressional leadership, AARP CEO Jo Ann C. Jenkins condemned the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act because of the likelihood that it would lead to “dramatic cuts to Medicare, Medicaid and other important programs that serve older Americans.”

Congressman Paulsen can’t be counted on to tell the whole story. His campaign strategy appears to hinge on his constituents never checking his voting record.

Cindy Mundahl, Minnetonka
Minnetonka Sun-Sailor, June 5, 2018