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| 12/25/2008 6:00:00 AM | Email this article • Print this article | State Rep. Paul Thissen addresses GMHS students
State Representative Paul Thissen (DFL-Minneapolis) addressed Grand Meadow High School students on Friday, December 12, 2008. Rep. Thissen is an announced candidate for the DFL endorsement for Governor in the upcoming 2010 election.
Representative Thissen is the sixth political speaker to visit Grand Meadow High School in 2008. Other political guests were: Brian Thiel - Republican candidate for State Representative; State Representative Randy Demmer - Candidate for the Republican nomination for U.S. Congress; State Senator Dick Day - Candidate for the Republican nomination for U.S. Congress; U.S. Congressman Tim Walz (DFL-Mankato); and Thomasin Franken - daughter of Al Franken - DFL candidate for U.S. Senator.
Rep. Thissen described his education background, his legislative experience, reasons for running for governor and then answered a series of questions from Grand Meadow high school students.
Rep. Thissen, who is married and has three children ages 9, 7 and 5, earned a social studies degree from Harvard University and a law degree from the University of Chicago. His family farm is located near Blooming Prairie. Representative Thissen is serving his fourth term in the Minnesota House of Representatives and chairs the Health and Human Services Committee. He also serves on the Biosciences and Emerging Technology Committee, Finance Committee, Rules Committee and Telecommunications Regulation and Infrastructure Division.
The Representative compared serving in the legislature to being in high school, in that there is a lot of learning that goes on and there are both conflicts and friendships that develop.
The sixth-generation Minnesotan told an interesting story about his great-grandfather, who built a wooden workbench that has been passed down through the family to him. He compared this early investment in time and resources to what needs to be done now in state government. He stated that we need to do long-term investment in our state by providing a quality education, good paying jobs, and safe infrastructure.
When asked by a student what has Governor Tim Pawlenty not done for Minnesota, Thissen gave two examples: He stated that we need to invest in early childhood education for three- and four-year-olds and we need to make higher education more affordable by lowering tuition.
Mr. Thissen discussed the current state deficit of $5.2 billion by predicting that the legislature would need to cut some programs and increase some taxes. He said the main way to reduce the state deficit is to increase the number of good paying jobs by making Minnesota friendlier to businesses and corporations.
Thissen gave three criteria when considering raising taxes: 1) Fairness; 2) Tax policy that reflects changes in the economy from 20 years ago; 3) Tax policy that promotes job growth.
Representative Thissen addressed the following issues: the State deficit, corporate bailouts, health care costs, transportation infrastructure, the Iraq war, renewable energy, job growth, the housing crisis, No Child Left Behind education legislation, universal health care, nursing home costs, Nursing home scandals, the Legislative page program, wind energy production tax, Q-Comp and school funding.
Additional information about Representative Thissen may be found by visiting his web site at www.paulthissen.com
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