Opinion editor’s note: Editorials represent the opinions of the Minnesota Star Tribune Editorial Board, which operates independently from the newsroom.
From farm fields near Le Center to a Fleet Farm in Lakeville, Minnesota’s Second Congressional District includes suburbs, exurbs and rural towns in between. Accordingly, unlike the more urban or rural Minnesota districts, there’s more variance in the key concerns of constituents, which is one of the reasons it’s Minnesota’s most competitive congressional district, swinging between previous Republican Reps. John Kline and Jason Lewis to Angie Craig, the DFLer who has held the seat for three terms.
Joe Teirab — a former U.S. Marine who was deployed to Iraq and who previously worked as an assistant U.S. attorney — aims to swing the district back to the Republican congressional column.
Beyond issues with resonance nearly everywhere like inflation, immigration, international affairs and reproductive rights, agriculture and the farm bill are of particular importance to the district. Craig, a member of the House Committee on Agriculture, is currently working directly with the Republican committee chair in a quest to pass a bipartisan farm bill.
Craig and her fellow Democrats are “willing to compromise and negotiate” but she resists taking more funds from food assistance programs, taking away “climate guardrails” and passing a bill that seems to favor southern states’ crops of “cotton and peanuts over corn and soybeans.” Teirab has indicated in the Star Tribune’s voter guide that he backs the bill that came out of committee and according to his website will push for a “robust” farm bill.
The importance of a balanced, bipartisan farm bill cannot be overstated for this state and the Second District. Its impact on the agricultural sector influences prices for consumers already reeling from inflation as well as those needing governmental food assistance. Continued advancements in rural broadband are essential, too, an issue that both candidates are likely to advocate for.
Kitchen-table economics are crucial to the district as well, just as they are nationwide. After an inflation spiral (or shock, in some grocery aisles), the rate of price increases has cooled to the point that the Federal Reserve has cut interest rates — a move that will hopefully, eventually, make housing more affordable, another key concern in the district. With this issue control of Congress is paramount, considering how many economic initiatives require legislative approval.
