STATEMENT REGARDING VOTE TO REOPEN MINNESOTA

Mazeppa, MN – Representative Steve Drazkowski, on behalf of the New House Republican Caucus made the following statement:  

“Today, Republicans in the Minnesota House of Representatives brought forward a resolution to end the governor’s emergency powers and reopen Minnesota’s economy. Additionally, the resolution would have allowed the Minnesota Legislature to fulfill its proper role in developing policy instead of permitting unilateral control by the governor. Exactly two weeks ago, I brought forward the first resolution to reopen the state. At that time, a majority of Republicans and every Democrat voted to block the resolution. This time, every Republican voted in support of the resolution to reopen our economy. Republicans are united in reopening Minnesota. Unfortunately, not a single Democrat voted to bring the resolution forward, and it failed on a party-line vote of 59-73.  

The time has come for Governor Walz to recognize the seriousness of our economic situation. Hundreds of thousands of Minnesota workers have filed for unemployment, businesses have permanently closed, and multigenerational farmers are on the brink of collapse. Small businesses are being threatened with extinction, not just on rural main streets, but urban areas too in vibrant immigrant communities. Closing our schools and made the achievement gap worse. We need to reopen the economy and let Minnesotans reclaim control of their lives. Instead, Democrats are making promises they can’t keep: loans and grants that they can’t sustain when state tax revenues have shrunk. Minnesota cannot spend its way out of this economic disaster with blank checks. The best way to get this economy moving again is to put people back to work. We will continue to push for this state to reopen, and we hope the people of Minnesota will make their voices heard by contacting their elected officials.”  

A link to the full vote can be found in the official record, the Journal of the Minnesota House on page 7292: https://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/cco/journals/2019-20/J0428084.pdf 

The New House Republican Caucus is led by Rep. Steve Drazkowski (Republican-Mazeppa). It includes Rep. Cal Bahr (Republican-East Bethel), Rep. Tim Miller (Republican-Prinsburg), and Rep. Jeremy Munson (Republican-Lake Crystal).

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