Dear Neighbor,
Another busy week is winding down in the House. I continue working closely with legislation I have authored to restore civics as a priority in high schools and also remain diligent in my role as the House Republican Lead on Capital Investment in the hopes we reach a deal on a bonding package worthy of broad, bipartisan support.
Watch for more on those subjects as developments occur.
Meanwhile, the most noteworthy subject to reach the floor this week was a bill (H.F. 4) allowing undocumented immigrants to obtain the same Class D Minnesota driver’s license as Minnesotans who choose not to apply for Real ID or an enhanced driver’s license.
Numerous concerns were articulated regarding this bill (H.F. 4). Foremost, it threatens the election process by failing to include “not for voting purposes” language on the license. Opinions greatly diverge regarding the integrity of our election process as it is. Our focus should be to instill confidence in Minnesotans that our elections are fair, free and secure. In other words, it should be easy to vote but hard to cheat in Minnesota’s elections.
The way H.F. 4 is written undermines election security, erodes trust and opens the door to potential fraud. House Republicans offered numerous amendments aimed at upholding the sanctity of our elections and fostering confidence in our system. This includes provisions House Democrats accepted from House Republicans in previous versions of this bill that ultimately were not enacted. A clear and simple indicator noting this ID is not for voting purposes, for example, previously was an agreed-upon provision refused this time.
On a final note, I want to recognize the passing of former United States Senator Dave Durenberger earlier this week. Here is a link to a brief clip of me speaking about him in memoriam Wednesday.
Sincerely,
Dean