On Nov. 3, I voted for David Tomassoni for state senator in my district. As in the past, the senator ran as a Democrat. His campaign literature said he was a Democrat. He was endorsed by the DFL.
I voted for him as a part of the DFL, representing all the things the party stands for and has fought for, things like supporting unions, creating the IRRRB, workers comp, making mining as clean as possible, civil rights, and more. I voted for him as a member of the party of Hubert Humphrey, Walter Mondale, Paul Wellstone, and others. I voted for him as part of the party that supported mine workers on the Iron Range in the 1950s and 1960s in their strikes to strengthen their unions and to provide better working conditions and pay.
I voted for the senator because, with the backing of other DFL senators and representatives, he’s done good things for me and my community.
But as soon as he was re-elected, Tomassoni declared himself independent (“ Bakk, Tomassoni break with Minnesota Democrats to form Senate Independent Caucus, ” Nov. 18). He is expected to caucus with Republicans. When I e-mailed him about this, he said he’d have more power with the majority. He also noted Trump won the majority of votes in his district in both elections.
With that thinking, should Rep. Pete Stauber become an independent and caucus with Democrats? He has no power in Congress now and would have some with the Democrats. When Democrats in the U.S. Senate are the minority, should Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar become an independent and caucus with the majority Republicans?
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If Tomassoni was going to leave the DFL, he should have told voters before the election. Then the party could have endorsed someone else. My vote could have gone to a real Democrat. I was robbed!
Dale Larson
Alborn
