Print this story |
E-mail story |
This story has 1 comment Add your own |
iPod friendly | Bookmark this
What is this?
Aldrich challenges in Senate as Libertarian
Published 12:00 p.m., September 15, 2008
Sen. Norm Coleman and Democratic challenger Al Franken may be the best known of this year’s U.S. Senate candidates, but Charles Aldrich wants you to know there’s another choice.
Aldrich is the Libertarian Party’s Senate candidate, a former Marine from southern Minnesota who has long been disenchanted with the two major political parties. After campaigns for seats on the New Prague City Council and in the Minnesota House, Aldrich has set his sights on Congress.
“I got out of high school and I thought of myself as a Republican, but some of the Republican (policies) didn’t sit well with me,” he said. “(Republicans) say something but they do something else.”
For Aldrich, less government means more individual freedom, and some of his key issues include stopping federal taxes and fees on renewable energy for five years, as well as stopping federal funding of child support. He’s also against subsidies for corn-based ethanol, saying the free market, not the government, should dictate ethanol production.
A former aviation electronics technician with the Marines, Aldrich also says it’s time to pull troops out of Iraq, a country the U.S. should not have invaded in the first place.
“They’ve used the democratic system that we set up to elect leaders who’ve asked us to leave,” he said. “It’s a sovereign country.”
Aldrich brought his campaign to Fergus Falls Sunday as part of a statewide tour he began in August. With Fridays off from his job at Nortech Aerospace Systems in Blue Earth, Aldrich is visiting 87 Minnesota communities in the weeks leading up to the election.
“I want to go to all of the counties in the state and let (people) know I’m willing to listen,” he said.
Listening is a skill the current Congress could work on, Aldrich said. Only 10 percent of Americans are happy with the job their legislative leaders are doing, he claims, and if new views aren’t represented, nothing will change.
“If (people) vote for Democrats or Republicans, they’re going to see more of the same and they’re still going to be unhappy,” he said.
To learn more about Aldrich, visit www.senaldrich.org.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO SHARE THIS STORY?
Comments
The Daily Journal is happy to host community conversations about news and life in Fergus Falls and the surrounding area. As hosts, we expect guests will show respect for each other. That means we don't threaten or defame each other, and we keep conversations free of personal attacks. Those who persist with racist, defamatory or abusive postings risk losing the privilege to post. To post a comment you will need to register. Or, if you're already registered but have not included your true, verifiable identity with your registration, you will need to update your account to include your identity. Effective Dec. 1, 2009, all posts appear with the commenter's true identity, which must be verified by site staff. Those who registered prior to Dec. 1, 2009, should be aware that once you update your information with your true identity, all prior posts under your user name will also indicate your true identity. If you do not wish to link yourself to prior comments, you should register again with a different user name.Posted by lookitup (anonymous) on September 15, 2008 at 1:39 p.m. (Suggest removal)
So, you can't win a State House election, or even a City Council seat in your own hometown, and now you run for U.S. Senate? Wow. But you do have a MN motorcycle endorsement.
Post a comment (Terms of Use Policy)
(Requires free registration.)
You may also register to comment in our forums at www.fergusfeedback.com.