MN 7th Congressional District candidates debate agriculture policy

MINNESOTA – The candidates for Minnesota’s 7th Congressional District share why they’re the best to be Western Minnesota’s voice in Washington in a Prairie Public debate.

Congresswoman Michelle Fischbach of Paynesville wants to stop what she calls out of control spending and take a look at government regulations to decrease inflation.

Writer and Democrat Jill Abahsain of Sauk Centre says the district has been underserved in education and rural healthcare access for decades.

Legalize Marijuana Now candidate and Army veteran Travis “Bull” Johnson of Beltrami calls himself a constitutional conservative and runs on a “small government leave me alone platform.”

The candidates shared their ideas on the SNAP program and agriculture.

“It keeps America from starving. That was Johnson’s idea in the ’60s. To change that now and give it to the states would cause a disruption in our food security,” Abahsain said.

“We will never decouple SNAP from the farm bill. It won’t pass. There are not enough people in the metro area willing to support a farm bill unless there’s something for them and their constituents,” Johnson said.

“We need to make sure we have strong crop insurance, we need to deal with the risk management, we need to make sure that the disaster programs are there and they’re not just… That they’re sustainable,” Fischbach said.

Election day is November 8.