Women from SD49 joined more than 100 women and men from the metro area at the February 13 Metro Republican Women Annual Lincoln Day Tea.  The substantial “high tea” meal with tea served in delicate heirloom cups was followed by a substantial discussion. 

Chris Fields, Deputy Chair of MN GOP, moderated a panel of representatives for the six Presidential candidates campaigning ahead of the Republican primary in South Carolina.  

Each representative was a passionate supporter of their candidate, and introduced both their own background and reasons for their support.   A few common threads:  Character, Integrity, Trust. We need a candidate who can win, across all voters.  The Republican Party is a big tent, as demonstrated by the diversity and depth of the initial large group of candidates and the six that were still campaigning.

Follow-on questions explored each candidate’s positions.

• What actions will occur in the first 100 days in office?
• How will the candidate gain the Youth vote / appeal to Millennials?
• How will the candidate handle ISIS, relations with Israel, and challenges of cyber technology?
• How will the candidate resize government and ensure a tax policy that is equitable to all?
• How is the candidate focused on growing the party?

Representatives handled their tough jobs well overall, briefly summarizing candidate views on complex issues. All encouraged voters to get direct information from the candidate websites.  And each promised to do everything possible to get their candidate to come to Minnesota during the campaign.

MRW President Margaret Fowler introduced special guests, as well as candidates currently running for local/state offices and those who’ve recently run. She introduced two CD2 candidates Pam Myhra and Darlene Miller, both running for the seat John Kline holds.  Current State Representative Cindy Pugh, (House District 33B, Chanhassen and towns around Lake Minnetonka) and Frank Mendez (Minnesota Hispanic Republican Assembly Chair) were also recognized.  MRW members introduced their own guests – daughters, sisters, neighbors, women of all ages and professions, and several couples attending especially to hear the Presidential Candidates discussion.