CONCERNING, ONLY.

>> Mary: WE ARE OUT OF TIME UNFORTUNATELY.

I'M SO SORRY.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME.

APPRECIATE IT.

>> MARY: THIS WEEK'S FIRST-TERM LAWMAKER IS A BLOOMINGTON NATIVE, WAS ONCE A CITY COUNCIL MEMBER AND CAPITOL STAFFER, BUT THIS SESSION, YOU CAN ADD HOUSE DFL REPRESENTATIVE TO THAT LIST.

>> REPRESENTATIVE, THE FIRST QUESTION WE ASK EVERYONE, WHY DID YOU WANT TO RUN FOR OFFICE IN THE FIRST PLACE?

>> THAT'S A GREAT ONE TO START WITH.

I HAVE LIVED IN BLOOMINGTON MY ENTIRE LIFE.

MY PARENTS ARE STILL IN THE HOUSE I GREW UP IN.

I SERVED ON THE CITY COUNCIL FOR FIVE YEARS BEFORE I STARTED IN THE HOUSE AND SO I THINK -- I VIEWED IT AS A VERY NATURAL EXTENSION OF SERVING MY COMMUNITY AND GIVING BACK TO THE PLACE THAT HAS GIVEN TOO MUCH SO MUCH TO ME WHERE I GREW UP AND NOW WHERE I'M RAISING MY KIDS, AS WELL.

>> Mary: LOOKING AT YOUR BACKGROUND AND HISTORY, BIOGRAPHY, IT SEEMS LIKE YOU KIND OF MIGHT HAVE BEEN IN TRAINING FOR THIS YOUR WHOLE LIFE, IS THAT FAIR?

[Laughter] >> I DON'T KNOW ABOUT MY WHOLE LIFE.

CERTAINLY A LARGE PORTION OF IT, WE'LL SAY.

LIKE I SAID, I GLUE UP IN BLOOMINGTON AND WENT TO SCHOOL ORIGINALLY TO BE A MUSIC TEACHER AND FOUND MY WAY INTO POLITICS AND WORKED ON CAMPAIGNS FOR THE FIRST FEW YEARS AFTER COLLEGE AND GOT A JOB AT THE MINNESOTA SENATE WHERE I WORKED FOR TEN YEARS AND WENT TO GRADUATE SCHOOL, GOT MY MASTER'S DEGREE -- >> Mary: WHICH IS ABOUT PUBLIC POLICY, TOO, SEEMS LIKE EVERY STEP HAS BEEN KIND OF TRAINING YOU TO BE AN EXPERT ON PUBLIC POLICY, EVEN YOUR MASTER'S DEGREE, RIGHT?

>> YEAH, WELL, YEAH, SOME WENT TO THE HUMPHREY SCHOOL AND GOT MY MASTER'S IN PUBLIC AFFAIRS SO SORTS OF A SELF-DESIGNED CONCENTRATION IN HEALTH, HOUSING AND POLICY LEADERSHIP.

>> Mary: HOW DIFFERENT WAS IT DOING SOME OF THE BEHIND THE SCENES WORK TO BEING IN FRONTS WITH THE MICROPHONE?

>> THAT'S A GREAT QUIP.

THERE WERE SOME THINGS THAT I EXPECTED TO BE MORE DIFFERENT THAN THEY WERE AND SOME THINGS THAT I THINK ENDED UP BEING A LOT MORE DIFFERENT.

THE BIGGEST THING THAT I REALIZED IS JUST HOW VALUABLE THE STAFF THAT DO THE WORK AROUND THE LEGISLATURE -- >> Mary: EVEN THOUGH YOU WERE STAFF.

YOU HAVE NEW APPRECIATION.

>> YES, YES, I WAS A STAFFER AT THE SENATE, HOW VALUABLE AND IMPORTANT THE WORK THAT THAT STAFF DOES REALLY IS.

FOR ME IT'S JUST BEEN REALLY, REALLY EXCITING IS IT IS WAY I WOULD DESCRIBE IT, TO SPENDS THE TIME SORT OF BEHIND THE SCENES, SUPPORTING THE FOLKS DOING THE WORK SO NOW BEING THE ONE DOING THE WORK AND HAVING THE CONVERSATIONS AND MOVING THINGS FORWARD HAS JUST BEEN REALLY, REALLY INCREDIBLE.

>> Mary: I'M NOT SURPRISED YOU USED THE WORD "WORK," BECAUSE MY IMPRESSION OF YOU AFTER ONE SESSION IS WORK.

YOU WORK, AND YOU'RE DOING NOT ALWAYS THE MOST GLAMOROUS WORK, YOU'RE UP DIGGING INTO TAX POLICY.

I THINK AS A PBS REPORTER I CAN APPRECIATE SOMEBODY WHO'S NERDING OUT, IS IT FAIR TO SAY YOU KIND OF NERD OUT ON THE SPECIFICS ON BILLS?

>> WELL, I APPRECIATE THAT AND, YES, I THINK THAT'S -- THOSE ARE THE THINGS THAT REALLY EXCITE ME THE MOST.

I FOCUS A LOT OF PROPERTY TAXES AND PART OF THAT OBVIOUSLY IS, YOU KNOW, FROM MY BACKGROUNDS IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT BUT THEY MEAN A LOT TO FOLKS, YOU KNOW, AT THE LOCAL LEVEL IN TERMS OF WHAT OUR LOCAL PARTNERS ARE ABLE TO DO, AND THEY'RE VERY IN THE WEEDS AND YOU KIND OF -- MY ADD TODAY IS ALWAYS JUST BEEN, YOU KNOW, IT'S SORT OF EASY TO SAY, WELL, SOMEONE SHOULD LOOK INTO THIS AND THEN I KIND OF REALIZE WELL, HEY, I'M SOMEONE.

>> Mary: WHAT ABOUT THE ASSETS OF BEING IN THE MAJORITY IN A TRIFECTA, YOU'VE WORKED IN THE SENATE SO YOU'VE SEEN MULTI-PARTY CONTROL OVER THERE.

SO YOU PROBABLY HAVE A DIFFERENT APPRECIATION OF WHAT IT'S LIKE TO BE IN THE MAJORITY VERSUS THE MINORITY.

WHAT DO YOU SEE ON THAT?

SO I STARTED WORKING IN THE SUMMER OF 201, THE AST TIME WE HAD A TRIFECTA SO I'VE LITERALLY SEEN EVERY COMBINATION OF PARTISAN CONTROL AT LEAST WITHIN THE LEGISLATURE IN Y TIME AND YOU KNOW THE OBVIOUS ANSWER IS IT'S ALWAYS BETTER TO BE IN THE MAJORITY THAN IN THE MINORITY.

FOLKS ELECTED THE LEGISLATORS THEY GOOD BECAUSE THEY WANTED US TO GET TO WORK, FROM MY PERSPECTIVE, WE HAD A LOT TO SHOW.

WE HAD TO -- A LOT TO PROVE THAT WE WERE IN IT TO DO THE WORK TO GET THESE THINGS THAT WE'VE ERSON TALKING ABOUT, THAT WE KNOW WILL MAKE THINGS BETTER FOR MINNESOTANS ACROSS THE -- >> Mary: COULD THERE BE TOO MUCH WORK, TOO MUCH DONE, ARE YOU WORRIED AT ALL ABOUT BACKLASH?

>> I GUESS I WOULD SAY THE SHORT ANSWER IS NO.

WHAT I'VE SEEN IS IT'S LESS ABOUT THE AMOUNT, HOW MUCH ACTUALLY WE GOT DONE VERSUS WHAT WE COULD HAVE DONE.

THAN IT IS ABOUT THE QUALITY OF THE WORK.

AND THE KINDS OF THINGS THAT HAVE GOTTEN DONE.

WHEN I THINK BACK OVER THE WORK THAT WE DID OVER THIS PAST SESSION, PAID FAMILY MEDICAL LEAVE, STRENGTHENING OUR DEMOCRACY, GUN SAFETY, I THINK THESE ARE THINGS THAT ARE GOING TO -- THAT ALREADY ARE PAYING BIG DIVIDENDS FOR MINNESOTANS AND WILL CONTINUE TO DO SO.

>> Mary: WHAT DID SURPRISE YOU?

YOU KNEW A LOT ABOUT THE PROCESS AND THE PLACE SO WHAT ENDED UP SURPRISING YOU?

>> I WOULD SAY WHAT I DIDN'T FULLY APPRECIATE ALWAYS WAS REALLY, TRULY HOW MANY PEOPLE ON SORT OF ALL SIDES OF ANY QUESTION, AND I THINK THIS CUTS ACROSS PARTISAN LINES, CUTS ACROSS IDEOLOGICAL LINES, BUT REALLY HOW MANY PEOPLE TRULY ARE WORKING IN GOOD FAITH TO DO WHAT THEY SEE IS MAKING THINGS BETTER.

YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU SPEND THE HOURS AND HOURS ON THE FLOOR THAT YOU DO, YOU SEE KIND OF SOME OF THE BEST AND SOME OF THE WORST, AND I THINK AT THE END OF THE DAY, YOU KNOW, FOLKS REALLY ARE TRYING