WELL, SO WE'LL SEE WHAT HAPPENS.

>> Mary: THANK YOU SO MUCH, COMMISSIONER.

APPRECIATE YOUR TIME.

>> MARY: MINNESOTA FARMERS ARE FACING UNCERTAINTY IN THE AFTERMATH OF FEDERAL FUNDING FREEZES.

FARMERS ARE FACING A LOT OF DOUBT RIGHT NOW AND IT'S A HARD ROW TO HOE, BUT OUR FIRST-TERM REPUBLICAN LAWMAKER THIS WEEK GOT HIS START IN AG POLICY WHILE WORKING FULL TIME AS A FARMER.

WHY DID YOU RUN?

>> I WRAP FOR MAY FAMILY AND SEEING WHAT'S HAPPENED OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS HAS BEEN REALLY DIFFICULT WITHIN MY COMMUNITY AND YOU GOT TO TAKE A LOOK AT IT AND SAY YOU KNOW WHAT, I GOT TO STEP UP TO THE PLATE AND DO THIS.

>> Mary: YOU MIGHT BE ONE OF THE RARE FRESHMAN WHO EALLY KNOW WHAT THEY'RE GETTING INTO.

YOU'VE BEEN AROUND POLITICS AND POLICY.

>> I CUT MY TEETH IN POLICY AND POLITICS THROUGH MINNESOTA FARM BUREAU, ACTUALLY, AS A VOLUNTEER AND AS A BOARD MEMBER THERE.

STILL WHILE FARMING AND DOING A FULL-TIME JOCK AND EVERYTHING LIKE THAT AND HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS BEHIND THE VEIL AS FAR AS POLICY WORK AND WHOSE CURRENTLY GOING ON.

I TOOK A PART-TIME JOB WORKING FOR REPRESENTATIVE FINSTAD AS A DISTRICT REPRESENTATIVE AND WORKED THROUGH A LOT OF THE FARM BILL POLICY STUFF THAT WE WERE WORKING ON AT THE TIME TO BE ABLE TO HELP CREATING THE BILL AND HOPING TO GET IT TO THE FLOOR STATEMENT THIS YEAR.

>> Mary: ARE YOU READY TO WRITE A FARM BILL HERE?

>> WE HAVE TO BUILD RELATIONSHIPS, TALK TO PEOPLE AND REALLY GET TO KNOW PEOPLE ON A ONE-ON-ONE BASIS BECAUSE THAT'S REALLY WHERE THE POLICY GETS ADE, AND THAT'S REALLY WHERE WE CAN FIND OUT WHAT'S GOING TO WORK AND WHAT ISN'T GOING TO WORK.

AND OF ANYTHING I DO, THAT'S WHAT I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING DOWN TO WORK.

>> Mary: LET'S TALK ABOUT YOUR DISTRICT BECAUSE YOU HAVE A PRETTY FAMOUS LAWMAKER WHO ROSE TO THE VERY TOP, SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE.

THIS IS SVIGGUM'S OLD DISTRICT, RIGHT?

AND YOU TALK TO HIM?

>> ES, AND HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO TALK TO HIM FROM TIME TO TIME AND HE OFFERS ADVISE.

>> Mary: IS IT HELPFUL?

>> YEAH, IT IS HELPFUL.

IT GIVES YOU A LOT OF GOOD INSIGHT AS FAR AS WHERE PEOPLE ARE AT AND WHAT THEY'RE THINKING AND ESPECIALLY AROUND THE CAMPAIGNING SIDE, HE SAILED HIS BEST ADVICE IS WEAR OUT ONE PAIR OF SHOES AND HE SAYS IF YOU FIELD TO, WEAR OUT TWO AND I THINK I DID HAT THIS YEAR.

>> Mary: LET'S TALK AG POLICY BECAUSE IT IS USUALLY THE FIRST BUDGET BILL DONE, USUALLY THE MOST BIPARTISAN THING.

HOW EXCITED AND HOW SPECIAL IS AGRICULTURE?

IS IT STILL?

>> YEAH, I WOULD SAY IT'S -- IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY, IT'S NUMBER THREE IN GDP IN THE STATE OF MINNESOTA, WE RANK UP THIS AS EITHER THE SECONDS OR THIRD LARGEST EMPLOYER OF PEOPLE IN THE STATE.

AGRICULTURE SINCE HE FOUNDING OF MINNESOTA HAS HELD A VERY SPECIAL PLACE HERE, AND IT'S ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT I THINK PERSONALLY IS A VERY BIPARTISAN BILL THAT PEOPLE ARE ALL COMMITTED TO BECAUSE IF YOU EAT, YOU'RE INVOLVED IN AG.

AND IT'S ONE OF THOSE THINGS WHERE IT'S CONSTANTLY CHANGING AND E.INVOLVING BUT STILL COMES DOWN TO PEOPLE EATING AND PEOPLE BEING ABLE TO CONTRIBUTE TO OUR COMMUNITY AND WE JUST HAVE TO BE ABLE TO HELP WITH THAT.

AND I HONESTLY THINK IT'S SOMETHING WE'LL BE ABLE TO WORK THROUGH THIS YEAR.

I HOPE.

IT'S EXCITING TO HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE WITH SO MUCH KNOWLEDGE AND BACKGROUNDS IN AG, WE HAVE ENOUGH PEOPLE ON THE REPUBLICAN SIDE THAT THEY DIDN'T NEED ME ON THE AG COMMITTEE SO I HAD A CHANCE TO BE ABLE TO GET OVER AND GET INVOLVED IN COMMERCE, I'M WORKING ON HIGHER EDUCATION AND BONDING, AND IT'S SURPRISING WHEN YOU GET INTO COMMERCE, THE SHEER AMOUNT OF BILLS THAT ROLL THROUGH COMING FROM THE AGRICULTURE SIDE OF IT -- >> Mary: YOU HAVE A TOUGH DISTRICT TO DOOR-KNOCK.

BUT I'M GUESSING OU HAD TO OR YOU TALKED WITH CONSTITUENTS.

WHAT DID YOU HEAR FROM THEM, WHAT WAS THE PREVAILING MESSAGE?

>> I WAS ACROSS 6,000 DOORS AND, YOU KNOW, THE ONE THING THAT STUCK OUT TO ME IN MY MIND AS A PARENT OF TWO KIDS WAS THE IMPACT SCHOOLS ARE CURRENTLY UNDER, ESPECIALLY AROUND WHAT'S HAPPENED OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS.

YOU START TALKING TO TEACHERS AND WHAT'S CURRENTLY GOING ON AND SCHOOLS SCORE IS SLIPPING AND THEN ESPECIALLY AFTER THIS WEEK, UP FOUND OUT OUR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL IS GETTING CLOSED AND THAT'S BEEN A TOUGH ONE TO TAKE.

WANAMINGO HAS A GREAT TRADITION, SVIGGUM WAS PART OF THE SCHOOL AND WE'RE GOING TO LOSE OUR ELEMENT TEAR.

I WANT TO WORK ON BILLS THAT HELP CORRECT THAT AND FIX THAT PROBLEM AND I'M HOPING I CAN FIND SOME DEMOCRATIC COLLEAGUES TO BE TABLE TO COME ALONG WITH ME ON IT BECAUSE THE NEXT GENERATION IS TOO IMPORTANT TO GIVE UP TO BICKER ABOUT WHICH PARTY KNOWS BEST.

ULTIMATELY IT'S ALL ABOUT THE KIDS.

>> Mary: MOW DO YOU GET YOUNG PEOPLE TO STAY AND/MOVE TO GET BACK TO MINNESOTA.

>> RURAL BROADBAND.

WHICH THEY WOULD INFRASTRUCTURE, THAT'S THE BIGGEST THING RIGHT NEW, WITH TELECOMMUTING AND EVERYTHING THAT'S CURRENTLY HATCHING, AND THE AMOUNT OF BUSINESS THAT'S DONE OVER THE INTERNET, WITHIN AGRICULTURE, THE AMOUNT OF AUTONOMOUS EQUIPMENT THAT WE'RE STARTING TO SEE COMING ONLINE, ROBOTS MILKING COWS, YOU NEED HIGH SPEED INTERNET TO BE ABLE TO DOWNLOAD THAT INFORMATION.

>> Mary: HAVEN'T ADE ENOUGH PROGRESS, WE'VE BEEN HEARING ABOUT IT, THERE'S STATE MONEY, IF HE WOULD MONEY, YOU STILL NEED MORE?

>> IT'S LIKE EVERYTHING MOVES AT AN EXTREMELY SLOW SPACE AND CAN'T KEEP UP WITH WHAT'S GOING ON.

>> Mary: YOU GREW UP IN THE STATE WHEN YOUR CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT USED TO BE REALLY COMPETITIVE.

IT ISN'T ANYMORE, RURAL IS GETTING REDDER ARNOLD URBAN-SUBURBAN IS GETTING BLEWER.

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

>> ULTIMATELY IT MEANS WE'RE PEOPLE AND WE HAVE TO HAVE THOSE DIFFICULT CONVERSATIONS OF, YOU KNOW, WHERE PEOPLE ARE AT AND WHAT CAN WE DO THAT ACTUALLY WORKS OR BOTH OF US, AND WE HAVE A TENDENCIES TO GET BOGGED DOWN IN THAT SMALL 5% OR 10% OF THINGS THAT SPLIT US APART ON PARTY LINES.

BUT YOU KNOW WHAT, IF I CAN SIT DOWN WITH SOMEONE FROM THE BLUEST DISTRICT IN THE STATE OF MINNESOTA, I'LL GUARANTEE I CAN