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>> Representative Johnson thank you for joining >> us> thank you.
>> can you describe your district, and can you describe in what ways you in your district
are similar? >> my district is all of Nicollet County the
two major cities are at St. Peter in North Mankato and part of the city of Mankato, and
part of LeSueur County and including Kasota. I think I'm like my district because it's
really a very much of middle-class place. There's all lot of people in my district who
have come from normal beginnings and it went through school, got a good education they
were able to secure employment and have bought a home raise their families and live a good
life together. I think I'm part of that I feel part of that. I think one of the things
my wife and I are frequently talking about were lucky to live where we live people care
and people are pretty intelligent and work hard to solve problems and see the value of
community solving problems and we don't let things fester too much rather we will try
and take the bull by the horns and trying to come to a community solution and it's really
nice to be a part of that and of course it makes a very nice
>> place to >> what is your occupation outside the Legislature?
>> I work at Minnesota State University Mankato in that position I have to roles I had to
roles, one as I coordinate advising and the College of social and behavioral sciences
for 2200 undergraduate students does a lot of helping students succeed in college my
role is to help establish a system that can help guide those students towards successful
graduation. My other half of my job is prepared secondary social studies teachers and that
involves coordinating program again into an and rising I also teach the methods class
on how to teach high-school and junior high school social studies. I enjoyed a lot so
over the years I prepared a lot of the social studies teachers in our region that's very
satisfying >> what legislation have you worked on in
the past that you are most proud of? >> I think I put my best political energy
into funding for highways. Nicollet County and has a high weight called Highway 14, which
has been a problem for too long and it's a two-lane highway between Mankato and knew
all the and it really needs to be four-lane and I work closely with the corridors of Commerce
legislation that would through the last session and then really worked hard to get a down
payment on that you'll recall we did not secure long-term financing for increased financing
for roads and transit in last year legislative session but I thought we had to make some
progress and an Orvis from rural Minnesota work together to meet with the Speaker and
meet with others and to assure that we could get a down payment on that and we were able
to secure $300 million and not knowing what when we can get a project in our county are
not at the Westrom case by Odyssey we don't put earmarked funds for highways and that
is fine but based on criteria in the corridors were pleased to see Highway 14 become four
lanes faster from North Mankato to Nicollet and then the bypass bill to run Nicollet this
will happen and a couple of years and were halfway to know almost and were making it
were getting their but transportation is important in the regional centers like Mankato area
or commerce it's time were in a growth mode we need good highways. Also were in a strong
agricultural district which means there's a lot of heavy material that rides on those
roads and we have had adequate transportation for from the market and that's critical to
our key industry. >> why did you initially decide to run for
office as a representative? >> the opportunity presented itself in a strange
way when my predecessor chose to resign because yet another opportunity sell it was a shorter
time frame and I was comfortable with fat but really what I was disappointed as a citizen
of the last 10 or four years with the budget deficits. I thought the approach of basically
no new taxes have left us high and dry and it really came to head one of art from the
schools to balance the state budget. I thought that was just really poor policy so that a
been festering with me for a long time and really thought it was time for Minnesota to
establish a stable budget so everyone can know what's coming forward. And a stable budget
built on fear taxes that would invest in the future the older I get the more I'm interested
in investing long term and into the future. That was really what motivated the to get
through and take assigned I thought I had some political experience I thought I knew
how to run a campaign and it was very for me a pretty gutsy thing to do and so far I'm
glad I did that. >> if you could go back and visit any time
frame, what time would you travel to and why? >> I've always been attracted to the time
the selling time it. The part I was attracted to the late 1700's as we moved people moved
west and I thought possible error but also the opportunity to explore and sea and land
and establish a new life that is kind of fun stuff. . .