Minnesota Lawyer
Rick Nolan
Former state legislator Becky Lourey is backing DFL challenger Rick Nolan in the Eighth Congressional District. Lourey spent six years in the House, followed by a decade in the Senate. She ran for governor in 2006, but lost to former Attorney General Mike Hatch in the DFL primary.
“Rick Nolan is telling the truth about the balanced approach we need to control the national debt,” said Lourey, in a statement. “He’s absolutely right to insist on ending the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy, bringing wars of choice in the Middle East to a close, reducing our unnecessary military footprint around the world, cutting the Pentagon budget while protecting national security, and re-investing the trillions we’ll save into revitalizing America’s infrastructure and generating millions of new jobs in the process.”
Nolan also formally announced that state Rep. John Persell, DFL-Bemidji, is backing his candidacy. Persell had flirted with a congressional bid himself, but ultimately decided to support Nolan. State Rep. Ryan Winkler, who grew up in Bemidji and considered entering the contest, is also backing Nolan’s candidacy.
Nolan spent three terms in Congress in the Seventies, but then opted not to run for-re-election. He is seeking to oust freshman GOP Rep. Chip Cravaack. Former state Sen. Tarryl Clark and Duluth City Council member Jeff Anderson are also vying for the DFL nomination.
