Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar visited North Dakota State on Feb. 23 for a campaign rally as part of her bid for the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee. The event was promoted by NDSU College Democrats through social media and there were 1000 people in attendance at the event held in the Great Plains Ballroom.

Many attendees were enthused to hear from Amy and listen to her bid for the presidency. Dozens of people were holding “Amy for America” signs and showing their support for her. Senator Klobuchar is the only Democratic candidate to visit Fargo this election cycle, and that was noted by many attendees of the rally.

Amy is not only facing off with other moderate Democrats like Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg but also leftist Democrats like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. Although Bernie Sanders is leading in the polls nationwide, Amy remains the gem of the Midwest and the latest poll by the Star Tribune places her in the lead in Minnesota with 29 percent of voters saying they will vote for her, six percent ahead of second place, Sanders.

“It is easy to say what is popular in a room, but what’s hard is to make the right decision and to do the right thing and to make those tough decisions.”

Amy Klobuchar, Minnesota Senator and Democratic presidential candidate

Taylor Spreeman, the president of College Democrats, spoke about Senator Klobuchar’s appearance on campus. Spreeman sees a lot of Midwestern Amy supporters as the election nears since she is a Senator in Minnesota.

“She is willing to work across party lines,” Spreeman said, adding that Klobuchar is a modernist in North Dakota.

When it comes to Klobuchar’s rally in North Dakota and the upcoming North Dakotan caucus approaching, Spreeman said that her appearance will be very impactful. Spreeman said that Klobuchar’s focus on college debt and education will also draw attention from college students at NDSU.

Spreeman also said that Klobuchar supports the needs of Midwesterners. “The Midwest is home to Amy,” Spreeman said. “Donald Trump views the Midwest as a flyover.”

Other attendees, including members of College Republicans, had no intention of voting for her but still came to hear her speak on her political positions and stay informed.

“Republicans are willing to work with her which means we will be able to get stuff done,” Spreeman said.

Many attendees spoke of their support for Amy and how they are likely to vote for her in the primaries. As a Fargo resident, Vallory Nelson, said, “She had my vote coming in, but this confirmed that we made the right decision.”

She went on to explain how she believes farming and healthcare are big issues for people in the area, and Amy has a great deal of support here. Other rally attendees described how they were unsure of who they would vote for and came to Amy’s rally to learn more about her stances on certain issues.

On the issues

Most of the Democratic candidates believe in adopting a more robust health care system, but they are split over the best way of achieving this is. Senators Sanders and Warren support a Medicare For All option that would replace private health insurance plans in favor of a new Medicare plan. Senator Klobuchar and former Vice President Joe Biden support building on the Affordable Care Act and offering a non-profit public option.

Another issue that divides the candidates is their plans on lowering student debt. Sanders proposes eliminating all $1.6 trillion in student-loan debt to the federal government or private lenders. Warren supports loan-forgiveness plans that target lower and middle-class borrowers.

Buttigieg proposed student-loan forgiveness in exchange for national service. Biden supports fixing existing debt-relief programs, including the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program which forgives loans for public service workers after 10 years.

Klobuchar supports expanding and fixing loan-forgiveness programs as well as increasing the maximum Pell Grants and federal student loans.

Klobuchar became Minnesota’s first elected female Senator in 2006 and has kept her Senate seat since. She is a part of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, which is an important committee to the Midwest and the farming industry. This Congressional session, the committee will be looking to pass a new Farm Bill, aiming at extending disaster assistance programs for farmers and supporting the economic development of rural communities.

The Rally

Mayor Johnathan Judd of Moorhead opened the rally by declaring his reasons for supporting Amy and her fellow Minnesota Senator, Tina Smith. The stage was then given up to Senator Smith who announced her own support for the presidential hopeful and spoke of their years of friendship and combined work in Congress.

Senator Klobuchar began her speech by greeting residents of North Dakota and Minnesota alike and with the statement: “a river doesn’t divide us, it unites us.” She spoke on many issues and her plans for presidency including her beliefs on healthcare, K-12 and higher education, farmers and climate change. 

Amy believes the Affordable Care Act should be built upon by adding a non-profit public option. This is in contrast to the Medicare For All plan supported by Senators Sanders and Warren.

“The ACA is now ten points more popular than the president of the United States,” Klobuchar said. “You don’t blow up a bridge, you build one.”

She wants to lower pharmaceutical prices and negotiate better prices under Medicare, as well as bring in less expensive drugs from safe countries. She wants to increase funding for addiction treatment for opioids and other addictions as well as invest in mental health services.

Amy spoke of increasing education spending for preschool, kindergarten through grade 12 and offering free two-year college to those who want it. This contrasts with other Democrat’s plans to have free four-year universities such as Sander’s and Warren’s plans.

“Instead of using taxpayer money to send wealthy kids to go to college, I don’t think that makes sense. I think what we should be doing is taking that hard-earned money and focus on the people that need it the most by doubling the Pell Grants from $6,000 to $12,000,” Klobuchar said.

Amy also spoke about her electability against President Donald Trump and how she could sway independent and moderate voters that had voted for Trump in the 2016 election.

“Our American dream cannot handle four more years of a president who thinks he can choose who lives it,” Klobuchar said. “I want someone heading up this ticket who is going to bring people with her.”

Amy spoke of her plans for her first days as president, starting on day one with reentering the United States into the Paris Climate Agreement.

On day two she wants to bring back the clean power rules and on day three the gas mileage standards. On days four, five and six she plans on passing sweeping legislation to take out climate change.

“It’s easy to have a bumper sticker solutions,” Klobuchar said. “It is easy to say what is popular in a room, but what’s hard is to make the right decision and to do the right thing and to make those tough decisions.”

Where we stand

Klobuchar is one of the eight Democratic presidential hopefuls and one of the seven that remains on the debate stage after months of campaigning, two caucuses, one primary and several debates.

Of the 76 declared Democratic delegates, she has earned seven but aims to raise that number after the South Carolina primary on Feb. 29, along with the 14 states and two territories with primaries on Super Tuesday, March 3.

The two ways to vote in the North Dakota primary are through the absentee ballot or in-person. Absentee ballot forms must be requested by Tuesday, Feb. 25 and the vote must be submitted by March 5. On March 10, there will be in-person voting at 14 locations across the state. Minnesota’s primary will be held on Super Tuesday, March 3. Amy continues to gain support across the country and her visit to her homeland of the midwest spoke volumes to many of those in attendance.