Letter to the editor: Mischaracterizations abound in charges against Lillie

I am writing in support of Sen. Ted Lillie to bring to light some of the falsehoods and untruths being told by letter writers and others who oppose his policies and candidacy.

One of the biggest untruths is that our Republican senators are somehow financially responsible for the scandal and lawsuit involving former Senate staffer Michael Brodkorb. The truth is Brodkorb was an employee of the state Legislature, therefore the cost of defending against his lawsuit is at the expense of his employer, the state. It wouldn’t be expected that either party, Democrat or Republican, to privately fund the legal defense. To try to lay this at Sen. Lillie’s feet is not fair or correct.

Further misinformation is being spread about the State shutdown. Sen. Lillie did not take a salary, out of consideration for employees who were laid off during that time. It was the governor who vetoed the compromise budget. Legislators sat at the Capitol on the final day of session waiting for the governor to propose a compromise. He never did, because he wanted the shutdown.

The governor vetoed the school pay back. The school shift method of budgeting was put in place by a bipartisan Senate and House in the late ‘90s and is not something Ted or the Republicans invented.

In fact, it was Sen. Lillie who proposed “lights on” legislation so government employees wouldn’t lose their jobs if there were impasses or shutdowns.

Finally, Ted Lillie didn’t leave his district. The district left him (due to redistricting). Ted has been serving Woodbury for the past two years. His wife has worked at Woodwinds Hospital, so moving to Woodbury, where his family has over a decade of connections and public involvement was the right thing to do.

Vote for Ted Lillie on Nov. 6.

Betty Marquardt – Woodbury

Tags: letters to the editor, opinion, elections, updates