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Feehan announces Congressional campaign in District 1

Photo submitted by Dan Feehan for Congress Dan Feehan officially announced the start of his campaign in Minnesota’s 1st Congressional District during an event at Sibley Park in Mankato on Monday. A veteran and former Pentagon official, Feehan will be seeking the DFL endorsement for U.S. Representative.

He’s already had a varied career in service — with the military, teaching and the Department of Defense. But North Mankato resident Dan Feehan said he felt called to return to public service, this time as a member of Congress.

“The bottom line is, I love my country, and I love Minnesota,” Feehan said. Representing Minnesota’s 1st Congressional District would be a way to use what he’s learned to help serve both.

Feehan kicked off his campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives on Monday, with an announcement at Sibley Park in Mankato. Feehan is seeking the Democratic-Farmer-Labor endorsement in District 1, which covers southern Minnesota, including Rock and Nobles Counties. Feehan will compete for the DFL endorsement against at least four other candidates, including former state Sen. Vicki Jensen of Owatonna, John Austinson of Eyota, Johnny Akzam of Rochester and Colin Minehart of Albert Lea.

The 1st District seat is currently held by Rep. Tim Walz (DFL-Mankato). Walz is running for Minnesota Governor instead of seeking re-election.

Feehan spoke to the Independent earlier this week about his decision to run for Congress.

Born in St. Paul, Feehan grew up in Red Wing, and now lives in North Mankato. He was an active duty member of the U.S. Army from 2005 to 2009, and served two tours of duty in Iraq. Feehan was also a math teacher working with low-income students in Gary, Indiana from 2009 to 2011. Starting in 2013, he served as a White House Fellow, and eventually became the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Readiness.

“I feel these experiences have built on each other,” Feehan said, and given him a perspective on leadership that is needed in Congress.

In the lead-up to launching his campaign, Feehan said he had been putting in a lot of travel time around Minnesota, and listening to common concerns being voiced. The way he saw it, Feehan said, “You have to listen. You have to act, too, but you have to listen.”

Feehan said he’s heard consistent things from Minnesotans on key issues like health care. Not only is there concern about what could happen if the Affordable Care Act is repealed and replaced, “but also where (the ACA) has fallen short.” Congress needs to work to make changes and improve the ACA, instead of repealing it, he said.

Feehan said he would also support measures to increase economic opportunities in Minnesota, like job training and education to help fill skilled worker positions. Support for agriculture also needed to be part of the picture.

Feehan said seeing the way that Minnesota communities support each other was something that had stuck with him since he was a kid. But farms played a big role as well.

“Those communities support each other, but the farmland supports all of it,” he said. We need to help lower the entry barriers that keep more young people from going into farming, he said.

“We want our farms to stay strong,” and stay innovative, Feehan said.

Feehan said he also thought Congress should return to having more of a say on whether the U.S. uses military force. The war on terror has gone on for 15 years, at a high cost to Americans, he said, and “It’s the role of the legislative branch to provide oversight for use of force.”

While there is a lot of division in U.S. politics currently, Feehan said he was focused on running a positive campaign.

“I want to be able to convey who I am as a leader,” he said. “I want to have a positive vision.”

More information on Feehan’s campaign can be found online, at danfeehan.com.

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