Srp makes campaign stop in Owatonna on Owatonna

OWATONNA — Roy Srp might end up with a basement office at the Capitol, but the Independence Party candidate for Senate District 26 doesn’t mind.
During the special election on Jan. 26, Srp will vie against two major party candidates — Republican Mike Parry and Jason Engbrecht, the Democratic-Farmer-Labor candidate — for Sen. Dick Day’s old seat. Day, a six-term Republican, resigned on Dec. 8 to head up a lobbyist group, Racino Now.
If elected, Srp will face a lonely 10-month tenure. Currently there are no Independence Party Senators or representatives in the Minnesota Legislature. For this reason, even those gathered at a campaign stop at Central Park Coffee seemed dubious.
“At some point in time you’re going to have to caucus with one side or another. What side would you be caucusing with?” Leonard Binstock asked at the event on Monday.
“I would believe that they would have to come to me and try to get me to caucus with them. I don’t know that there are any rules that say that I absolutely have to do that,” Srp said. “I’m not connected to (political action committees). I’m not connected to lobbyists. I’m not connected to anyone.”
Binstock reminded Srp of former Sen. Charlie Berg, a legislator from Chokio who began his career as an independent conservative before switching to the DFL and back again, a move that landed him in a spot in near the boiler room.
Srp was unfazed.<table width="250" border="0" align="left">
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“That’s OK, and you know what if I end up with an office in the basement, it will be the loudest office in the Capitol. I’ll guarantee you that,” Srp said. “I know I’m a long shot, but I also know that the electorate is sick and tired of the way this has been going up there and it’s got to stop.”
Nevertheless, Greg Krueger pressed Srp for a specific action plan.
“We need someone to get up there and squeak. I’ve worked for the railroad for 40 years and I know all about squeaky wheels. If a wheel continues to squeak, it gets changed out,” Srp said. “Well, that wheel up there is squeaking a lot and needs to be changed out.”
Still Krueger prodded for more.
“You still didn’t answer my question. What are you going to do as an independent to cause change? Squeaking isn’t going to make it happen,” Krueger said. “What are you going to propose? What’s going to happen with one independent in the Legislature?”
Srp replied that he would caucus with whichever party had the most sensible approach, but that even if he failed he hoped to pave the way for other Independence Party candidates. The virtue an Independence Party candidate is that Srp will be in St. Paul “strings free” — theoretically untouched by special interests and party peer pressure.
But Srp was not always an independent. In 1996 he ran for the state House under the DFL banner as a pro-life candidate. That campaign ended his association with the DFL.
“The chair of the DFL wrote me a nasty note and said perhaps I should join the other party if I was a pro-life Democrat. And the (Republican) party didn’t want me because I was a Democrat,” Srp said in a telephone interview after the meeting. “So there I was — a man without a party.”
Srp joined the Independence Party in 1997.
Srp has already garnered a considerable amount of political experience on the local level. He was first elected the Waseca City Council in 1992. He has also served on the Waseca County Commission and is now in his third term as the mayor of Waseca.
The Independence Party started in 1992. It is a party that bills itself as “fiscally conservative and socially tolerant.” The small party has had some notable successes. In 1998, Independence candidate Jesse Ventura was elected governor and in 2008 U.S. Senate candidate Dean Barkley won 15 percent of the vote in a contest against Republican Norm Coleman and DFL Candidate Al Franken.

Clare Kennedy can be reached at 444-2376.

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Member Opinions: By: atlascollapsed on 1/4/10 Think I'd have to agree with Mr. Krueger. Not any specifics but plenty of catchphrases. Didn't 53% of people just fall for that one? By: secretsquirrel on 1/5/10 If losing a contest against Coleman and Franken with 15% of the vote is considered a success, I feel sorry for the IP's future. By: pookah on 1/5/10 There is no requirement to caucus with anyone, just like there's no requirement to step outside of your house. As an independent (or in this case, the ironically named Independence Party), you can basically do what you want when you want. I would suggest to Srp he develop positions. If he does, he can differentiate himself from either party, or caucus with either on each issue posited for the voter. Whatever the case, I agree with ac and ss. Welcome back, guys! By: secretsquirrel on 1/5/10 Welcome back to you too pookah! quinn, therealtruth and I were about the only ones with extra time on our hands. Thank God k was around to help out with the intellectual stuff and therealtruth had his research motor in overdrive or you two would have been disappointed in our 'showing.' LOL By: MNBear on 1/5/10 The IP has no future. Srp is emblematic of what has plagued the IP for years (even back when it was the "Reform Party"). The IP was originally built around one person - Ventura. Because he was such a "larger than life" figure, he won that election, despite having exactly zero background, training, or support - enough people voted for him despite his obvious shortcomings. And, for 4 years, the IP grooved along with Jesse at the helm, except Jesse did NOTHING to try to actually build a party - no back room operations, no fundraising, no machinery, nothing. When Jesse left office, the party went with him, and nothing was left. Now, the IP continues to front candidates like Peter Hutchinson (2006 governor candidate) and some minor candidates in various legislative districts and local races. They have no money, no volunteers, and no machinery (phone banks, volume mail outlets, web hosting sites, etc.) to help out. Therefore, since Srp isn't a "name candidate" like Jesse, he needs positions that people agree with - and he needs them fast. This first outing is a bad omen if he thinks he's going to have a chance - this was free publicity in the largest paper in the district (FDN bigger? Not sure), and he blew it. By: pookah on 1/5/10 Funny stuff, ss... By: wolfman on 1/5/10 Jesse had no training, and neither did Barrack Obama. What does that say?? By: secretsquirrel on 1/5/10 That we were tired of eating Philly Cheesesteak and decided to try a hamburger and now a crépe. Pass the Tums please. By: quinn on 1/5/10 pookah and A are back! You've been missed. Welcome back. Would think that with the right person, this could be a good showing for the IP. I just don't think Srp is going to appeal to anyone.
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