MN-02 : Will Voters Elect an Independent ?

"John Kline has been an independent voice for the people of Minnesota’s Second Congressional District since he was first elected by the voters in 2002. " -- from John Kline's Facebook page.

An independent voice ? OK, maybe when Mr. Kline went to Washington, he had an independent voice ... but his independence was because there were more Moderates in Congress ... good people like Minnesota's Jim Ramstad. Mr. Kline was outside of the mainstream, so his independence came from advancing his agenda.
Mr. Kline is more of an ideologist.
Ideologists do not advance legislation (or society), just their own vision – and voting against any change that does not advance their ideology even if it serves the general public.

For years, Mr. Kline could claim to being an independent ... voting his ideology ... even on proposals that had wide Republican support.
Want examples ? From 2008 (pre-Obama), Mr. Kline voted against :
HR 3221 Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008 which 95 Republicans and 227 Democrats supported;
HR 4137 Extend the Higher Education Act of 1965 which 135 Republicans and 219 Democrats supported;
HR 1429 Improving Head Start Act which 142 Republicans and 223 Democrats supported;
HR 2272 21st Century Competitiveness Act which 143 Republicans and 224 Democrats supported;
HR 802 Maritime Pollution Prevention Act which 143 Republicans and 216 Democrats supported;
and there are plenty more ... including many on SCHIP, energy and jobs.

The success of Democrats in recent elections may have to do their appeal to the "independent" voter. The Kline ideology has pushed some Republicans to retire and even to defeat at the polls when the RINOs were determined to be out of their ideology mainstream (see Norm Coleman and Throwing Coleman Under the Bus ).

Mr. Kline is not satisfied with simply serving his ideology interests, but also dictating the “ issues ” for candidates.

Second District voters will soon have an opportunity to re-consider via the ballot box whether Mr. Kline is truly independent.

Voters don't know Dan Powers yet. ... but if Dan Powers takes the Scott Brown (R-MA) approach of "looking out for the best interests of the people of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts" and tell voters that he will work in the best interests of the Second District, he has a chance. Senator Brown has already proven his willingness to put his State above the Kline ideology when Senator Brown joined eleven other Republicans in February to vote for a Jobs Bill. And last week, he joined with four other Republicans to advance another bill to address the employment issue.

The Second District wants someone in Washington to represent them … not be a part of the Washington party insiders who decide what’s in our best interests. Mr. Kline is hardly an independent.