Affordable Care Act takes center stage in Minnesota's First Congressional District

Years ago, the idea of a candidate like U.S. Rep. Tim Walz turning the conservative-leaning southern Minnesota district into a Democratic stronghold would have seemed implausible.

But the former Mankato schoolteacher and National Guardsman has built a 10-year career in Congress on an eclectic political record.

Walz is an opponent of new gun restrictions but among the earliest supporters of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. He talks about helping immigrant populations but supported a Republican-led measure to expand background checks for Syrian and Iraqi refugees. On the Affordable Care Act, which many Democrats are criticizing, Walz is vociferously supportive.

http://www.startribune.com/affordable-care-act-takes-center-stage-in-minnesota-s-first-congressional-district/399759471/