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February 14, 2005
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| Doug Ewald, Ed Gearty and three other former legislators founded the Minnesota Legislative Society nine years ago. (MPR Photo/Laura McCallum ) |
St. Paul, Minn. — The Kelly Inn, about a block from the state Capitol, is a natural meeting place for politicians, even ones who have been out of the spotlight for awhile.
"We don't miss the Legislature, but we miss our friends," said Otto Bang, a Republican legislator from Edina from 1963 to 1983. Bang and four other former legislators started the Minnesota Legislative Society as a way to keep in touch with their colleagues. They believe it's the only group of its kind in the country.
One of the group's board members, Gary Flakne, served in the Legislature in the 60s and early 70s as a Republican from Minneapolis. He said legislators share a bond.
"The Legislature, it's a very special breed of cats," said Flakne. "People are here because they don't have to be, they're here because they want to do a good job, they want to be of service to their local community, and they don't get paid a lot of money for it. So you get people who are really dedicated to government, and you never lose that kind of a touch."
Flakne said it doesn't matter whether former legislators are Democrat or Republican, they have plenty in common. And many former legislators think during their time at the Capitol they got along much better with people on the other side of the aisle, compared to the partisan gridlock of recent years.
"We could battle on the floor, but we could go out and we could have a drink or dinner or whatever afterwards and socialize," said Bang. "And I don't see that happening today."
The rules were different in Bangs' era. There were no limits on legislators accepting meals and gifts from lobbyists -- the "gift ban" enacted ten years ago. And when Bang was first elected, legislative candidates didn't even declare a political party on the ballot. Until 1973, lawmakers were elected on a nonpartisan ballot, and caucused with either liberals or conservatives.
State Sen. Cal Larson, R-Fergus Falls, was first elected to the House in 1966. He said the Legislature was a more collegial place back then.
"We've lost a lot of that, but of course, at that time there were a lot of rural legislators," Larson said. "I've been through five reapportionments, so now about 50 percent of the people live within 40 miles of the Capitol. So everybody goes home."
Larson also remembers when legislators were paid $400 a month. Now they make more than $30,000 a year. The first year Larson served, Minnesota had its first $1 billion budget. Now it's approaching $30 billion. And when Shirley Hokanson, a Democrat from Richfield, was first elected in 1974, there were only seven women in the 134-member House.
"Sure, it was male-dominated at that time, but each year, as long as you could see some progress, it was well worth what turned out to be a wonderful experience," Hokanson said.
Now, women make up about a third of the Legislature. Hokanson is a board member of the Minnesota Legislative Society, and said the group serves as a link to the Legislature's past.
"There's a history there, and I'm involved with this group now so that we're able to preserve the history of the Legislature, good and bad," Hokanson said.
The group's founders say the Minnesota Legislature Society is more than just a social group. Its membership dollars help contribute to restoration efforts at the Capitol, and the group has established an Elmer Andersen Award for Outstanding Public Service. The late Minnesota governor was the award's first recipient shortly before he died last year.
The group's executive director, former Republican legislator Doug Ewald of Tonka Bay, said the recent decision to expand membership to current legislators will only broaden the organization's usefulness.
"It's really our hope that we can learn a lot from current legislators, and by the way, maybe current legislators might pick up," Ewald said. "I'm a short-term member. I only served four terms in the House but some of these folks have served 28, 30, 35 years in the House and Senate, and they're really a wealth of information."
The Minnesota Legislative Society is also working on a video recording of the comments of former legislators. Ewald said past efforts to keep up a group like this have failed. He believes this organization will continue, because its mission is about more than just remembering the past.
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