Rep. Mary Kiffmeyer says disabled Purple Heart recipient John Kriesel has 'no courage'

Rep. Mary Kiffmeyer says disabled Purple Heart recipient John Kriesel has "no courage"

By Aaron Rupar Mon., May 14 2012 at 12:34 PM

Kiffmeyer should've minced words when taking Kriesel to task for his pro-stadium stance.

People sometimes say politics is war, but retiring Rep. John Kriesel, R-Cottage Grove, could tell you from experience that the two are very different.

Kriesel, 30, lost both of his legs in Iraq in 2006. He was later awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge, the Purple Heart, and the Bronze Star. So it's no surprise he was pissed off when Rep. Mary Kiffmeyer, R-Big Lake, sent him an e-mail saying he has "no courage."

Sure, warfare and politics are two different contexts, but could Kiffmeyer have possibly chosen more inappropriate words to make her point?

Kiffmeyer, who is running in November for a new state Senate seat representing St. Michael, Albertville, and Otsego, was responding to Kriesel's steadfast support for the Vikings stadium bill. An opponent of the bill, Kiffmeyer wrote the following last week in an e-mail to her supporters:

I realized that this was a set deal between the Vikings, the Governor and the bill authors and that no matter the amendments or arguments, it would get done. They had enough votes to force it through.

In response, Kriesel sent the following message to Kiffmeyer:

Kriesel's war record suggests he's about as courageous as they come.

Force it through? C'mon Mary. You can disagree with the bill but don't lie about it.

Citing a desire to spend more time with his family, Krisel announced in March that he won't be seeking reelection to the legislature. He took a job last month as head of Anoka County's Veteran Services department. But Kiffmeyer apparently thinks Kriesel's decision not to seek reelection is cowardly, as his constituents won't have the opportunity to express their opinions about his pro-stadium stance with their ballots. So in response to Krisel's message, Kiffmeyer sent him the following e-mail: "Not only no clue but no courage to run again and be accountable and see what your district thinks."

Kriesel took to Twitter to express his indignation over his Republican colleague's "no courage" diss:

Just received the most classless email from Rep. Mary Kiffmeyer. I will do whatever I can to make sure she is not re-elected. Classless lady
-- John Kriesel (@johnkriesel) May 13, 2012

I would consider taking out a second mortgage on my house to donate to whoever is running against Mary Kiffmeyer. #mnleg
-- John Kriesel (@johnkriesel) May 13, 2012

The episode demonstrates just how polarizing the stadium issue was, even within each of the two major parties. It also suggests Kiffmeyer should probably have a staffer take a gander at her e-mails before she fires them off, lest she stick her foot down her throat again. Kiffmeyer hasn't yet apologized for her ill-considered word choice.

See also:
-- John Kriesel, pro-gay marriage MNGOP Rep., won't seek reelection [VIDEO]

Tags:

John Kriesel, Mary Kiffmeyer, preposterous statements

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Phoenix Woman

More on the Minnesota Majority - O'Keefe connection here: http://firedoglake.com/2012/05...

Phoenix Woman

This is the mindset of Mary Kiffmeyer, who is a hardcore moral scold except when she's attacking Purple Heart recipients or hooking up via Minnesota Majority with James "fuzzy handcuffs" O'Keefe to take away veterans' voting rights.

Thatguy

If Kiffmeyer wants to show us all how tough she is and how much courage she has, she can go to Afghanistan and prove it... Till then I suggest she sit her ass down, shut the hell up, and resign her seat in the MN Legislature. AND apologize immediately to Rep. Kriesel.

Sabra

cowards go to war. those with courage fight to stop war. without soldiers, there is no bloodshed.

Phallocrat

Brilliant concept. Wait...no, it's insanely idiotic. There is no bloodshed if neither side has soldiers willing to fight. If only one side has the "courage" to not fight, they are slaughtered. Under your theory, we would be courageous pacifists subject to the Nazi superpower created by our inability to win World War II.

Sabra

fool. understood. if more germans and the nazi soldiers had courage, there is no war. people are sheep and fight and kill out of cowardice. i am tired of the idea that each and every soldier that does not go AWOL is a hero. or each soldier that is wounded in duty doing what he/she signed up for is a hero. the hero is the soldier who steps forward and says "no. i will not fight. this is a war that in unjust". HE LOST HIS LEGS IN IRAQ IN 2006. how many soldiers were standing up and saying "hey, america. iraq is the wrong f@cking war. there are no weapons. they did not attack us. we are building permanent bases here and intentionally drawing attacks on our troops so we can move further into the country" before 2006? hundreds. so he is a hero because...why? he continued to follow the path of his own mistake by becoming a soldier in the first place. government used him as a pawn like thousands of others. innocent people die. more terrorists are made every day because their father, brother, mother, daughter was killed. heros are not pawns. i have many friends that fought in iraq. none are proud of the fact that they were a cog in the war machine. they do not call themselves "heros".

Joshua

I hate paying for Ziggy Wilf's retirement as much as the next guy, but that's definitely not cool. Of course, I don't think Kriesel handled it very well either. Unless I am misunderstanding something, he took a private conversation public without talking to Kiffmeyer. He should have given her the opportunity to apologize for being such a thoughtless insensitive jackass.

Rramola

She sent the email to her supporters, and copied him. I think that is how it started

Jimbo28839

She remoinds me of Bachmann

Metallironi

Kriesel...hero...

Kiffmuncher...POS...homely too...

That is all...

Jnichols7638

Kiffmeyer, you are an idiot, (big surprise) and you owe John an apology!! P.S. go away

theoko

Q: How do you know that the modern GOP has gone straight down the toilet? A: Mary Kiffmeyer is accepted as part of it.

Mike W.

Yet another example of how Repubs love vets, until they don't agree with the company line, then they lack "courage". Way to be a beacon of virtue for your party Rep. Kifffmeyer.

voter

Ironically, Mary Kiffmeyer works hard to keep people from voting. Her election as a legislator is an example of why maybe everyone shouldn't be allowed to vote. Problem is, the kind of people who elect her won't be kept out of the system under her constitutional amendment.

webcelt

The disproportionate disenfranchisement of one party is probably seen as a feature, not a bug. The Republican definition of proof of fraud is they lost.

Brent Peters

Sad state of affairs with this article. Embarrassed that she is running for the Senate seat in my town.

The worthless cunt should be gang-raped then burned alive in front of her family.

webcelt

Flagged.

Sadie

Unbelievable. How ignorant is this woman? If she was the Representative for my area, she would of lost my vote because of her comments to a man who served our country. I hope she loses her seat.

Greg

this woman is not fit to kiss the seat of his pants !

swmnguy

What does anybody expect from Mary Kiffmeyer? She's the woman who, when Secretary of State, wore a flag-patterned sweater everywhere she went so we wouldn't forget where she was born. She tried to keep Native Americans and everyone else from voting. She's the State Chair of ALEC. She openly favors the formation of a religion-based government in the US. People as bizarrely authoritarian as Kiffmeyer believe that they themselves show more courage in a day, living among people who might disagree with them, than military veterans do being wounded in combat. They claim to worship the military, but only when it supports their opinions.

In other words, Kiffmeyer is just another self-righteous bully; another right-wing Populist Nativist. Sinclair Lewis sized up her and her type beautifully in his novel, "It Can't Happen Here," written in the mid-1930's.