In their first and most likely only official debate on Friday, Oct. 16, Minnesota’s US Senate race candidates, DFL Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan and Republican Michele Tafoya, made one thing clear: they are polar opposites in how they’d solve key issues across the state and country.
The two were asked about the Iran war, ICE, America’s relationship with Israel, tax reforms, Pete Hegseth’s possible impeachment, fraud prevention, tariffs, and more. We watched the hour-long debate and found five key moments that Minnesotans should consider when choosing their candidate on Nov. 3.
You can read more about the candidates’ specific stances on immigration, healthcare, and civil rights here.
Trump’s US/Russia diesel deal
In the very first question of the debate, host and MPR News politics editor Brian Bakst asked Tafoya, a former sports broadcaster, about President Donald Trump’s diesel purchase deal with Russia, asking if it was the right move.
Trump announced the deal on Oct. 9 on social media, saying it was made over the phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Russia will allegedly immediately supply the US with over 300,000 tons of diesel, another 500,000 tons in November, 1 million tons “immediately thereafter,” and 3 million more tons “within a short period of time,” Trump wrote.
This comes after years of the US supporting Ukraine in the Russia-Ukraine war and a Russia sanctions law Trump signed last month that imposed 100% tariffs on the biggest importers of Russian oil or natural gas.
Tafoya started by saying she disagrees with Trump and the Republican party on the decision. She mentioned how Minnesotans are hurting from high gas prices, but said this deal doesn’t help Minnesotans and gives Putin an advantage. “I think the president missed the mark here, I think this is the wrong way to go,” Tafoya said.
US gas prices for diesel gas–as well as regular gas–have skyrocketed since Trump’s war in Iran began in February. Tafoya was initially a supporter of the war until Oct. 2, where she announced in an exclusive interview with Alpha News that she wants Trump to end the war “quickly and strategically.” You can read more about how the US Senate candidates feel about the Iran war here.
Bakst asked Flanagan about where she stands on the US’s support of Ukraine in the Russia-Ukraine war over the last four years. Flanagan said that Ukraine is our ally and “needs to be treated as such.”
She then went back to the question Tafoya was asked, saying that “Russia is run by a dictator” and that the diesel is not worth it because “the diesel coming in is one day’s worth.” Flanagan also claimed Trump is “cozying up to Vladimir Putin” and that the US should not work “with dictators.”
US relationship with Israel
Staying on the topic of overseas relationships, Bakst brought up Flanagan’s past statements condemning Israel for its actions in Gaza and calling it “a genocide.” He asked how she would “reconfigure the relationship with that steadfast middle east ally.”
After Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 terrorist attack on Israel, which killed over 1,200 people, Israel launched a devastating war on Gaza, killing over 70,000 people.
Additionally, Trump and Israel Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu worked together to launch the war on Iran earlier this year.
Flanagan acknowledged that Hamas’ attack on Israel “was horrific,” but said Netanyahu’s counter-response over three years “has been deeply destructive.” She defended her earlier statement that what’s happening in Gaza is a genocide, a view held by the world’s leading genocide scholars’ association.
Flanagan says as of now, if she were to become Senator, she would not approve additional military aid to Israel under Netanyahu’s reign. She said there needs to be a two-state solution.
Tafoya rejected the notion that Israel had committed genocide, adding that “Israel is our ally. Israel is our friend in the region,” She called out Flanagan’s statement that the war is a genocide, saying that she’s spoken to “many Minnsotan Jews” who “absolutely abhor that she [Flanagan] has said that.”
Impeaching Pete Hegseth
While talking about foreign affairs and the Pentagon’s budget, Bakst brought up Minnesota-native and US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth.
Hegseth made headlines recently after announcing he planned to livestream the capital execution of Nidal Hasan. Hasan was sentenced to death by firing squad for murdering 13 people and injuring 32 others at Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009.
After bipartisan backlash, Trump shut down the livestream plan. Now, there is a bill in the US House that is looking to impeach Hegseth for “high crimes and misdemeanor.”
When asked about Hegseth’s performance as Secretary of War, Tafoya said “we have an incomplete grade right now,” and noted she was “happy to see” Trump canceled the execution livestream.
Flanagan, when asked about her assessment of Hegseth, immediately said “F,” and said that “frankly he should be impeached.”
She questioned how Hegseth thought the livestream was “appropriate,” “I have seen enough…he absolutely should be impeached,” Flanagan said.
Trump’s tariffs
Since returning to office, Trump has imposed tariffs on goods from dozens of countries across the world, including Canada, Minnesota’s leading international trade partner.
The tariffs have caused problems for Minnesota businesses, and particularly farmers. Machinery parts and fertilizer prices have increased, and in response to the tariffs, other countries are buying less corn and soybeans from the state.
Bakst asked the candidates about the tariffs.
Flanagan said that some tariffs are important to Minnesota, like tariffs on steel, but that the current tariffs “are killing our industries.” She pointed out the issues soybean and corn growers are facing, saying “we’ve lost entire markets, potentially for generations.” She said Congress needs to “stand up” to Trump and end the tariffs.
Tafoya said she knows about the corn and soy issues because she’s endorsed by the Minnesota Farm Bureau. She said Minnesota has the best farmers and innovators, but they can only be that way if “the playing field is even,” which she says it hasn’t been.
Tafoya claimed that “both sides of the aisle have led to this” and that partners “need to be brought to the table” to negotiate deals in America’s best interest. She said she wishes Trump “used a different touch” in the trade wars with Canada and Mexico, because Minnesota needs those relationships.
In a follow-up response, Tafoya said she doesn’t want long term tariffs because “that’s not the goal here” and claimed Flanagan wants to “turn back the clock and let everything be like it was.”
Flanagan responded by noting that the Minnesota Farmer’s Union and the National Farmer’s Union have endorsed her, adding that farmers have to navigate a multitude of issues, like weather conditions and local demand, and “shouldn’t also have to navigate the chaos and the cruelty of the Trump administration.”
Flanagan said she knows farmers are “leaving the field” because of high and gas fertilizer prices, and blamed Trump’s tariff policies for it damaging the relationships between the US and other countries. She then pointed to the fact that Trump endorsed Tafoya just days ago.
Access to abortion
Tafoya has made multiple comments in the past about limiting abortion care to the first trimester. But in her latest campaign ad, she claims she’s a “pro-choice Republican.”
Bakst specifically asked her about one comment she made on her podcast, the Michele Tafoya Podcast, in August 2023, a little over a year after Roe v. Wade was overturned. Tafoya said, “a 12- or 15-week ban is reasonable.” Bakst asked Tafoya to define what reasonable access means and if she would support legislation to ban abortion past the first trimester of pregnancy.
Tafoya repeated that she is a pro-choice Republican and said she had no interest in changing Minnesota’s laws. Abortion is legal in Minnesota throughout pregnancy.
Bakst repeated part of the question, asking what reasonable access means. Tafoya paused, then said, “Three months… reasonable access is reasonable access!”
Flanagan, meanwhile, criticized Tafoya on the issue.“This is yet another place where we’re getting two different versions of Michele Tafoya.” Flanagan brought up a letter that Tafoya’s campaign sent out in May stating that the Supreme Court’s decision reversing Roe v. Wade “rightly returned the authority over abortion to the states: where it belongs.”
Flanagan also claimed Tafoya can’t call herself a pro-choice Republican when she also says she’s “completely aligned with Donald Trump.” In March, on a conservative radio talk show called Political Pitchforks, Tafoya said she was “completely in line with President Donald Trump on the issue [abortion].”
Trump’s Supreme Court appointees provided the crucial votes to overturn Roe v. Wade, and took credit for it after it was struck down.
Tafoya interjected, repeating she is a pro-choice Republican and challenging Flanagan to name something she “stood up to” her party or Gov. Tim Walz on.
Flanagan said she’s gotten “heat from DFL’ers” from her work at the Children’s Defense Fund-Minnesota. As Executive Director, she helped get legislation passed in line with the group’s advocacy for “the wellbeing and racial justice of children and youth.” Flanagan said her work with Republicans to get bills passed on the issue was controversial to some Democrats.
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