What does all of this mean?

That is what former U.S. Representative Martin Olav Sabo ’59 and Lyall Schwarzkopf, a former state legislator and former chief of staff for Gov. Arne Carlson, will attempt to explain on Monday evening. “Reflections on the Elections,” an event sponsored by the Sabo Center for Citizenship and Learning, the College Republicans, and College Democrats will be held at Augsburg College on Nov. 10 at 7 p.m.

The goal is to try to provide perspective from different points of view. Sabo, a DFLer and Augsburg alum, spent 46 years as an elected official, including 28 years in U.S. House of Representatives. Schwarzkopf, a Republican, was a city administrator in Minneapolis and is a past chair of the Hennepin County GOP.

“It’s a chance for people to interpret the election and what it means for the future,” Sabo said. “Lyall and I may agree on everything, we may have a difference of opinion.”

Sabo, who was first elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives in 1960 and was first elected to the U.S. House in 1978, said the election was an interesting one to watch because of how it changed over time.

“The focus turned totally around in a year with the economy being the focal point,” he said. “Before it was Iraq, fiscal policy and funding.”

The country’s economic problems will be one of the biggest things that Obama and the Democratic-controlled Congress will have to take care of. Sabo said simply, “There’s a lot of work to do.”

While Sabo has been out of office just less than two years, this election cycle was different.

“It was more negative than when I ran,” he said. “In the Third and Sixth (districts) there were lots of negative ads. A lot of it is driven by outside groups. That’s been escalating over the last few years.”

Reflections on the Elections

Monday, Nov. 10, 7 p.m.

Oren Gateway Center, Room 10

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The panel will discuss Minnesota legislative changes from 1971 to 1978 instituted in part by Governors Wendell Anderson and Rudy Perpich. Discussion will also focus on local and national events and how Republican legislators in the 1960s influenced the changes that would take place in Minnesota in the 70s.

This colloquium is the first of a series of events sponsored by Augsburg’s Sabo Center for Citizenship and Learning. The Sabo Center, led by sociology and urban studies professor Garry W. Hesser, seeks to encourage student civic engagement and leadership through instruction in the democratic process.

In addition to highlighting the contributions of Augsburg alumni to the state and the nation, Hesser hopes the series will encourage students to pursue careers in public service.

The Sabo Center for Citizenship and Learning Colloquium

“The Transformation of Minnesota Politics in the 1970’s: People, Policies, and Progressivism”

2 p.m.

Hoversten Chapel, Foss Center

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