David Bly, a Democratic challenger trying to unseat Ray Cox in District 25B, has been serving pie at some of his rallies. Steve Sviggum (R-PIG), the Speaker of the Minnesota House, has threatened legal action, stating a Minnesota statute about campaign bribery:
'Minnesota Statute 211B.13 is concerned with bribery, advancing money and treating in connection with political campaigns.
Subdivision 1 reads (in part): "A person who willfully, directly or indirectly, advances, pays, gives, promises or lends any money, food, liquor, clothing, entertainment or other thing of monetary value, or who offers, promises or endeavors to obtain any money, position, appointment, employment or other valuable consideration to or for a person, in order to induce a voter to refrain from voting, or to vote in a particular way at an election, is guilty of a felony
… refreshments of food or nonalcoholic beverages of nominal value consumed on the premises at a private gathering or public meeting are not prohibited under this section."
The response:
In a letter she sent to Sviggum, Overland pointed out that he'd quoted from the statute in his letter but had
left the clause regarding refreshments "of a nominal" value out of the quoted portion.'
http://www.northfieldnews.com/main.asp?SectionID=21&SubSectionID=44&ArticleID=9145Sviggum is now going after Jeanne Poppe, who is serving popsicles at her events. The unbelievable stupidity of this petty Repuke action just blows my mind. This really shows Sviggum's true colors.