Bills wants to “slay the giants”

ST. CLOUD -The endorsement battle for U.S. Senate is underway at the Republican state convention.

State Rep. Kurt Bills, R-Rosemount, used the imagery of David vs. Goliath to showcase his race against DFL Sen. Amy Klobuchar.

"Politically the experts say Amy Klobuchar is unbeatable, she's a nice person, and have you tried her hotdish recipe?" Bills told the audience. "But we're not here to elect Miss Congeniality."

Bills said he was basing his campaign on five principles: economic freedom, incentives, competition, voluntary exchange and private property

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Bills, a high school economics teacher at Rosemount High School, has emphasized lowering the federal deficit and "taming the tax code." He also said that there is a deficit of leadership in Washington D.C. Bills linked Klobuchar to President Obama, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. He called Klobuchar a "rubber stamp" for their agenda.

"These liberals have teamed up to give us years of trillion dollar budget deficits," Bills said. "The debt that Klobuchar and Obama has created are a giant we face."

Bills is relying on Ron Paul supporters who are exhibiting their strength at the convention. He has Paul's endorsement and that of more than 40 state lawmakers including Minnesota House Speaker Kurt Zellers.

State Rep. Keith Downey, R-Edina, nominated Bills at the convention. He suggested Bills background as an economics teacher would help him win over swing voters.

"Let me show you the headline," Downey told the audience."Minnesota GOP endorses public school teacher for U.S. Senate."

You can listen to Bills' speech here: