As a U.S. Navy submarine veteran living in Plymouth, Tom Weiler believes he’s best fit to lead and represent Minnesota’s Third Congressional District. Weiler announced his campaign in October 2021 with a goal to “turn the ship around.”
Weiler holds graduate degrees from Harvard University, Old Dominion University and the National Defense University. Weiler served 20 years in the Navy. He was stationed on four submarines, one aircraft carrier and completed eight deployments.
After being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, Weiler retired Sept. 30, 2021. The desire to continue to serve his country led to his candidacy for Congress, but ultimately it was the civil unrest in the summer of 2020 that accelerated his decision.
“To my shock and sadness I saw the streets of Minneapolis on fire, the third police precinct burn to the ground and I thought: One, how is this happening back home in Minnesota? And two, where is the leadership from the elected leaders? I looked and there were simply none to be found,” Weiler said.
If elected, Weiler would focus on issues including education and crime. Weiler said he’ll fight to ensure law enforcement have the resources they need to provide the safety and security the community deserves.
The naval veteran noted that safety and security go beyond the state of Minnesota and into the borders of Afghanistan, to Ukraine and the South China Sea. He brought up his extensive experience in foreign policy and the need for foreign policy leaders in Congress.
“It’s uniquely positioned me to be an effective leader on those types of issues right when I get to Washington, D.C. As you look at the Biden administration, unfortunately there’s been mistakes made when we overall work in foreign policy from a position of weakness, which is what the Biden administration has presented America to the world as. Dictators and tyrants like President Putin take advantage of it,” Weiler said.
During the interview with Alpha News, Weiler brought up another critical issue: inflation. If elected, Weiler will support reining in federal spending, enabling domestic energy production and reducing unnecessary regulations to ease inflation and increase spending power for all Minnesotans.
“There needs to be leadership in Washington, D.C. that understands the impact of things like 8% inflation, poor education and crime. I understand that from the perspective of the community. I grew up in the district; I understand the community and I think I’m best suited to represent this district,” he said.
The Third Congressional District covers the west metro area and is currently represented by Democrat Dean Phillips.
Pafoua Yang
Pafoua Yang is a reporter for Alpha News. She has worked as an on-air reporter for stations across the Twin Cities.
