By A.J. Janssen
Former Chair, Public Safety, Health and Welfare
Commission, City of Cottage Grove
Minnesota was once my home — a place I believed in,
served, and hoped would be better. But over the years, I’ve
watched this state slip into something unrecognizable. The
ideological shift here hasn’t just been disappointing — it’s
been dangerous. I’m leaving Cottage Grove, and ultimately
Minnesota, because the politics, the power structures, and
the pervasive corruption no longer reflect the values I once
thought we shared.
Despite appearances, the political landscape here is not
diverse — it’s a duopoly. Both Democrats and Republicans
are complicit in a system that serves itself rather than the
people. Millions are spent every election cycle not to inform,
but to manipulate — to tell voters exactly what they want to
hear while ignoring what they actually need. We are living in
a system where truth has been sacrificed at the altar of
party loyalty and performative governance.
Donald Trump’s return to power is, in my view, a
consequence of the Democrats’ failure to uphold democratic
principles. Instead of standing firm, many of them folded.
And when you have only two parties playing the same
corrupt game, it’s no longer a democracy — it’s the breeding
ground for authoritarianism. Worse still, I saw how deeply this behavior is ingrained. I
served on the Public Safety, Health and Welfare
Commission in Cottage Grove — eventually chairing it.
During my tenure, I received direct messages from city
council members attempting to influence my vote. That’s not
just unethical; it’s a betrayal of the public trust. I stood my
ground, but the rest of the commission caved. A year later, a
pedestrian was hit in the very spot I’d fought to make safer.
This wasn’t just one bad decision — it was a systemic
failure, and it revealed the ugly truth: our local government
is as compromised as our national one.
So I’m leaving — for my safety, for my sanity, and for my
future. I’m moving to a place where I’ll have a real chance to
start over, and maybe, one day, make my way across the
Canadian border for good. I’ve lost faith in a state that
taught me how to lead but punished me for trying to lead
with integrity.
I don’t write this to burn bridges but to shine a light.
Minnesota has a deep-rooted problem with power — who
has it, how they use it, and how little they’re held
accountable. Until that changes, more people like me will
leave. And those who stay will have to decide whether to
keep playing along, or finally demand the truth.

AJ Janssen
Cottage Grove