A Minnesota grandmother and former business owner, who was imprisoned for 60 days and fined $1,000 for defying COVID-19 lockdown orders, has spoken out against Governor Tim Walz, warning that he will “take away” Americans’ rights.
Lisa Hanson, who owned the Interchange Wine & Coffee Bistro in Albert Lea, told Fox News that she was driven to defy the lockdown orders after watching Walz allow large corporations to reopen while keeping small businesses like hers shuttered. Hanson’s decision to reopen her business led to a series of civil and criminal cases being brought against her, resulting in her conviction on misdemeanor charges in December 2021.
Hanson dismissed the notion that Walz is a benevolent leader, as portrayed by the mainstream media and the Harris campaign, which recently announced Walz as Vice President Kamala Harris’s running mate in the 2024 presidential election. “This is not who this man is,” Hanson said. “He would like to take your rights away. He will take your rights away. What happened to me could have happened to anybody. What happened to me will happen to you.”
As a member of the “Open Minnesota” group, which comprised nearly 200 business owners, Hanson believed that Walz and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison were operating outside the law. She recalled how the state government “came down” on her business “with a vengeance” within 24 to 48 hours of her reopening, resulting in tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees and fines.
Hanson’s experience had a devastating impact on her personal life, causing her to miss out on precious moments with her family, including Christmas, her wedding anniversary, and the birth of one of her grandchildren. “My family has paid a dear price,” she said. “My business was destroyed. My business is gone. Tim Walz and Keith Ellison destroyed my business. They wrecked my life.”
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Hanson’s warning comes as another Minnesota business owner, who faced over $300,000 in fines for defying Walz’s shutdown orders, has also spoken out against the governor, describing him as an “evil man” who “took small businesses and ripped them up.” During the pandemic, Walz ran a hotline that encouraged citizens to report on their neighbors who may have been violating lockdown orders.
