It was a way for the governor to explain his personal experiences. Ventura requested the meeting with Anderson after the columnist outlined his ideas for citizen's natural resources commission in an April 2 article. The story made no specific mention of hunting, but the columnist said Ventura didn't understand the importance of the state's natural resources. The resulting article and interview transcript were widely discussed in conservation circles Wednesday. Minnesota has about 500,000 licensed hunters who pursue everything from deer to ruffed grouse.
Deer hunting is a passion and way of life for many in our population.
It's not wartime actions,'' he said. Sometimes I think he's politically astute, and sometimes I think he's from another planet.'' Sen. Bob Lessard, an ardent advocate of hunting and fishing issues and the only legislator who belongs to Ventura's Independence Party, was also puzzled by Ventura's remarks. Ventura made a similar remark in his first Playboy magazine interview in 1999, in which he said he didn't hunt deer. Staff writer Jim Ragsdale contributed to this article.