For immediate
release: For more
information contact:
September 6, 2006 Gale
Lush, Pres. 308-478-5562
John Hansen, Sec. 402-476-8815
Email: john@nebraskafarmersunion.org
NEBFARMPAC,
the political action committee of the Nebraska Farmers Union, the state’s
second largest general farm organization, announced twenty-eight “Friends of
Family Farm Agriculture” endorsements for Legislature, Public Service
Commission, Nebraska Public Power District, University of Nebraska Board of
Regents, House of Representatives, and the Senate.
The list of
endorsements included twenty-one candidates for Legislature. The endorsements included twelve Republicans
and sixteen Democrats. NEBFARMPAC
endorsed Dave Heineman in the Republican primary and David Hahn in the Democratic
primary for Governor. No general
election endorsement for Governor has been made.
The twenty-one
candidates endorsed for Legislature were:
Jerry Bond in District 2, Lynne Sarafian Anderson in District 6, Tom
White in District 8, Mike Friend in District 10, Steve Lathrop in District 12,
Kent Rogert in District 16, Brad Ashford in District 20, Arnie Stuthman in
District 22, Greg Adams in District 24, Amanda McGill in District 26, Bill
Avery in District 28, Norman Wallman in District 30, Russ Karpisek in District
32, Annette Dubas in District 34, John Wightman in District 36, Wayne Garrison
in District 38, Cap Dierks in District 40, Thomas Hansen in 42, Frank Shoemaker
in District 44, Danielle Nantkes in District 46, and John Harms in District 48. Stuthman and Friend are the only two
incumbents. Bond, Wallman, Karpisek, Dubas, Dierks, and Nantkes are members of
Nebraska Farmers Union.
“The
implementation of term limits means that twenty of the twenty-four legislative
seats will have no incumbent in the race.
Voters need to make an extra effort to get informed on where this new
crop of candidates stand on the wide range of issues that impact family farm
agriculture and rural communities,” said Gale Lush, NEBFARMPAC President from
Wilcox. “Rural Nebraska is mired in an
economic crisis made worse with drought, skyrocketing energy costs, higher
property taxes, and water use restrictions and conflicts. In addition, other
issues that include local control of schools, state support for renewable
energy and rural development, rural
healthcare, rural access to affordable internet broadband, and local control of
planning and zoning are also critical issues for rural citizens,” Lush
concluded.
NEBFARMPAC
endorsed Matt Connealy for Public Service Commissioner in District 3, Ed
Schrock for Nebraska Public Power District in District 6, and Chuck Hassebrook
in District 3 and Jim McClurg in District 5 for Board of Regents of the
University of Nebraska.
In
Congressional races, NEBFARMPAC endorsed Maxine Moul for Congress in the First
Congressional District, Scott Kleeb for Congress in the Third Congressional
District, and Ben Nelson for Senate.
“Sen. Ben
Nelson has done a solid and effective job of representing Nebraska agriculture
in the U.S. Senate and on the Senate Agriculture Committee. His seniority will be a big plus for
Nebraska in the upcoming Farm Bill battle as agriculture will struggle to
preserve essential funding of the Farm Bill.
Over one half of net farm income for Nebraska farmers comes from Farm
Bill supports. We cannot afford to lose
Sen. Nelson’s seniority and clout,” said NEBFARMPAC Secretary John K.
Hansen.
“In the House
of Representatives, it is time for a change.
Family farm agriculture and the rural communities that depend on them
for their economic survival are getting the short end of the stick from
Congress. The Republican House of
Representatives leadership track record on family farmer issues is consistent,
and deplorable. The House leadership
helped de-rail Country of Origin labeling for American food products despite
the fact that it passed in the last Farm Bill. They stripped out a ban on
packer feeding of livestock in the Conference Committee for the last Farm
Bill. They gutted funding for the
Conservation Security Program. They
held up passage of the Energy Bill for years in an attempt to protect oil
companies from liability for groundwater contamination caused by the MTBE
product they sold, and profited from.
We need a breath of fresh air in the House of Representatives. Maxine Moul and Scott Kleeb would both do a
great job for rural Nebraska given the chanced to serve,” said NEBFARMPAC
Secretary John K. Hansen.
The
endorsements were made by the NEBFARMPAC board of directors, which compared the
backgrounds and policy positions of the candidates based on information
generally available from public sources. Input from county officers, and
members from the various districts, was considered.
NEBFARMPAC
made endorsements, and financial contributions to twelve of the candidates
endorsed. NEBFARMPAC is the political
action committee of the Nebraska Farmers Union, a non-partisan, not-for-profit
general farm organization, founded in 1913.
Its mission is to protect and enhance the quality of life and economic
well-being of family farmers and ranchers and their rural communities.
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