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Another Smith seeks long-term commitment to 3rd District
Adrian Smith of Gering does not want increases in sales and income taxes, and he does not want to lose local control of small schools. He wants to promote ethanol development and he wants to revitalize the downtown districts of small Nebraska communities.
And -- the 35-year-old man from the Nebraska Panhandle said -- he wants to represent 3rd District Nebraskans in the U.S. Congress.
Smith stopped in McCook Wednesday afternoon on a two-week campaign swing through the Third District, which covers nearly 85 percent of Nebraska's total land area and includes 68.5 of the state's 93 counties.
Smith is a fourth-generation Nebraskan and resident of the 3rd District with a lifelong passion for politics that started with his grandfather. "He was a World War II veteran who dropped everything to watch the evening news," Smith said. "He listened, and then he talked about it."
Smith said he started learning about politics and about Republicans and Democrats when his parents helped him compare Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan. "I'm a Conservative Republican," Smith said.
While he attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Smith served as a staff intern in the Nebraska Governor's office and later, as a legislative page in the Nebraska Unicameral.
After graduating from UNL and returning to Gering, he became the project manager in staff development for Educational Service Unit No. 13. In 1994, he was elected to the Gering city council.
Winning the District 48 seat in the Nebraska Unicameral four years later, in 1998, he earned a reputation as a supporter of conservative values and ideas.
"I am pro-life," he said. "Illegal immigration cannot and should not be tolerated." He opposes gun control and calls for the repeal of the death tax.
"My record in the Legislature will reflect my support of small schools, local control of small schools and the importance of community involvement in small schools."
"I support ethanol production and I am a friend of the farmer," Smith said. In 2005, Smith supported Gov. Dave Heineman's rural economic development package which contained ethanol development funds, rural grants and value-added agriculture programs.
"My priority is economic growth," Smith said. "It's important for agriculture and it's important for Nebraska."
"With the challenges facing agriculture, it is vital that we look at expanding markets around the world," he said.
Smith is proud of the fact that while in the Legislature he voted twice against raising the minimum wage and opposed all sales and income tax increases. Last year, Smith supported then Gov. Mike Johanns when the Legislature passed a sales tax increase over the Governor's veto. "I believe Nebraskans are overtaxed," Smith said.
"I feel fortunate to have had this experience in the Legislature," Smith said, but, he added, that while he is proud of his record, it is in the past, and what is important is the future.
Smith admits that campaigning in Nebraska's Third District is a "large task. That is why I am starting early."
"There are big shoes to fill in Nebraska's 3rd Congressional District," Smith has said. "Rep. Virginia Smith served the district as I was growing up and I vividly recall her devotion to Nebraska. Reps. Bill Barrett and Tom Osborne continued Mrs. Smith's commitment, and I seek to do the same."
While Smith knows it will be a challenge to follow popular coach-congressman Tom Osborne, he said he doesn't think Third District Nebraskans want "a carbon copy of Osborne."
Smith said his record in the Nebraska Legislature will tell voters where he will stand in Congress. He said his opponent, Osborne's top aid John Hanson, has no record and that many people assume he will vote like Osborne.
"Despite my age," Smith said, "I believe I bring the most experience to the table."
Smith said his age -- just 35 -- can be an advantage. "I hope to serve a good many years," he told a news reporter earlier in his campaign. "In order to gain clout in the U.S. House of Representatives, you need longevity. I want to at least offer that to the voters."