John Hanson best qualified for 3rd District

While one prominent candidate in this year's primary is making a point of not being "a career politician," John Hanson is taking a different tack.

If he's elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, he wants to stay there for life. While that won't set well with those who favor term limits, it demonstrates his working knowledge of politics in Washington, and the reason the McCook Daily Gazette is endorsing him for the Republican nomination to represent the 3rd District.

Hanson says he has no intention to run for any other seat, and it's that focus that qualifies him to represent greater Nebraska in Washington.

Should he be elected to Congress, Hanson hopes to use his position to take a leadership role in agricultural policy in the United States. As a long-time staffer for U.S. Rep. Tom Osborne, Hanson knows that will take time, and at 43, he is willing to invest the years necessary to make that happen.

A Lexington native and Kearney State College graduate, Hanson is a custom cattle feeder and owns both surface and groundwater irrigated farmland.

But like many involved in agriculture Hanson found off-farm income, becoming an accomplished crop insurance salesman, auctioneer and banker.

Politics called in 2000, but Hanson saw that hand writing on the wall and gave up his own bid for the 3rd District congressional seat to go to work for Tom Osborne.

After Osborne's election, Hanson visited every county in the district, and has spoken in more than 60 schools there, addressing issues such as substance abuse and making right choices.

Active church-goers, Hanson and his wife, Kyle, general counsel for The Buckle based in Kearney, have four young children, and were founding members of the board of directors of Family First, a Christian-based leadership group working to promote and restore family values in the state and an affiliate of the Focus on the Family organization. Hanson has also been endorsed by pro-life groups in the state.

Those are a good fit with the average 3rd District voter. But Hanson knows that agriculture and economic development are the bread-and-butter issues that will help greater Nebraska grow and thrive.

As a graduate of the Nebraska LEAD program, a member of the Nebraska Ag Builders, Kearney Area Ag Producers Alliance, Nebraska Corn Growers, Nebraska Cattlemen Association, Rotary and Nebraska Farm Bureau, John Hanson is deeply involved in and has a working knowledge of the factors that will make his time in Congress productive for the 3rd District.

He deserves a chance to prove what he can do in Washington.