Nebraska Citizen

John terms himself pro life. He believes life begins at conception. “It would be a travesty, if we don’t allow for an exception in the case of rape and incest. That ought to be a woman’s choice in my opinion.”

John says he favors stem cell research. When asked if he would put limits on fetal or embryonic stem cell research, John said he would want to study the issue as to what would be available if you did not use embryonic stem cells. He would want more input before he made that determination.

John supports the death penalty and would favor allowing executions via lethal injections instead of the electric chair.

John does not support the legalization of marijuana and also does not think that a doctor should be allowed to prescribe marijuana for pain relief.

We talked about how it is reported that jails are overcrowded and that most of the increase in inmates is caused by drug-related offenses. I asked if John thought it would be better to build more jails or relax the penalties for drug-related crimes. John said he thinks we have to look at everything. He thinks that we should consider building additional jails. At the same time, he believes that drug rehabilitation is a lot more important than longer incarceration, in some instances.

I asked if the State of Nebraska should subsidize prescription drugs. John felt that was a difficult question and needed much more information before he felt comfortable answering. He feels that we have major problems as a State in paying for Medicaid expenses and doesn’t think he can give a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer without hearing more.

We talked about products being purchased on the Internet and how people can purchase goods without paying local or state sales taxes. John feels he has experience with this concept because he served on the city council for many years. John feels that there has to be a way of collecting a tax on Internet sales. He thinks that if too many sales move to the Internet, local communities that rely on sales taxes will see their revenue stream dry up. He says that not all sales will move to the Internet, but it can certainly impact local government revenues.

Regarding water issues, the area that John lives in has been designated by the State of Nebraska as “over appropriated.” John thinks that he needs much more information before he would suggest any solutions. We talked about how the State can pay farmers to not irrigate or it can reduce the amount of water a farmer can use. John owns some land in the Middle Republican River NRD and knows about the EQIP program that pays farmers to not irrigate. He believes the State must continue to fund such programs.

I asked John if he realized that if every irrigation well were turned off in the Republican River Basin, Nebraska would still fail to comply with the Agreement it has with Kansas. John said, “Well, I don’t think they will fail to comply on a long-term basis. They probably have over-appropriated right now. If you shut off every well…I don’t know how they could.” I told John that, according to the State, even if you shut down every well for at least three years, the area would still not be in compliance. He said, “You might as well write off those areas, if you don’t compensate them for not having water. It would be a disaster.” I suggested that the State cannot afford to compensate that many people. John said, “I have not seen all of the figures.”

We switched over to the topic of concealed guns. John believes in the rights of gun owners, but would like to hear more evidence. He would not be ready to vote on the right to carry concealed weapons without more information.

I asked about his support for vouchers for private schools. He doesn’t feel that his mind is made up on that subject, but he would lean toward favoring the idea on a limited basis. He would like to study the issue more, but is strongly in support of public schools and believes public school teachers are doing an excellent job of educating our youth.

I asked if teachers should be required to take a competency test. John feels that there has to be some method of regulating the competency of teachers, but does not know that he could support a test for teachers.

I asked if John believes global warming is happening. He has read both sides of the issue and does not feel that he can say if it is or is not. He suspects that there is some, but he feels there are two sides. He thinks there are long-range shifts in climate, but he wants more evidence before he would say that global warming is happening.

We moved over to the subject of regulating the construction of confined livestock operations. I asked if it should be easier or harder for things such as hog lots to be built. John thinks that things are about the way they should be now. He supports the livestock friendly designation but feels that things need to be answered more on a case-by-case basis.

John supports the idea of tax breaks to encourage economic development. He also supports the idea of a venture capital fund to encourage new business, but the state must make sure that it has the financial resources to do so. He also supports continued tax breaks for ethanol development. Once again, he feels that this may need to be decided on a case-by-case basis.

Colorado anticipates shutting down between 25% and 50% of its irrigation in the next 15 years. I asked if John felt that water restrictions in Nebraska might lead to the same result. John believes that irrigation is good for Nebraska. He feels that without irrigation, the economy of the western half of Nebraska would be in a shambles. He doesn’t know if we can afford to reduce irrigation.

I asked if Nebraska should create incentives to encourage doctors and nurses to locate in rural Nebraska. He has not studied that issue and does not know if such additional needs exist. He is aware of some programs, but is unsure if more are needed or not.

I asked if John supported casino gambling in Nebraska. He does not.

The last question dealt with whether gays should be permitted to marry or have civil unions in Nebraska. John said he did not think they should be permitted to marry, but he felt that it might be unconstitutional to block civil unions under the US Constitution. He feels that it is important that the State make laws that are in compliance with US Constitutional requirements. If by ‘civil unions’ one means partnerships, then John said he does not think the State can interfere with the rights of gays to be partners.

We ran out of time for more questions, so this was the end of our interview.

John Wightman, Nebraska Legislature, Lexington Nebraska