By Meg Cunningham, Beacon: Missouri
October 11, 2024
U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley is on the Nov. 5 ballot as he seeks another term in Congress. The Republican is being challenged by Missouri Senate hopefuls Democrat Lucas Kunce, Better Party candidate Jared Young and Green Party candidate Nathan Kline.
(Missouri Independent photo)
The winning candidate will join a fractured U.S. Senate that has 33 of 100 seats up for election this November.
The Beacon reached out to all of the candidates to survey their views on top issues to Missouri voters. Hawley’s campaign did not respond to queries, but The Beacon has compiled his public statements on applicable questions.
Here are their responses.
What policies do you support related to abortion?
Hawley: While in the Senate, Hawley backed a 2022 bill that would ban abortion nationally after 15 weeks, with exceptions for rape, incest or for the health of the mother. Hawley has stated he supports Missouri’s abortion ban and that he believes the issue should be left up to the states, despite his co-sponsoring of the bill in the Senate.
Kunce: Missourians should have the freedom to decide how they build and raise their families. But after Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, politicians made our state the first to enact a total abortion ban with no exceptions even in cases of rape and incest. They robbed Missourians of their freedom and put the Big Brother government in control of our bodies and lives. That’s why I support Amendment 3, which will overturn Missouri’s cruel and extreme abortion ban. And it’s why, once I am elected to the U.S. Senate, I’ll vote to codify Roe v. Wade. This November, we’re going to defeat Missouri’s extreme abortion ban and we’re going to secure our freedom.
Young: I am pro-life and believe every abortion is a tragedy. But I also believe the pro-life movement does itself a disservice by taking an all-or-nothing, uncompromising approach to the issue. I am opposed to unlimited, on-demand abortion, and I’m also opposed to complete abortion bans. I believe a 15-week ban with exceptions for health emergencies and rape/incest is a responsible, broadly supported approach to this deeply personal and morally charged issue. I also believe adoption should be more widely considered as an option when a pregnancy is unwanted.
Kline: Women have an inalienable right to control their own bodies. The decision of whether or not to bring a pregnancy to term is a woman’s alone to make. All women must have the option of obtaining a safe and legal abortion. When abortion is illegal, it condemns young and poor women to unsafe and sometimes fatal abortion practices.
However, abortion is not a desirable form of birth control — it is a final recourse. Preventing pregnancy is the better option. Green philosophy regards women as life-givers, and we see the loss of even a potential for life as regrettable. We should work to create a society in which abortion becomes less necessary.
Do you support exceptions for rape or incest when it comes to limits on abortion?
Hawley: Hawley supports abortion exceptions for rape, incest or when the life of the mother is in danger.
Kunce: In November, we’re going to vote “yes” on Amendment 3, overturn Missouri’s extreme abortion ban, and put Missourians back in charge of their own reproductive health care decisions including in cases of rape and incest. My opponent supports the current abortion ban in Missouri, which has no exceptions for rape or incest. He has co-sponsored a federal abortion ban, tried to ban the abortion pill nationwide, and compared abortion to both slavery and murder.
Young: Yes. I believe a 15-week ban with exceptions for health emergencies and rape/incest is a responsible, broadly supported approach.
Kline: Yes, but as my answer above indicates, these exceptions alone are not sufficient to make sure that women are in charge of their own bodies.
What policies do you support related to IVF access?
Hawley: Hawley has previously said he supports a national right to access in vitro fertilization. But in June, he joined other Republican senators in voting against a bill that would establish a national right to IVF treatments. He said the bill was unnecessary because IVF is already legal.
Kunce: Missourians should have the freedom to decide how to build and raise their families, including using treatments like IVF. As senator, I will always vote to ensure access to IVF for ALL our country’s families by requiring health insurance providers to cover IVF treatments.
Young: IVF access should not be restricted by the government. It is often the only way a couple can conceive. It has been politicized by the parties, and that needs to stop.
Kline: I and the Green Party completely support the use of IVF.
What policies do you support related to immigration?
Hawley: In 2022, Hawley introduced a bill that would give states the authority to enforce federal immigration laws, prosecute anyone who illegally enters the country and prosecute undocumented immigrants who commit crimes while entering the country. Hawley also sponsored a bill in 2019 that would have capped refugee admissions, end the diversity visa lottery and limit family-sponsored immigration. More recently, Hawley opposed the bipartisan border bill in Congress because he said the legislation did not go far enough on illegal immigration.
Kunce: Before deploying to Iraq, I trained with the Border Patrol Tactical Unit at our southern border. Americans agree that there is a border crisis, and I’ve seen it firsthand. Unfortunately, politicians from both sides of the aisle have failed to adequately address the issue.
As U.S. senator, I will prioritize securing our border. We need to fully fund and equip the Border Patrol and stop the flow of fentanyl. We need to fund more immigration judges to process the large backlog of cases. And we need to stop employers from taking advantage of both American and non-American workers.
Young: We need a secure border, and we need more legal immigrants. The current state of the border, where millions of people are coming into the country without us knowing who they are, is unacceptable. We must secure our border. At the same time, legal immigrants are vital to both our culture and our national economy. I support measures that will make legal immigration easier for qualified workers. My heart breaks when I hear politicians demonizing immigrants. Most immigrants are people like us who are simply trying to find a path to a better life, just like our ancestors.
Kline: The immigration crisis is driven by the climate crisis. As subsistence farmers are forced off the land in South and Central America due to droughts, hurricanes and high temperatures they are piling up on our border as we callously try to wall ourselves off from their plight. This surge of climate refugees coming north will only get much greater in the coming few years.
The U.S. has always been the most welcoming country in the world to immigrants. It is the root of our success. Immigrants are less violent than U.S.-born citizens in our country and they work hard for less pay, giving us a boost of new striving Americans every generation. We need to greatly increase the resources needed to efficiently process immigrant applications, for their benefit and ours. Blaming immigrants, who are the weakest, most vulnerable people amongst us, for the problems of our country is cowardly and counterproductive.
What policies do you support related to earmarks or securing federal funds for Missouri?
Hawley: While in the Senate, Hawley has opposed funneling federal funds back to the states. He and Missouri’s junior Sen. Eric Schmitt have both refused to ask for allocations to Missouri, called “earmarks,” when it comes to federal money that is sent to individual states. Instead, federal funds that are sent to Missouri have come from members of the House of Representatives.
Kunce: A senator’s most important job is to bring money and resources back to their state. Missouri used to be represented by Roy Blunt, a Republican senator who brought back hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding to Missouri projects each year. But Josh Hawley hasn’t brought back a single dollar of congressionally directed spending to Missouri. Not one. When I am elected to the U.S. Senate, I’ll ensure that Missouri receives its fair share of federal resources so that we can reinvest in our state and rebuild our communities.
Young: As a senator representing the people of Missouri, I will have a responsibility to be an advocate for them at the national level. I will work collaboratively with my Senate colleagues to effectively negotiate legislation that will be in the best interest of the people I represent. As an independent in the Senate, I can prioritize people over party demands and will use the leverage I will have as a swing vote in a closely divided Senate to secure funds for our state.
Kline: In office I would work hard to maximize investments in the needs and priorities of Missourians. Piecemeal earmarked funds attached to existing legislation is certainly not the best way to do this, but not out of the question in certain circumstances. The best way to bring federal funds to invest in Missourians is to promote and bring into existence universal federal benefits, the most impactful of which would be the establishment of guaranteed universal single-payer health care as a right for every American like almost every industrialized country in the world already provides.
We now spend twice as much per person in our country on health care versus any other country in the world, but cannot match our peers in health care outcomes. This is because the failed for-profit health care model we have now is defended equally by both Democratic and Republican politicians because of the massive amount of political donations that they take from insurance companies, hospital corporations and other private health companies that maximize their profits while the health of Americans suffers. Only the Green Party, because we reject all corporate donations, will fight to bring this federal investment home to Missourians.
What policies do you support related to the Russia-Ukraine war?
Hawley: Hawley does not support continued funding to Ukraine. He said in a debate in late September that he would not support any more congressional aid to Ukraine without Congress passing legislation to compensate Missourians who have been exposed to radioactive waste near St. Louis.
Kunce: During my time at the Pentagon and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, I saw the escalating threat posed to American interests by Putin’s war machine — a war machine subsidized by the world’s reliance on energy sectors dominated by dictators, war criminals and monopolists. And now, it’s being paid for by the sacrifice of Ukrainian men and women heroically fighting for their democracy’s survival.
I’m the only candidate in Missouri’s Senate race who’s ever worn a uniform or put boots on the ground. I’ve personally seen the enormous suffering of war. I can tell you the number one thing we need to do to limit costs is to keep American boots OFF the ground in this war. Sacrificing the lives of American soldiers is far more expensive than offering support for Ukraine’s fight against Putin’s war machine. That support has already resulted in millions of dollars of investment in Missouri manufacturing — and future support should continue to prioritize opportunities to invest in and expand American industry and defense production capacity so we are better equipped for our country’s future security needs while creating good union jobs right here at home.
Young: I believe we should be unwavering in our support of Ukraine against the aggression of Putin and Russia. Our hesitation in delivering that support is a big part of why our allies no longer trust us and our enemies no longer fear us. Allowing Russia to achieve their aims in Ukraine will only embolden them and invite future aggression. Any weakness shown by the U.S. in supporting Ukraine will also encourage China and Iran to aggressively meddle and expand outside their borders.
Kline: At the end of the Cold War, the U.S. promised the Russians that NATO would not be expanded one inch toward Russia. As NATO is a military alliance with the sole mission of opposing Russia, the Russians were understandably worried about its expansion. However, since that time we have expanded NATO by 20 countries right up to the Russian border. The Russians have drawn a red line with Ukraine, but the Democrats and Republicans have recklessly charged ahead anyway leading to the current crisis. We have backed the Russian bear into a corner and the bear has chosen to fight to the death.
On paper, the Ukrainians may have a right to join NATO, but it is a very dangerous and very expensive proposal to try and bring it about. Russia can end all life on Earth in two hours with their nuclear arsenal and have threatened to use them to win this war. Is NATO membership for Ukraine that important? I don’t think so. The Democrats and Republicans have spent over $107 billion dollars so far on this dangerous, aggressive military campaign and there is no end in sight. We need that investment back in this country.
What policies do you support related to the Israel-Hamas war?
Hawley: Hawley says the state of Israel has the right to defend itself. He said in a television interview in late September that Israel has “every right to eliminate” Hamas. He said there cannot be a cease-fire or peace until Hamas no longer has the ability to attack Israel.
Kunce: As time drags on, this conflict is sadly reminding me more and more of Iraq and Afghanistan. Israel can and should be able to defend itself from terrorists. Getting a bunch of civilians killed in the process isn’t going to solve anything — that’s just going to make things worse while sowing more seeds for future conflicts. There needs to be a negotiated cease-fire that gets hostages home, keeps civilians in Gaza safe, and puts this conflict on track to end.
Young: I have lived in the Middle East and have a degree in Arabic and Middle Eastern studies. I have a clear understanding of the history of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, and I have sympathy for the plight of the Palestinians. But I also believe Israel is a key ally in the Middle East, and I have sympathy for the constant threat they live under. The Oct. 7 attacks were horrific, and Israel has every right to eliminate the perpetrators of those attacks. We should continue to encourage Israel to protect innocent life as they pursue their goals, but we should not withhold our support or hinder them. We should also use our influence to pressure Israel to create a realistic long-term solution to the conflict. A return to the status quo will inevitably result in more conflict and bloodshed down the road.
Kline: The international community has been in agreement for many decades that Israel must completely withdraw to its 1947 borders and an independent Palestinian state must be established in the occupied territories. However, the U.S. alone, using our veto as a member of the U.N. Security Council, has prevented the world from acting upon this demand. This has allowed the Israeli government to expand their occupation of Palestine, against the wishes of the world and the ongoing resistance of the Palestinians. The ongoing hostilities in Israel/Palestine is the result of Democrats and Republicans maintaining this untenable situation.
On Sept. 17, 2024, the U.N. overwhelmingly adopted a resolution demanding that Israel “brings to an end without delay its unlawful presence” in the occupied Palestinian territories. Again, the U.S. veto prevented an end to this conflict. The attack by Hamas against Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killed 1,139 Israelis. The Lancet medical journal estimates that the Israeli military assault on Gaza in response has killed over 186,000 Palestinians. A hundred-to-one kill ratio is not a war, it is a massacre that we are funding with $12.5 billion that we have sent to Israel since Oct. 7. This money could be better used here at home.
What policies do you support related to prescription drug pricing?
Hawley: In 2023, Hawley introduced bills in the Senate aimed at cutting drug costs. The legislation would cap the price of insulin, bar pharmaceutical companies from selling drugs at higher prices in the U.S., impose fines for pharmaceutical companies if they sell drugs at higher prices than drugs sold in other countries and end prescription drug rebates in federal and private insurance plans.
Kunce: We need to break up Big Pharma. We need to cap the cost of insulin for every American citizen. We need to make more prescription drugs in America again, investing in our country’s vast unused manufacturing and pharmaceutical capacity to make important drugs at generic rates — and make capital available to make it happen. And we need to empower Medicare to negotiate the prices of more drugs.
Pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) act as middlemen, cutting out independent pharmacists for profit — making the drugs we need more expensive, less safe and harder to get — even for military families like mine. They manipulate drug prices and steer patients to their own retail pharmacies, creating obstacles for patients to access prescription drugs.
I’ve joined everyday people and small businesses in protest of PBM corruption, and I'll do the same in the Senate. I stand with local pharmacies and everyday families who are struggling to afford the prescription drugs they need. We need to use the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Justice and all the tools at our disposal to enforce the monopoly laws we have to break these guys up and protect us from their predatory actions.
Young: Rather than villainizing pharmaceutical companies and removing their incentives to innovate, we should look at ways to lower the cost of drug development and drug distribution. This could include modernizing the FDA’s inefficient and unduly expensive approval processes and also reexamining the role and behavior of PBMs. We should also hold pharmaceutical companies accountable when they engage in anti-competitive behavior.
Kline: As the only candidate and party not taking any money from the pharmaceutical industry it is no surprise that I and the Green Party are the only party that would guarantee universal, single-payer health care as a right for every American like almost every industrialized country in the world already provides. Like in all of those countries, we would then be able to then negotiate massive group discounts with the pharmaceutical industry that now sells the very same drugs to countries around the world for a fraction of the cost Americans pay for them.
The Democrats’ and Republicans’ loyalty to their wealthy donors in the pharmaceutical industry has long taken precedence over access to affordable medication for Americans. The Green Party is the only party that will change this going forward.
What policies do you support related to energy production?
Hawley: In the September candidate forum, Hawley said that restrictions on American energy production should be rolled back to increase production of oil and gas in the U.S., although domestic production has been at record highs.
Kunce: We need to put America first in the next generation of energy production. For the last 25 years, Congress has spent trillions of dollars on overseas nation-building in the Middle East, protecting OPEC profits and enriching defense contractors. We’ve had the 5th Fleet patrolling the Strait of Hormuz for years, subsidizing Saudi Arabia’s monopoly, enabling
Russia’s access to cheap energy and fueling China’s capture of manufacturing. And now we have tens of thousands of troops all over the Arabian peninsula and the Middle East. The role of our government is for the common defense — that includes protecting American troops and American ships, but it doesn’t include spending our tax dollars and sacrificing American lives to protect the interests of the same foreign dictators and multinational corporations who’ve been robbing us.
We should be spending that money and using that human capital to onshore jobs here at home. We need to put America first in next-generation industries and energy so we can end our reliance on these countries who hate us and these corporations who don’t give a damn about our way of life. That’s how we’ll get the economic leverage we need to keep our country and our allies safe.
Young: We must be good stewards of the world we live in. We should be working toward a transition to renewable energy sources. But forcing a fast transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy before we have the technology and infrastructure to support it is unwise. It will put unnecessary strain on our economy and our people. There is a reasonable path forward on our energy production that balances both our short-term and our long-term interests. We just need leaders who have the ability to work together to strike that balance.
Kline: Thousands of climate scientists in dozens of fields of study have been warning us for generations that we must stop burning fossil fuels or face a hellish future most of us will not survive. Renewable energy cannot replace all of the energy produced by fossil fuels. As renewable energy has grown, so has the burning of fossil fuels due to our insatiable growth-based economy. We must transition to a degrowth economy in which we use much less energy and resources so as to live in balance with the natural world. Biden and Obama issued more new drilling permits per year than Trump, so we must replace both of these fossil fuel-funded parties with good ancestors who will put the welfare of future generations ahead of the short-term profits of billionaires.
We will either purposely and rapidly degrow human resource use or we will end most life on Earth. Unfortunately, due to the inaction of the two corporate parties we now have little time to transition to a sustainable way of life. Only the Green Party has the independence from the fossil fuel industry to be able to lead humanity away from the ecological cliff that we are currently racing toward.
Do you support ending the filibuster?
Hawley: There are limited public comments from Hawley regarding his stance on the filibuster.
Kunce: Yes. Our politics are controlled by massive corporations, super PACs and people with a lot of money who buy off politicians. The filibuster enables these corrupt interest groups to maintain a status quo that works for them — not for us. For me, eliminating the filibuster is not about what party is in power — it is about democracy.
Young: No. The filibuster forces both parties to come up with sensible legislation that can gain at least some bipartisan support. Passing laws with bare-minimum majorities results in more extreme policies that are often reversed when the other side gets in power. It leads to volatility and uncertainty. If a bill can’t muster support from 60 out of 100 senators, it probably isn’t that great of a bill.
Kline: Yes, it is a nonconstitutional impediment to democratic governance.
If a president from your opposing party is elected in November, how will you work with their administration?
Hawley: Hawley has an adversarial relationship with President Biden and his administration. After Biden won the election in 2020, Hawley was the first senator to announce that he would oppose the Electoral College’s certification of Biden’s win. After Biden took office, Hawley opposed all of his Cabinet appointees when they were voted on in the Senate. Since then, he’s called for investigations into the Biden administration’s handling of key issues, like immigration. When Biden announced that he would end his reelection campaign, Hawley almost immediately called for him to resign the presidency.
Kunce: I grew up in Jefferson City, Missouri, in a neighborhood full of wonderful people. We didn’t have a lot of money. But when my parents were bankrupted by medical bills, our community took care of us. They brought food by our house and made sure we had what we needed to get by. Those are the kind of people I’m running to represent.
For me, it’s not a matter of “left” or “right” — it’s a matter of right and wrong. Many politicians at the federal level have betrayed working-class Americans; they’ve just left us behind. I think that’s wrong.
I take no money from corporate PACs, no money from federal lobbyists and no money from Big Pharma executives — because the only people I ever want to owe as U.S. senator are everyday Missourians like the ones from my old neighborhood who took care of my family when I was growing up. As a senator, I will work across the aisle with anyone who is ready to do right by hard-working Americans. I will work with any president, and any member of Congress, from any party, to pass legislation that puts Americans first.
Young: I am an independent. The great thing about being an independent is that I can work with whoever becomes president without pressure from my party to stonewall, criticize or block progress. Regardless of who the president is, I will applaud them when I think they’re doing good things, and I will criticize them when I think they’re doing bad things. And I will actively work with them to come up with durable, innovative solutions to our country’s complex problems. Hyperpartisanship has paralyzed our country. Sending more Republicans or Democrats to the Senate will only perpetuate the problem. I will be in a position to drive real and positive change in the Senate.
Kline: I will work with anyone who is willing to do the right thing for the people of Missouri, the United States and the world. I will work with anyone who is willing to do the right thing for future generations and all of the other earthlings that are at our mercy. I will remain respectful and engage in ongoing dialog with even those that disagree with me strongly, as only by working together through our differences do we have a chance to succeed going forward.
The winning candidate will join a fractured U.S. Senate that has 33 of 100 seats up for election this November.
The Beacon reached out to all of the candidates to survey their views on top issues to Missouri voters. Hawley’s campaign did not respond to queries, but The Beacon has compiled his public statements on applicable questions.
Here are their responses.
What policies do you support related to abortion?
Hawley: While in the Senate, Hawley backed a 2022 bill that would ban abortion nationally after 15 weeks, with exceptions for rape, incest or for the health of the mother. Hawley has stated he supports Missouri’s abortion ban and that he believes the issue should be left up to the states, despite his co-sponsoring of the bill in the Senate.
Kunce: Missourians should have the freedom to decide how they build and raise their families. But after Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, politicians made our state the first to enact a total abortion ban with no exceptions even in cases of rape and incest. They robbed Missourians of their freedom and put the Big Brother government in control of our bodies and lives. That’s why I support Amendment 3, which will overturn Missouri’s cruel and extreme abortion ban. And it’s why, once I am elected to the U.S. Senate, I’ll vote to codify Roe v. Wade. This November, we’re going to defeat Missouri’s extreme abortion ban and we’re going to secure our freedom.
Young: I am pro-life and believe every abortion is a tragedy. But I also believe the pro-life movement does itself a disservice by taking an all-or-nothing, uncompromising approach to the issue. I am opposed to unlimited, on-demand abortion, and I’m also opposed to complete abortion bans. I believe a 15-week ban with exceptions for health emergencies and rape/incest is a responsible, broadly supported approach to this deeply personal and morally charged issue. I also believe adoption should be more widely considered as an option when a pregnancy is unwanted.
Kline: Women have an inalienable right to control their own bodies. The decision of whether or not to bring a pregnancy to term is a woman’s alone to make. All women must have the option of obtaining a safe and legal abortion. When abortion is illegal, it condemns young and poor women to unsafe and sometimes fatal abortion practices.
However, abortion is not a desirable form of birth control — it is a final recourse. Preventing pregnancy is the better option. Green philosophy regards women as life-givers, and we see the loss of even a potential for life as regrettable. We should work to create a society in which abortion becomes less necessary.
Do you support exceptions for rape or incest when it comes to limits on abortion?
Hawley: Hawley supports abortion exceptions for rape, incest or when the life of the mother is in danger.
Kunce: In November, we’re going to vote “yes” on Amendment 3, overturn Missouri’s extreme abortion ban, and put Missourians back in charge of their own reproductive health care decisions including in cases of rape and incest. My opponent supports the current abortion ban in Missouri, which has no exceptions for rape or incest. He has co-sponsored a federal abortion ban, tried to ban the abortion pill nationwide, and compared abortion to both slavery and murder.
Young: Yes. I believe a 15-week ban with exceptions for health emergencies and rape/incest is a responsible, broadly supported approach.
Kline: Yes, but as my answer above indicates, these exceptions alone are not sufficient to make sure that women are in charge of their own bodies.
What policies do you support related to IVF access?
Hawley: Hawley has previously said he supports a national right to access in vitro fertilization. But in June, he joined other Republican senators in voting against a bill that would establish a national right to IVF treatments. He said the bill was unnecessary because IVF is already legal.
Kunce: Missourians should have the freedom to decide how to build and raise their families, including using treatments like IVF. As senator, I will always vote to ensure access to IVF for ALL our country’s families by requiring health insurance providers to cover IVF treatments.
Young: IVF access should not be restricted by the government. It is often the only way a couple can conceive. It has been politicized by the parties, and that needs to stop.
Kline: I and the Green Party completely support the use of IVF.
What policies do you support related to immigration?
Hawley: In 2022, Hawley introduced a bill that would give states the authority to enforce federal immigration laws, prosecute anyone who illegally enters the country and prosecute undocumented immigrants who commit crimes while entering the country. Hawley also sponsored a bill in 2019 that would have capped refugee admissions, end the diversity visa lottery and limit family-sponsored immigration. More recently, Hawley opposed the bipartisan border bill in Congress because he said the legislation did not go far enough on illegal immigration.
Kunce: Before deploying to Iraq, I trained with the Border Patrol Tactical Unit at our southern border. Americans agree that there is a border crisis, and I’ve seen it firsthand. Unfortunately, politicians from both sides of the aisle have failed to adequately address the issue.
As U.S. senator, I will prioritize securing our border. We need to fully fund and equip the Border Patrol and stop the flow of fentanyl. We need to fund more immigration judges to process the large backlog of cases. And we need to stop employers from taking advantage of both American and non-American workers.
Young: We need a secure border, and we need more legal immigrants. The current state of the border, where millions of people are coming into the country without us knowing who they are, is unacceptable. We must secure our border. At the same time, legal immigrants are vital to both our culture and our national economy. I support measures that will make legal immigration easier for qualified workers. My heart breaks when I hear politicians demonizing immigrants. Most immigrants are people like us who are simply trying to find a path to a better life, just like our ancestors.
Kline: The immigration crisis is driven by the climate crisis. As subsistence farmers are forced off the land in South and Central America due to droughts, hurricanes and high temperatures they are piling up on our border as we callously try to wall ourselves off from their plight. This surge of climate refugees coming north will only get much greater in the coming few years.
The U.S. has always been the most welcoming country in the world to immigrants. It is the root of our success. Immigrants are less violent than U.S.-born citizens in our country and they work hard for less pay, giving us a boost of new striving Americans every generation. We need to greatly increase the resources needed to efficiently process immigrant applications, for their benefit and ours. Blaming immigrants, who are the weakest, most vulnerable people amongst us, for the problems of our country is cowardly and counterproductive.
What policies do you support related to earmarks or securing federal funds for Missouri?
Hawley: While in the Senate, Hawley has opposed funneling federal funds back to the states. He and Missouri’s junior Sen. Eric Schmitt have both refused to ask for allocations to Missouri, called “earmarks,” when it comes to federal money that is sent to individual states. Instead, federal funds that are sent to Missouri have come from members of the House of Representatives.
Kunce: A senator’s most important job is to bring money and resources back to their state. Missouri used to be represented by Roy Blunt, a Republican senator who brought back hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding to Missouri projects each year. But Josh Hawley hasn’t brought back a single dollar of congressionally directed spending to Missouri. Not one. When I am elected to the U.S. Senate, I’ll ensure that Missouri receives its fair share of federal resources so that we can reinvest in our state and rebuild our communities.
Young: As a senator representing the people of Missouri, I will have a responsibility to be an advocate for them at the national level. I will work collaboratively with my Senate colleagues to effectively negotiate legislation that will be in the best interest of the people I represent. As an independent in the Senate, I can prioritize people over party demands and will use the leverage I will have as a swing vote in a closely divided Senate to secure funds for our state.
Kline: In office I would work hard to maximize investments in the needs and priorities of Missourians. Piecemeal earmarked funds attached to existing legislation is certainly not the best way to do this, but not out of the question in certain circumstances. The best way to bring federal funds to invest in Missourians is to promote and bring into existence universal federal benefits, the most impactful of which would be the establishment of guaranteed universal single-payer health care as a right for every American like almost every industrialized country in the world already provides.
We now spend twice as much per person in our country on health care versus any other country in the world, but cannot match our peers in health care outcomes. This is because the failed for-profit health care model we have now is defended equally by both Democratic and Republican politicians because of the massive amount of political donations that they take from insurance companies, hospital corporations and other private health companies that maximize their profits while the health of Americans suffers. Only the Green Party, because we reject all corporate donations, will fight to bring this federal investment home to Missourians.
What policies do you support related to the Russia-Ukraine war?
Hawley: Hawley does not support continued funding to Ukraine. He said in a debate in late September that he would not support any more congressional aid to Ukraine without Congress passing legislation to compensate Missourians who have been exposed to radioactive waste near St. Louis.
Kunce: During my time at the Pentagon and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, I saw the escalating threat posed to American interests by Putin’s war machine — a war machine subsidized by the world’s reliance on energy sectors dominated by dictators, war criminals and monopolists. And now, it’s being paid for by the sacrifice of Ukrainian men and women heroically fighting for their democracy’s survival.
I’m the only candidate in Missouri’s Senate race who’s ever worn a uniform or put boots on the ground. I’ve personally seen the enormous suffering of war. I can tell you the number one thing we need to do to limit costs is to keep American boots OFF the ground in this war. Sacrificing the lives of American soldiers is far more expensive than offering support for Ukraine’s fight against Putin’s war machine. That support has already resulted in millions of dollars of investment in Missouri manufacturing — and future support should continue to prioritize opportunities to invest in and expand American industry and defense production capacity so we are better equipped for our country’s future security needs while creating good union jobs right here at home.
Young: I believe we should be unwavering in our support of Ukraine against the aggression of Putin and Russia. Our hesitation in delivering that support is a big part of why our allies no longer trust us and our enemies no longer fear us. Allowing Russia to achieve their aims in Ukraine will only embolden them and invite future aggression. Any weakness shown by the U.S. in supporting Ukraine will also encourage China and Iran to aggressively meddle and expand outside their borders.
Kline: At the end of the Cold War, the U.S. promised the Russians that NATO would not be expanded one inch toward Russia. As NATO is a military alliance with the sole mission of opposing Russia, the Russians were understandably worried about its expansion. However, since that time we have expanded NATO by 20 countries right up to the Russian border. The Russians have drawn a red line with Ukraine, but the Democrats and Republicans have recklessly charged ahead anyway leading to the current crisis. We have backed the Russian bear into a corner and the bear has chosen to fight to the death.
On paper, the Ukrainians may have a right to join NATO, but it is a very dangerous and very expensive proposal to try and bring it about. Russia can end all life on Earth in two hours with their nuclear arsenal and have threatened to use them to win this war. Is NATO membership for Ukraine that important? I don’t think so. The Democrats and Republicans have spent over $107 billion dollars so far on this dangerous, aggressive military campaign and there is no end in sight. We need that investment back in this country.
What policies do you support related to the Israel-Hamas war?
Hawley: Hawley says the state of Israel has the right to defend itself. He said in a television interview in late September that Israel has “every right to eliminate” Hamas. He said there cannot be a cease-fire or peace until Hamas no longer has the ability to attack Israel.
Kunce: As time drags on, this conflict is sadly reminding me more and more of Iraq and Afghanistan. Israel can and should be able to defend itself from terrorists. Getting a bunch of civilians killed in the process isn’t going to solve anything — that’s just going to make things worse while sowing more seeds for future conflicts. There needs to be a negotiated cease-fire that gets hostages home, keeps civilians in Gaza safe, and puts this conflict on track to end.
Young: I have lived in the Middle East and have a degree in Arabic and Middle Eastern studies. I have a clear understanding of the history of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, and I have sympathy for the plight of the Palestinians. But I also believe Israel is a key ally in the Middle East, and I have sympathy for the constant threat they live under. The Oct. 7 attacks were horrific, and Israel has every right to eliminate the perpetrators of those attacks. We should continue to encourage Israel to protect innocent life as they pursue their goals, but we should not withhold our support or hinder them. We should also use our influence to pressure Israel to create a realistic long-term solution to the conflict. A return to the status quo will inevitably result in more conflict and bloodshed down the road.
Kline: The international community has been in agreement for many decades that Israel must completely withdraw to its 1947 borders and an independent Palestinian state must be established in the occupied territories. However, the U.S. alone, using our veto as a member of the U.N. Security Council, has prevented the world from acting upon this demand. This has allowed the Israeli government to expand their occupation of Palestine, against the wishes of the world and the ongoing resistance of the Palestinians. The ongoing hostilities in Israel/Palestine is the result of Democrats and Republicans maintaining this untenable situation.
On Sept. 17, 2024, the U.N. overwhelmingly adopted a resolution demanding that Israel “brings to an end without delay its unlawful presence” in the occupied Palestinian territories. Again, the U.S. veto prevented an end to this conflict. The attack by Hamas against Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killed 1,139 Israelis. The Lancet medical journal estimates that the Israeli military assault on Gaza in response has killed over 186,000 Palestinians. A hundred-to-one kill ratio is not a war, it is a massacre that we are funding with $12.5 billion that we have sent to Israel since Oct. 7. This money could be better used here at home.
What policies do you support related to prescription drug pricing?
Hawley: In 2023, Hawley introduced bills in the Senate aimed at cutting drug costs. The legislation would cap the price of insulin, bar pharmaceutical companies from selling drugs at higher prices in the U.S., impose fines for pharmaceutical companies if they sell drugs at higher prices than drugs sold in other countries and end prescription drug rebates in federal and private insurance plans.
Kunce: We need to break up Big Pharma. We need to cap the cost of insulin for every American citizen. We need to make more prescription drugs in America again, investing in our country’s vast unused manufacturing and pharmaceutical capacity to make important drugs at generic rates — and make capital available to make it happen. And we need to empower Medicare to negotiate the prices of more drugs.
Pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) act as middlemen, cutting out independent pharmacists for profit — making the drugs we need more expensive, less safe and harder to get — even for military families like mine. They manipulate drug prices and steer patients to their own retail pharmacies, creating obstacles for patients to access prescription drugs.
I’ve joined everyday people and small businesses in protest of PBM corruption, and I'll do the same in the Senate. I stand with local pharmacies and everyday families who are struggling to afford the prescription drugs they need. We need to use the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Justice and all the tools at our disposal to enforce the monopoly laws we have to break these guys up and protect us from their predatory actions.
Young: Rather than villainizing pharmaceutical companies and removing their incentives to innovate, we should look at ways to lower the cost of drug development and drug distribution. This could include modernizing the FDA’s inefficient and unduly expensive approval processes and also reexamining the role and behavior of PBMs. We should also hold pharmaceutical companies accountable when they engage in anti-competitive behavior.
Kline: As the only candidate and party not taking any money from the pharmaceutical industry it is no surprise that I and the Green Party are the only party that would guarantee universal, single-payer health care as a right for every American like almost every industrialized country in the world already provides. Like in all of those countries, we would then be able to then negotiate massive group discounts with the pharmaceutical industry that now sells the very same drugs to countries around the world for a fraction of the cost Americans pay for them.
The Democrats’ and Republicans’ loyalty to their wealthy donors in the pharmaceutical industry has long taken precedence over access to affordable medication for Americans. The Green Party is the only party that will change this going forward.
What policies do you support related to energy production?
Hawley: In the September candidate forum, Hawley said that restrictions on American energy production should be rolled back to increase production of oil and gas in the U.S., although domestic production has been at record highs.
Kunce: We need to put America first in the next generation of energy production. For the last 25 years, Congress has spent trillions of dollars on overseas nation-building in the Middle East, protecting OPEC profits and enriching defense contractors. We’ve had the 5th Fleet patrolling the Strait of Hormuz for years, subsidizing Saudi Arabia’s monopoly, enabling
Russia’s access to cheap energy and fueling China’s capture of manufacturing. And now we have tens of thousands of troops all over the Arabian peninsula and the Middle East. The role of our government is for the common defense — that includes protecting American troops and American ships, but it doesn’t include spending our tax dollars and sacrificing American lives to protect the interests of the same foreign dictators and multinational corporations who’ve been robbing us.
We should be spending that money and using that human capital to onshore jobs here at home. We need to put America first in next-generation industries and energy so we can end our reliance on these countries who hate us and these corporations who don’t give a damn about our way of life. That’s how we’ll get the economic leverage we need to keep our country and our allies safe.
Young: We must be good stewards of the world we live in. We should be working toward a transition to renewable energy sources. But forcing a fast transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy before we have the technology and infrastructure to support it is unwise. It will put unnecessary strain on our economy and our people. There is a reasonable path forward on our energy production that balances both our short-term and our long-term interests. We just need leaders who have the ability to work together to strike that balance.
Kline: Thousands of climate scientists in dozens of fields of study have been warning us for generations that we must stop burning fossil fuels or face a hellish future most of us will not survive. Renewable energy cannot replace all of the energy produced by fossil fuels. As renewable energy has grown, so has the burning of fossil fuels due to our insatiable growth-based economy. We must transition to a degrowth economy in which we use much less energy and resources so as to live in balance with the natural world. Biden and Obama issued more new drilling permits per year than Trump, so we must replace both of these fossil fuel-funded parties with good ancestors who will put the welfare of future generations ahead of the short-term profits of billionaires.
We will either purposely and rapidly degrow human resource use or we will end most life on Earth. Unfortunately, due to the inaction of the two corporate parties we now have little time to transition to a sustainable way of life. Only the Green Party has the independence from the fossil fuel industry to be able to lead humanity away from the ecological cliff that we are currently racing toward.
Do you support ending the filibuster?
Hawley: There are limited public comments from Hawley regarding his stance on the filibuster.
Kunce: Yes. Our politics are controlled by massive corporations, super PACs and people with a lot of money who buy off politicians. The filibuster enables these corrupt interest groups to maintain a status quo that works for them — not for us. For me, eliminating the filibuster is not about what party is in power — it is about democracy.
Young: No. The filibuster forces both parties to come up with sensible legislation that can gain at least some bipartisan support. Passing laws with bare-minimum majorities results in more extreme policies that are often reversed when the other side gets in power. It leads to volatility and uncertainty. If a bill can’t muster support from 60 out of 100 senators, it probably isn’t that great of a bill.
Kline: Yes, it is a nonconstitutional impediment to democratic governance.
If a president from your opposing party is elected in November, how will you work with their administration?
Hawley: Hawley has an adversarial relationship with President Biden and his administration. After Biden won the election in 2020, Hawley was the first senator to announce that he would oppose the Electoral College’s certification of Biden’s win. After Biden took office, Hawley opposed all of his Cabinet appointees when they were voted on in the Senate. Since then, he’s called for investigations into the Biden administration’s handling of key issues, like immigration. When Biden announced that he would end his reelection campaign, Hawley almost immediately called for him to resign the presidency.
Kunce: I grew up in Jefferson City, Missouri, in a neighborhood full of wonderful people. We didn’t have a lot of money. But when my parents were bankrupted by medical bills, our community took care of us. They brought food by our house and made sure we had what we needed to get by. Those are the kind of people I’m running to represent.
For me, it’s not a matter of “left” or “right” — it’s a matter of right and wrong. Many politicians at the federal level have betrayed working-class Americans; they’ve just left us behind. I think that’s wrong.
I take no money from corporate PACs, no money from federal lobbyists and no money from Big Pharma executives — because the only people I ever want to owe as U.S. senator are everyday Missourians like the ones from my old neighborhood who took care of my family when I was growing up. As a senator, I will work across the aisle with anyone who is ready to do right by hard-working Americans. I will work with any president, and any member of Congress, from any party, to pass legislation that puts Americans first.
Young: I am an independent. The great thing about being an independent is that I can work with whoever becomes president without pressure from my party to stonewall, criticize or block progress. Regardless of who the president is, I will applaud them when I think they’re doing good things, and I will criticize them when I think they’re doing bad things. And I will actively work with them to come up with durable, innovative solutions to our country’s complex problems. Hyperpartisanship has paralyzed our country. Sending more Republicans or Democrats to the Senate will only perpetuate the problem. I will be in a position to drive real and positive change in the Senate.
Kline: I will work with anyone who is willing to do the right thing for the people of Missouri, the United States and the world. I will work with anyone who is willing to do the right thing for future generations and all of the other earthlings that are at our mercy. I will remain respectful and engage in ongoing dialog with even those that disagree with me strongly, as only by working together through our differences do we have a chance to succeed going forward.
Key endorsements in the Missouri U.S. Senate race
Hawley
Missouri Farm Bureau Political Action Committee
Missouri Right to Life
National Rifle Association
National Right to Life Committee
Kunce
Abortion Action Missouri
Missouri AFL-CIO
SEIU Missouri State Council
VoteVets
This article first appeared on Beacon: Missouri and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
Hawley
Missouri Farm Bureau Political Action Committee
Missouri Right to Life
National Rifle Association
National Right to Life Committee
Kunce
Abortion Action Missouri
Missouri AFL-CIO
SEIU Missouri State Council
VoteVets
This article first appeared on Beacon: Missouri and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
3 comments:
America first not one more penny to anywhere until we get it together…
A recent study identified the majority of magat members as white and undereducated. Judging by 328, at the least we have an undereducated minion of the cult making a foolish and shortsighted comment only spoken by this individuals master, whom he kneels before in unyielding loyalty and gullible ignorance. If you can read 328, you might want to know what happened the last time we isolated from the rest of the world. Look up WW2.
5:31 foolish short sighted, like pronouns, open borders, record setting inflation, unaffordable housing, endless spending on illegal aliens, not knowing what a woman is, fight against free speech, affordable groceries…. How many billions to the Bidens oh sorry I meant Ukraine……
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