Candidate Letters: U.S. Senate

By Phil Cobb | October 24, 2024 |

Lucas Kunce Democrat

U.S. SENATE

Senator Josh Hawley’s office and campaign did not respond to multiple invitations to send a letter. The Missouri Libertarian Party did not respond to an email seeking contact information for candidate W.C. Young.

Lucas Kunce, Democrat

I’m running for Senate because I think working people should be calling the shots in our country.

I grew up like most Missouri families: paycheck-to-paycheck. So when my littlest sister was born with a heart condition, medical bills bankrupted my family. We got by because of the people in our neighborhood, many of whom had no more money than we did. Neighbors watched us kids while my parents were gone for long periods at the hospital hours away with my sister. They brought us food, passed the plate at church, and donated household items. We got by because our community came together and supported us. I joined the Marine Corps to serve them and honor what they did for me.

One of the hardest things for me between tours was coming back home to Jeff City and seeing what was going on. When I came back from Iraq, the first house I’d ever lived in was bulldozed down. When I came back from Afghanistan, the house I lived in when I joined the Marine Corps was vacant and starting to fall apart. While we were risking our lives overseas, politicians were spending trillions trying to build up towns in these other countries when they should have been spending our money, blood, and sweat on towns like St. Joe, Burlington Junction, and Jeff City.

Those towns are filled with the working people who built our state. Those are the only people I ever want to owe — the kind of people who took care of us growing up. Those are the people we should be investing in.

That’s why I don’t take a penny from federal lobbyists, corporate PACs, Big Pharma execs, or Big Oil execs. It’s why I won’t buy any stock. By running our campaign that way, I’ve been able to call out members of both parties, to propose bold and aggressive reforms, and to make an effective case to voters that I mean it when I say I will serve them, not myself.

As Senator, one of my core missions will be to get Big Money and personal enrichment out of our politics. I’ll work to ban all stock ownership for members of Congress, judges, and executive branch appointees — and to also ban ALL outside income for members of Congress, including the book-sale loophole. I’ll work to overturn Citizens United, abolish corporate PACs and dark money groups, and ban contributions and lobbying from corporations in strategic and sensitive industries, like defense. And I’ll push for all of these restrictions and transparency rules to include criminal penalties for lawbreakers — including jail time both for the politicians and whoever is trying to buy them off.

While some of those proposals might be considered controversial by the elites in Washington, none of them are considered controversial by everyday Missourians. I will work with anyone, from any party, to move this agenda forward. And I won’t let perfect be the enemy of good, either. Missourians deserve action from their leaders, not just grandstanding.

Jared Young, Better Party

I’ve spent the past year interacting with Missouri voters nearly every day. If I had to choose one word to describe how they’re feeling about our national politics, it would be “tired.” We’re tired of the constant bickering and flamethrowing. We’re tired of politicians who seem more interested in performing in front of TV cameras than solving problems, and who filter every word through focus groups and polls.

The dysfunction isn’t just a problem because it’s annoying — it also stops us from addressing the many challenging problems our country is facing. Regardless of which party is in charge, how much confidence do you have that Congress can fix our economy, solve our border crisis, or face growing threats from abroad? If you’re like me (and most of you are), the answer is almost zero.

So what should we do? One option is to just disengage, ignore the nonsense, and hope for the best. Many reasonable Missourians have done this. While that path is tempting, it tells our current politicians that there will be zero consequences if they keep doing the same things they’re doing. The other option is to stand up and decide to do something about it. That’s what I’m doing.

I’m running to represent Missouri in the U.S. Senate as an independent. I also started a new political party in Missouri to give ballot access to other moderate, common-sense independents. It’s called the Better Party.

I have the resume you would expect from a Senate candidate — I’ve been a CEO, I graduated from Harvard Law, I’ve lived in the Middle East and Europe, and I’ve worked in every branch of government. I’m also a father of six who left the rat race of the East Coast to raise my family in small-town Missouri. But what really sets me apart in this Senate race is my approach to leadership and problem solving: I’ve spent my entire adult life working together productively with people who see the world differently from me. That is the attitude and the skillset we need in the U.S. Senate.

The political pundits work hard to convince you that voting for an independent candidate is a “wasted” vote. But here’s something they don’t tell you: 43% of Missouri voters are independents. We are the largest voting bloc in Missouri. If every independent voter votes for the independent candidate in this race, we will win it handily.

Furthermore, the “wasted vote” argument doesn’t even make sense — when you vote, you’re not trying to guess who’s going to win. You’re making a statement about what you believe our country needs. With that in mind, the only “wasted” vote is one you spend on a candidate you don’t actually support or believe in.

If we send Josh Hawley or Lucas Kunce to the Senate, nothing will change about how Washington works. On November 5th, I invite you to send a clear message to our national leaders that you are fed up with the status quo. Vote for Jared Young.

Nathan Kline, Green Party

I am running as the Green Party candidate for US Senator from Missouri. I am a lifelong resident and longtime homeowner of Kansas City, MO, who is a dedicated public servant and creative problem solver who has a varied background in both the public and private sector, management and administration. With twenty-five years of hospitality management experience, I brought my skill set to the public sector in 2013 to work for the City Planning and Development Department in Kansas City where I am currently honored to serve my city and its citizens.

I have been a member of the Green Party since 1996 after realizing that the two corporate parties are irredeemably corrupt. Having run as a Green Party candidate previously for Jackson County Executive in 2018 and for MO Senate District 7 in 2020, I currently serve as Outreach Coordinator for the Green Party of Kansas City. As an avid student of history, political science, economics, philosophy and the arts, I seek to bridge the gap between theory and practice to achieve a sustainable, just and peaceful society. The Green Party is the only party in the US not wholly captured by corporations and billionaires that has the ballot status necessary to achieve these goals.

Democracy: Our democracy has been sold to the highest bidders. We are the only country in the world that allows for the full, legalized bribery of our elected officials. Neither of the corporate parties, who built this pay-to-play political system, are going to reform it. Only a political movement that offers candidates that refuse to take corporate money, and inspires Americans to vote only for those candidates, can resurrect American democracy. The Green Party is that movement.

Sustainability: Climate scientists have long warned we must quickly stop burning fossil fuels or face a hellish future. However, Biden and Obama issued more new drilling permits per year than even Trump. We must replace both fossil fuel funded parties with good ancestors who will put the welfare of future generations ahead of the short-term profits of billionaires. As renewable energy has grown, so has the burning of fossil fuels due to our insatiable growth-based economy. We must thoughtfully degrow our economy, to live in balance with the natural world. Only the Green Party will lead us away from ecological catastrophe.

Foreign Policy: The foreign policy of Democrats and Republicans is whatever makes their weapons manufacturing donors the most money. They divide any conflict into good guys and evil doers (it’s never that simple), supply weapons to the “good guys” until we get tired of the conflict and walk away like it never happened. Usually the “evil doers” take back control of their destroyed country, after we waste billions of dollars that would have been better spent back home. We have 800+ foreign military bases. Our biggest competitor, China, has 8. Empires rot from the inside as they spend their energy on unnecessary war while the homeland withers. The Green Party is the only party of peace.

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