Don Bacon
Republican | Nebraska
Candidate Profile*
Leans Conservative
BIOGRAPHY
Name
Don Bacon
Party
Republican
Election Year
2022
Election
General
Race
U.S. Rep., Dist. 2
Incumbent
Yes
Links
EDUCATION
National War College, Washington, DC, Masters, 2004
University of Phoenix, Tucson, AZ, Masters, 1996
Northern Illinois University, Dekalb, IL, BA, 1984
WORK & MILITARY
United States Air Force, Brigadier General, 29.5
University of Bellevue, Assistant Professor, 1.5
AFFILIATIONS
Air Force Association, Eastern NE, Vice President
Military Officers of America Association, Chaplain
Sarpy County Gideons, Previous President
Life Spring Church, Bellevue, NE, Member
NRA and NE Firearms Owner Association, Member
Heritage Foundation, Member
Assure and Essential Pregnancy Services, Contributor
Youth for Christ, Contributor and Volunteer
POLITICAL OFFICES HELD
US Rep, NE-02, 2017-current
POLITICAL OFFICES SOUGHT
None
SCORECARDS
CONSERVATIVE ORGANIZATIONS
LIBERAL ORGANIZATIONS
ENDORSEMENTS*
CONSERVATIVE (14)
Combat Veterans For Congress PAC; National Rifle Association (NRA) PVF; *Susan B. Anthony List; Tea Party Express; The Guardian Fund
OTHER (3)
Pro-Israel America; *Nebraska Farm Bureau; *Omaha Police Officers Association
REPORTED BY CANDIDATE (8)
Former Vice President Mike Pence; Governor Pete Ricketts ; Former Governor Dave Heineman ; US Senator Deb Fischer ; Nebraska Farm Bureau
SELECTED CONTRIBUTIONS
CONSERVATIVE
GIVEN BY CANDIDATE (9)
American Israel Public Affairs Committee (2022); Local, County, and District Republican Organizations (2021); National Republican Congressional Committee Joint Campaigns (2019); Pete Ricketts (2016); Republican Jewish Coalition (2022)
RECEIVED BY CANDIDATE (304)
Abraham Lincoln PAC (2020); Adam Kinzinger (2020); Adrian Smith (2022); America Unlimited (2018); American Conservative Union (2018)
LIBERAL
GIVEN BY CANDIDATE (0)
RECEIVED BY CANDIDATE (24)
American Federation of Government Employees (2022); American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees (2022); American Postal Workers Union (2022); Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (2019); Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (2021)
OTHER INFORMATION
Key votes from Vote Smart
This candidate voted in favor of HR 8404 repealing the Defense of Marriage Act.
Party affiliation- Republican
QUESTIONNAIRE
RIGHT TO LIFE
Abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, should not receive funds from federal, state, or local governments (including Title X grants).
Strongly Agree
I support 'aid in dying' laws which legalize assisted suicide and euthanasia.
Strongly Disagree
Under what circumstances should abortion be allowed?
Life begins at conception, and all life is precious. Abortion should only be allowed in those rare cases where it is necessary to save the life of the mother. We must take every step to ensure the most innocent among us are protected. And taxpayer money should never be spent on abortion. We must keep the Hyde Amendment.
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
Religious liberty is at risk in the United States and deserves the highest level of protection in the law.
Strongly Agree
Individuals and businesses should be required to provide services even if it would violate their moral and/or religious beliefs.
Strongly Disagree
What should be the relationship between the church and the state?
The Establishment Clause and Free Exercise Clause of our First Amendment reads: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..." Separation of church and state is often misinterpreted, but the original intent of our founders was to prohibit government from involving itself in the activities of a religion. It secured religious freedom for the American people. Thus, the church should act to influence and guide public policy but the state should not interfere in the activities of the church.
NATIONAL SECURITY
With regard to America's foreign policy, which view most closely resembles yours: A) The United States should intervene whenever freedom is threatened. B) The United States should selectively help countries trying to grow democracy and fight tyranny. C) The United States has become too involved in others' policies and should remain focused on issues regarding our own sovereignty unless in imminent danger. D) The United States should stay out of foreign conflicts completely.
B. Using force should be very sparingly and when our national security is at risk. But, we can be a voice for freedom with aid and by our example and influence.
I support the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement to pressure Israel to withdraw from occupied territories, remove the separation barrier in the West Bank, allow full equality for Arab-Palestinian citizens of Israel, and promote the rights of Palestinian refugees.
Strongly Disagree
BDS is an anti-semitic movement to isolate the Jewish state of Israel.
The Chinese Communist Party poses serious military, cyber security, intellectual property, and global economic threats to the United States.
Strongly Agree
What should the United States do to help eradicate the threat of Islamic terrorism?
As a 30-year Air Force veteran and retired Brigadier General, I know a problem when I see one. When I was first elected in 2016, our military was drastically depleted. Only four of the 58 Army combat brigades were able to deploy, our Air Force equipment was older and more outdated than it had ever been and we had significantly reduced training requirements. I had a major role in fixing these problems to help put our national defense in a stronger position under President Trump. Unfortunately, under the current administration, the Taliban and the threat of radical Islamic terrorism is on the rise. The United States must project strength and promote deterrence to help eradicate the threat of Islamic terrorism. We must not ignore fact that Iran is the primary exporter of terror, and the IRGC must remain on the terrorist watch list.
HEALTHCARE
Under what circumstances (if any) should a government, school, or employer be allowed to require vaccinations?
I prefer convincing people with facts and research, and not by mandates.
What most closely matches your view on healthcare: A) Healthcare for all should be guaranteed and funded by the government with no private healthcare option. (includes "universal healthcare," "medicare for all," etc.) B) Healthcare insurance funded by the government should be available for all who want it, along with private healthcare options. C) Medicaid and Medicare should remain available, but no other taxpayer-funded programs are necessary. D)Tax-payer funded health care should be abolished in all forms, and Medicaid and Medicare should be de-funded.
C. We want to incentivize the private sector to provide more options. Government run healthcare is too expensive. We do need safety net measure, such as the community healthcare centers.
ECONOMY
Redistribution of income is needed to lessen the gap between the wealthy and working classes.
Strongly Disagree
The government should cut spending in order to reduce the national debt.
Strongly Agree
What changes, if any, should be made to the tax code?
We need to protect the tax reform we passed in 2017 that made our tax code competitive with the rest of the world's.
IMMIGRATION
The U.S. should do more to physically secure the southern border.
Strongly Agree
State and federal funds shall be denied to any public or private entity, such as a sanctuary city, that is not in compliance with immigration laws.
Strongly Agree
Who should be allowed to immigrate to the U.S. and under what circumstances?
The United States is a melting pot of people from all over the world and their descendants, and this is part of what makes our nation great. We should welcome immigrants who follow the law and come into our country the right way. Our border must be controlled to prevent illegal crossings and trafficking activities, but legal immigration is a good thing for the United States.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE & PUBLIC SAFETY
Police officers should be personally immune from prosecution for conduct consistent with departmental policy (qualified immunity) while on duty.
Strongly Agree
I am grateful that the Omaha Police Officers Association, and the three county Sheriffs have endorsed my reelection.
I support redirecting funds from police departments to mental health and community programs.
Strongly Disagree
2ND AMENDMENT
What restrictions on gun ownership are needed to protect public safety?
We absolutely do not need more restrictions than are already in place. Instead, we must focus on enforcing existing law. I passed a bill that makes it easer for law enforcement agencies to communicate with one another, something that was sorely needed and highly requested by our law enforcement community. Our local law enforcement says we need to do more to hold those who violate straw purchases laws accountable. I have legislation to do so. We cannot punish the 99% of people who are law abiding or erode our Constitutional rights.
Victims of gun violence should be able to sue firearms dealers and manufacturers.
Strongly Disagree
ABOUT YOU
When you consider your views on a wide range of issues from economic and social matters to foreign policy and religious liberty, which of the following best describes you overall?
Conservative
Please provide publicly available information, including interviews and media reports, validating your answer to the previous question (other than your website).
The full record of bills I have sponsored and co-sponsored is publicly available at Congress.gov. Media interviews and articles can be found on my website under the "newsroom" tab or by following this link: https://donjbacon.com/newsroom.
Have you ever been convicted of a felony or been penalized in either civil or criminal court for sexual misconduct? If so, please explain.
No
What else would you like voters to know about you, including your legislative priorities?
It is an honor and privilege to represent the people of Nebraska's Second District in Congress. I am working as hard as I can to keep the promises I made to you and to be your voice in Washington. Together, we can continue to find pragmatic solutions to the problems facing our district and nation, and we will do it all with the civility and integrity Nebraskans expect.
VALUES
Sexual orientation and gender identity should be protected classes in non-discrimination laws.
Disagree
We should respect people's lives, but we also must protect faith based institutions rights as well, such as churches and private schools.
I agree with Critical Race Theory (CRT) which asserts that the institutions in the United States are fundamentally racist.
Strongly Disagree
Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
I am a Christian. I begin each day with a chapter from both the Old and New Testaments, actively volunteer with my church, and participate in weekly Bible studies.
ELECTIONS AND VOTING
People should be able to vote without photo identification.
Disagree
It is a state's decision, though I support it for Nebraska. The vast majority of Americans want voter ID, to include the majority of Democrats.
What laws would you propose to change present voting practices?
The right to vote is one of the most cherished institutions in the United States as is the right of each state to conduct their elections as outlined in Article I, Section 4, Clause 1 of the United States Constitution. I will always fight to protect both. More specifically, I have and will continue to support enhancing voter system security, oversight of election vendors, and voter identification requirements when voting.
EQUALITY
Reparations should be given to people on the basis of race.
Strongly Disagree
Is racism a threat to domestic security in the United States? Why or why not?
Racism is still a problem. Although we have made tremendous strides as a country to eliminate and overcome racism, it still exists. There is absolutely no place in the United States for racism and it should be confronted when and wherever it arises.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
I support the use of hydraulic fracking to extract oil and natural gas resources.
Strongly Agree
Which comes closest to your view? A) Stricter environmental laws and regulations cost too many jobs and hurt the economy. B) Stricter environmental laws and regulations are worth the cost.
A. Current laws are about right. We want an all of the above approach to energy, so that our country can become energy independent. Energy independence is needed for national security and economic prosperity.
