Eric L. Smith
Republican | Kansas
Candidate Profile*
Conservative
*Additional information appears below for educational purposes; however, only data received prior to the candidate deadline was considered during Panel Evaluation.
BIOGRAPHY
Name
Eric L. Smith
Party
Republican
Election Year
2022
Election
Primary
Race
State Rep., Dist. 76
Incumbent
Yes
Links
EDUCATION
Community College of the Air Force, Whiteman AFB, MO, 1991
Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center, Hutchinson, KS, Full time certification, 1996
WORK & MILITARY
U.S. Air Force, E-4, 4
Coffey County Sheriff's Office, Undersheriff, 20
Burlington Police Department, Patrol Officer, 2.5
Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Station, Armed Response Officer IV, 7
AFFILIATIONS
Hope Anthem -Burlington, Member, Hebron and Neosho Masonic Lodges
Member, National Rifle Association, Member
Ducks Unlimited, Member, Kansas Sheriff's Association
Member, Rotary International, Member
POLITICAL OFFICES HELD
State Representative, 6
POLITICAL OFFICES SOUGHT
(Candidate did not provide)
Race
SCORECARDS
CONSERVATIVE ORGANIZATIONS
2018
100%
2020
92%
2021
79%, 77% (cum.)†
2018
61% (cum.)†
2021
|79%, 77% (cum.)†
2018
|61% (cum.)†
LIBERAL ORGANIZATIONS
2018
57%
2021
0%, 4% (cum.)†
2019
0%
2018
|57%
2021
|0%, 4% (cum.)†
ENDORSEMENTS*
*These endorsements were received after the deadline and were not considered in the Panel Evaluations and are for additional educational purposes only.
CONSERVATIVE (3)
Kansans for Life PAC
*Kansas Family Voice
Kansas State Rifle Association
OTHER INFORMATION
QUESTIONNAIRE
RIGHT TO LIFE
Under what circumstances should abortion be allowed?
When the mother's life is endangered by the pregnancy and/or birth, rape, or incest.
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
ECONOMY
What changes, if any, should be made to the tax code?
Retired individuals making less than median income and those living on a fixed income should not endure income tax increases.
What government spending would you reduce in order to balance the budget?
We have to begin reducing bureaucracy. A sincere effort needs to be made to reduce redundancy and over regulation within bureaucratic governance.
Taxpayer-funded public education should be guaranteed through college.
Strongly Disagree
College isn't required for many professions and the focus on the 'need' for college is oversold to young people who may have no future vocational plan in high school. If there is not a solid plan for a college based vocation, technical/vocational training should be emphasized and explored for a less expensive alternative and a way to make a living while the consideration for college is made.
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
Individuals and businesses should be required to provide services even if it would violate their moral and/or religious beliefs.
Strongly Disagree
Under what circumstances can government close churches?
There is no good reason to close churches. There is also no good reason to scrutinize churches for political activity. Churches were our forefathers place of community education on current events, along with moral and scriptural guidance on those issues. They intentionally pointed at what was unethical, immoral, or against the church doctrine when it came to candidates and issues.
HEALTHCARE
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.
Under what circumstances (if any) should a government, school, or employer be allowed to require vaccinations?
Vaccinations are a individual's choice. Vaccines should not be forced on anyone. Vaccines should not be mandated for ANYONE, including healthcare professionals and military unless that vaccine has been through the thorough trials and vetting process of the FDA. Emergency vaccines should never be "mandated" by anyone.
NATIONAL SECURITY
What should the United States do to help eradicate the threat of Islamic terrorism?
Maintain a zero tolerance for radical terrorists and their demands. Economic and finance vigilance is a key to making sure the groups cannot gain major influence and ability.
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
IMMIGRATION
The U.S. should do more to physically secure the southern border.
Strongly Agree
We are the greatest immigrant nation in the world and should continue to be, but it should be a controlled legal process, vetting individuals who are anxious to assume the American way of life. Our immigration policies and processes need to be improved so that legal immigrants are not subjected to unnecessary waits and costs. National security is endangered by the ability of our enemies to take advantage of a border that is being intentionally left under protected.
Who should be allowed to immigrate to the U.S. and under what circumstances?
Those who appreciate what America has traditionally stood for and those willing to proudly proclaim America the greatest land of opportunity with a strong desire to defend her in whatever way they are capable.
EDUCATION
I support school choice, including voucher programs, tax credits, charter schools, private schools, and home schools.
Strongly Agree
VALUES
Judeo-Christian values established a framework of morality which is necessary for our system of limited government.
Strongly Agree
I support adding gender identity as a specially protected class in non-discrimination laws.
Disagree
Marriage is a God-ordained, sacred and legal union of one man and one woman. No government has the authority to alter this definition
Strongly Agree
I agree with Critical Race Theory (CRT) which asserts that the institutions in the United States are fundamentally racist.
Strongly Disagree
Our nation was the first to fight slavery and WIN. We went through great suffering to remove it from our nation and led other nations to an understanding of the value of freedom for ALL. Discrimination and racism has been an issue worldwide, not just in this country. We have taken steps backward in the past 10-12 years and I believe that has been by design. We have to continue to push for equality for all, and that no race deserves superiority over another.
Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
I believe that Jesus Christ was born from a virgin mother, that God is his father, that he died on the cross and rose again in 3 days and that he alone is the way to salvation. He is the way, the truth, and the life. Love is the greatest gift and the most difficult to muster when we face the frustrations of the progressive world, but we must continue to use love and patience in all debate if we hope to gain understanding.
ELECTIONS AND VOTING
People should be able to vote without photo identification.
Strongly Disagree
What laws would you propose to change present voting practices?
Each vote must require that the voter was identified through prior registration, signature and government issued photo identification.
EQUALITY
Is racism a threat to domestic security in the United States? Why or why not?
Racism is a tool of hate and leverage by Marxist socialists who substitute the divisive tactic for class warfare. Racism exists, but it is not the product of one race and not another. If decisions are made about an individual because of their skin color and not because of their character, this is racist. And this is regardless of who is doing the deciding.
Reparations should be given to people on the basis of race.
Strongly Disagree
Where do we draw that line? African Americans descent, Chinese descent, descendants of the oppressed Scottish and Irish immigrants who couldn't afford to come to America and were placed in servitude for many years in exchange? Jewish descendants? And what nations should be included? Those who sold the slaves or those who used the slaves for labor? Should Great Britain have to pay more since they forced slavery into America? How far do we go back? 400 years? 500? It's not reasonable.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
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) There is no doubt that there is some benefit to forcing cleaner methods of energy production, for instance. But the constant degradation of America because of the plastic in the oceans around the world, the coal plants, fossil fuel production, etc. is ignoring the fact that a great portion of the problem comes from other nations, such as China, India, several nations of Africa, Russia, etc. We should not continue to be the poster child of the global pollution problem.
I support the use of hydraulic fracking to extract oil and natural gas resources.
Agree
Every successful technology has been under attack by the "green" activists who, more accurately, see the fossil fuel companies as the flagships of capitalism and they see the free-market economy as the enemy. Fracking is a science that has been improved for decades. As problems have been encountered, new, more effective methods have addressed them.
ABOUT YOU
What do you think is the general purpose of government?
To provide security and develop commerce for the improvement of society.
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).
https://www.emporiagazette.com/gaz/article_44b6bbaa-ddd7-11ec-b0af-03df84b33f48.html
Have you ever been convicted of a felony or been penalized in either civil or criminal court for sexual misconduct? If so, please explain.
I have not.
What else would you like voters to know about you, including your legislative priorities?
I believe in protecting traditional values. My legislative priorities include security, the second amendment right to bear arms, defending religious liberty, as well as defending the lives of the unborn.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE & PUBLIC SAFETY
Police officers should be personally immune from prosecution for conduct consistent with departmental policy (qualified immunity) while on duty.
Agree
If society expects men and women to defend them and protect them under the worst circumstances, they should be given certain protections to act in good faith and their actions viewed with an understanding that not all information is available to officers at the moment of action that is available in the courtroom.
I support redirecting funds from police departments to mental health and community programs.
Disagree
Mental Health and community programs are very important, but they cannot replace the multiple duties of law enforcement.
2ND AMENDMENT
What restrictions on gun ownership are needed to protect public safety?
No law or restriction is going to stop someone bent on murder from following through. Laws govern the law abiding. The criminal doesn't care about sentence enhancements or fines when they intend violence.
Victims of gun violence should be able to sue firearms dealers and manufacturers.
Strongly Disagree
Suing firearms manufacturers and dealers for violence committed with these items makes no sense at all. We don't consider the idea of suing Ford, GM, Chrysler and other automobile manufacturers and auto dealers for road rage incidents when automobiles killed more than 42,000 people last year. Meanwhile, 702 people died in mass shootings (4 or more victims). That number is not acceptable, but the debate is about whether gun manufacturers and dealers should be sued for that misuse of its product.
