Candidate links court vote to abortion
But tells Patriots not to admit it
Staff writer
In a Sunday afternoon speech punctuated by multiple references to God, gubernatorial candidate Ty Masterson told Marion County Patriots for Liberty that next summer’s vote on whether to elect state Supreme Court justices would be the most important decision voters have to make.
Replacing what was designed to be a merit-based system with one in which justices would be elected, much as politicians are, would restore power to average people, Masterson said.
More important, he said, it would reverse Supreme Court decisions declaring limits on abortion unconstitutional.
“The solution in Kansas is that Supreme Court election,” he said. “But you can’t go out there and say it because they’ll say that if you elect your Supreme Court, you won’t have any right to abortion anymore.”
Electing justices also would solve problems he sees with education.
“If we elect our Supreme Court, they won’t force you to spend money on schools,” he said.
Masterson told a mostly enthusiastic crowd of 29 that he was blessed by having had to drop out of college after he ran out of money.
Time spent living in a mobile home and working in building trades put him in tune with ordinary folks, he said.
“I understand what the average Kansan is going through because I am him,” he said. “Academics and most attorneys — everything they do is in theory. I mean, think of it. Communism sounds good on paper.”
Practical experiences like those he has had are “a concrete thing that works a little bit better than theory,” he said.
He and his wife, who joined him at the meeting, have home-schooled their six children.
Masterson supports parochial schools, private schools, home schooling, and giving parents — especially lower-income ones — choices about where to send their kids.
He condemned Kansas public schools for failing to educate students.
A building contractor by profession, he said he also learned by going through bankruptcy during the housing crisis of 2008.
He began his career in politics, in part because he needed a steady paycheck and insurance, he said.
Before the meeting, county commissioner Kent Becker led the group in prayer.
Beginning his presentation, Masterson quipped: “When you started with the Bible, I knew I was in the right place.”
Throughout his nearly 1½-hour speech and question-and-answer period at Marion County Lake hall, Masterson made multiple references to how God had guided his life.
He recounted a time when, as president of the Kansas Senate, he worried about dealing with specific senators in his Republican majority.
He recalled “talking to God,” speaking aloud while driving, identifying senators by name, then receiving a thought as he was about to retire that night that he thought might be a Bible verse but was uncertain.
The next morning, he read from his Bible verse of the day from a book, and it turned out to be the same verse — Isaiah 43:18-20 — about God removing obstacles.
When he went to his office later in the morning, he said, he learned that all of the senators he had mentioned as problematic had been defeated or were stepping down.
God also helped him decide to run for governor, he said.
“This is a moment in time,” he said. “It’s not going to stay that way. The sword you wield in the legislature is not enough to slay the dragon of government.”
Although he appeared to question the validity of the 2020 presidential election, he said Donald Trump being out of office for four years might have been “a blessing in disguise,” giving Trump time to draft a master plan about what to do in a second term.
He said Kansas needed a similar plan, initially implemented by executive orders and eventually codified by legislative action.
He said he favored redrawing the state’s congressional districts to create four “competitive” districts instead of three solidly Republican ones and one solidly Democratic one.
He opposes using eminent domain to force sale of properties for private projects such as a power transmission line across northern Kansas.
He regards school districts and many local governments are ruled by bureaucrats, creating out-of-control spending, especially in the form of property taxes.
“The highest paid person in a school district should be the best teacher,” he said, not an administrator.
He suggested electing tax appraisers and imposing state oversight of local budgets but mainly wants a constitutional amendment banning property taxes assessed on unrealized gains in value.
He offered praise for the Trump presidency.
“God has used him in a big way,” he said, quickly adding that God also “used evil kings,” although he does not regard Trump as evil.
“We are in a battle for the heart and soul of this country,” he said.
He did not speak much about news media but did criticize Kansas Reflector, which he termed “a George Soros-funded blog in Topeka that masquerades as a news source.”
“They are a very nefarious, well-oiled machine to create a left momentum in rural Kansas,” he said. “They’re not a fan of mine.”
But he went on to say that the Reflector had called him “brutally effective.”
Reached Monday, Reflector editor Sherman Smith denied that Soros, a philanthropist who has donated more than $32 billion to groups advancing justice, democracy, education, public health and independent media worldwide, had contributed to the Reflector.
“We have not directly or indirectly received Soros funding,” Smith said, “but if someone can put in a good word for us, we would welcome his support in helping us shine a light on what Masterson and others are really up to in the Statehouse.”