Daub stops in city for Senate-run fact-finding

COLUMBUS - Hal Daub is “testing the waters” before deciding on a run for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate in the 2008 election.

The path to that decision for Daub and his wife Mary, put them on the road committed to visiting 93 cities in 93 counties in 93 days. Friday, Daub met with area residents downtown in an informal, two-hour meeting.

Platte County was the 56th county Daub visited since starting out June 1. By the time he reached Crackers to Caviar in Columbus he had logged 6,000 miles in his journey to learn the expectations and important issues of residents from across the state

“The next senator elected from Nebraska will serve the state from 2009 to 2015,” Daub was saying as people trickled in for their afternoon coffee. “This is a very informal way to meet with the people from across Nebraska and learn from them which issues are important, what their expectations are for their next senator and to take note of their concerns.”

Criss-crossing the state in this way, Daub has had meetings with attendance ranging from two to 35 people over the course of the two hour gatherings.

Daub said the result of what he learns will determine if he is a good fit to be a candidate for the Republican Party senate nomination in the next election cycle.

“The way this is normally done is to take a poll,” Daub said. “But we all know a poll has a built in margin of error that is just about five percent. I think that's really a false way to learn about the important issues of the people of this great state, and so I've chosen to go out myself and hear it directly from the people.”

Topics included immigration reform, Iraq, health care, the farm bill, water issues, Medicare and Medicaid issues.

“For many, the politics of the Iraq war have up to now turned people off,” Daub said during a cell phone interview between Columbus and David City. “There has been more of a focus on the economy and employment issues, but recently the people seem to be engaged again on the topic of the war and for the most part they want us to stick with it and trust the president and the commanders on the ground.”

Daub said the most intriguing ideas that surfaced in his visit to Columbus were about how to improve the nation's federal system of government.

“People here want their elected officials to take a look at how the people's business is being done in Washington,” he said. “The want us to look at the electoral college system, term limits and ways to increase accountability and improve the ethics of the house and senate.”

Daub said Thomas Jefferson is his favorite president of history because of his adamant insistence on protecting the four basic freedoms and his belief that the best education must be freely available to all.

“We must change our system of government occasionally,” Daub said. “We don't have to be afraid to do that when it's needed. We are not 13 colonies anymore, we are a nation of millions. The time is now to begin working on changes that will make our system better and more effective for our current day.”

Daub said about 35 people came during his two-hour visit in Columbus.

“I've not had as healthy, as stimulating and as rigorous discussion anywhere on many issues as I had in Columbus,” he said. “How to get the system more accountable was a much bigger issue than some of the regional concerns such as water issues and the debate and concern about class one schools.

“People believe that partisanship is at fault and that it needs to change in order to improve the federal system,” Daub said.

Mary said he will make his decision sometime in September and if he chooses not to run he plans to share what he's learned with the governor and the Republican candidate who is selected as the next Republican nominee.