Candidate Q&A - State house; C. Darby Ulery

District 158

1. Options to help the state out of its continuing budget problems include raising taxes, eliminating more programs or a combination of the two. Which would you prefer and why?

In response to the options to either raise taxes or eliminate more programs in order to help the state out of its continuing budget problems, I propose we eliminate more programs and privatize many government programs. The government continuously manages money poorly; private citizens are better at this.

2. Keeping in mind that lawmakers have no control over how money from the state road fund is spent, what action do you propose to improve Missouri's transportation system?

To improve Missouri's transportation system, we should open up the highway-building program to private industry. This would increase the bidding process for private road builders, therefore increasing competition and providing lower costs to Missouri citizens.

3. With the large number of fresh faces in the General Assembly next year due to term limits, what changes would you propose in the way the legislature does business?

I oppose term limits. Elections occur regularly, and the voters have the power to remove or select someone for the office. In a democracy, voters should have the right to vote for whomever they choose. Why should good legislators be penalized for their good service? Even a third-party candidate like myself would never oppose the freedom of the voter to choose their own representative.

4. What agriculture-related legislation would you propose?

Agricultural subsidies, when used properly, can help transform a failing industry into a flourishing one. However, money paid to people to encourage them not to grow is a crime against the taxpayers of Missouri. Cape Girardeau County is full of success stories of farmers who have identified trends in agricultural markets and have made necessary adjustments to crops based upon the forces of supply and demand. I have no problem with intelligently spent government money to help farmers who have crops with decreased demand develop their land into a farm that will produce a crop that is more called for in the market.

5. In one paragraph, why should someone vote for you rather than your opponent?

A vote for C. Darby Ulery is a vote for logic, progress, fairness and responsibility. The system is the problem, not the candidates, in this race. I am passionate about making changes for the better. A perfectionist when it comes to listening to people and working hard, I look forward to representing the interests of the people of Cape Girardeau. Democracy is about choices. There are only two of us in this race; one of us is a third-party candidate. Where are the others? Democracy and the free-market economy are at stake. A vote for me is a voice for the freedom and power to choose -- a concept upon which America was founded.