Nebraska Freedom Coalition

I’ve never been shy about criticizing Nebraska’s Republican establishment. I despised the Ricketts political machine that helped give us Pillen as governor and Ricketts his Senate seat. And frankly, Pillen has given conservatives plenty of reasons to be disappointed. But voting against someone simply to settle a political grudge is like burning down your own barn because you don’t like who built it. You’re still the one left dealing with the damage. Here’s something worth considering about Brett Lindstrom. The Nebraska State Education Association endorsed him when he ran as a Republican in 2022, despite the union’s overwhelming support for Democrats. Now he’s left the Republican Party, and campaign finance records show NSEA money flowing into the political funding network supporting his new America First Party. That’s a relationship voters deserve to understand. As someone who spends time inside our public schools, I have serious concerns about the teachers union’s priorities. I want higher academic standards, less political influence in classrooms, and more accountability for results. I don’t think Pillen is the perfect governor, and I’ll continue calling out establishment politics wherever I see them. But I also believe we need to examine the records, financial backers, and governing plans of Lindstrom and Walz rather than letting frustration with Pillen make that decision for us.