U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts, Congressman Adrian Smith, Nebraska State Treasurer Joey Spellerberg and former state senator Julie Slama stopped in Broken Bow Thursday as part of their “Defend the Good Life” tour, sharing their campaign messages and discussing issues they say are important heading into the November 3 election.
The group spoke inside a hangar at the Broken Bow Airport beginning at 3 PM Thursday. Their remarks touched on several ballot initiatives, the economy, taxes, agriculture and the importance of voting in the upcoming election, with each speaker encouraging voters to support Republican candidates and their positions on the issues.
Listen to each speaker’s full comments in the clips at the end of this story
Slama, who served in the Nebraska Legislature from 2019 to 2025, focused on Initiative 442, the Fairness for Girls ballot measure. She encouraged voters to support the initiative, which she said would protect opportunities for girls and women in sports. Slama also discussed the campaign’s collection of more than 211,000 signatures and a Nebraska Supreme Court ruling that allowed the measure to proceed to voters.
Spellerberg discussed his work as state treasurer, including efforts to return unclaimed property, promote education savings accounts and establish first-time homebuyer savings accounts. He also urged voters to oppose Initiatives 440 and 441, which concern the legalization of online sports betting in Nebraska. Spellerberg argued the projected property tax relief would be relatively small compared with the amount Nebraskans would have to lose through betting, while raising concerns about gambling addiction, young people and college athletes.
Smith highlighted federal tax legislation passed in 2025, permitting reform and efforts to address rising costs for agricultural producers. He also discussed the importance of year round E15 fuel sales, pointing to the potential for expanded access to ethanol blends to help consumers and Nebraska’s agricultural economy.
Ricketts focused much of his speech on the upcoming U.S. Senate election, urging voters to support Republican candidates and arguing that control of the Senate could determine whether policies passed under President Donald Trump remain in place. He criticized the Democratic party’s positions on taxes, immigration, abortion and other issues while also questioning his opponent Dan Osborn’s claims of independence, his positions on immigration and taxes, and accusing him of taking positions that conflict with the interests and values of Nebraska voters.
During a media question and answer session following the speeches, the four were asked how they would respond to Nebraskans who don’t believe they’re seeing enough evidence that cost of living and economic pressures are being tackled.
Smith pointed to rising input costs for agricultural producers, noting that those increases have been an issue for years and were exacerbated by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He identified expanded year round E15 sales as one potential way to provide relief at the pump and support domestic agriculture.
Ricketts said the cost of living is the number one issue people raise with him and quickly criticized the previous administration.
“The cost of living is definitely the number one thing people talk to me about as I travel around the state. We saw 40 year high inflation under Joe Biden, and the grocery prices went up 20%. Gas prices went up, gas prices came down, and now they’re back up again with the conflict in the Middle East. So we’ve got to do more. There’s more work to be done,” said Ricketts, who then outlined steps he said could help lower costs for Nebraska families (Working families tax cut, no tax on tips/overtime, 21st Century ROAD to Housing act).
Full comments from Julie Slama:
Full comments from Joey Spellerberg:
Full comments from Adrian Smith:
Full comments from Pete Ricketts:
