REPLACING:

Ben Sasse (R)

WORK HISTORY:

U.S. Senate (Senator, Nebraska); State of Nebraska (Governor); Drakon LLC (Founder); TD Ameritrade (Board Member); Chicago Cubs (Board Member); Ameritrade (Senior Vice President of Strategy and Business Development; Senior Vice President of Product Development; Senior Vice President of Marketing; President; Chief Operating Officer); Union Pacific (Customer Service Representative) [i]

EDUCATION:

BA and MBA, University of Chicago

CAMPAIGNED ON:

Boosting Nebraska Agriculture; Reining in Big Government; Securing Our Border; Ensuring Energy Independence; Strengthening Families; Supporting Our Veterans; Fighting for Seniors; Maintaining Peace Through Strength [ii]

ON THE ISSUES

REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS:

Ricketts is a member of the Pro-Life Caucus in the U.S. Senate. He supports legislation to ban federal taxpayer-funding for abortions as well as “legislation to protect babies who survive abortion attempts.” Ricketts is also working to make adoption more affordable and lower maternity and childbirth healthcare costs. Ricketts has also signed legislation to ban “dismemberment abortion,” and supports “informed consent protections” for mothers. [iii]

IMMIGRATION & BORDER SECURITY:

Ricketts has stated his commitment to securing the borders in order to “see our nation safeguarded from illicit drugs, human trafficking, and smuggling.” He supports legislation to reform asylum laws and build the wall at the Southern border. Ricketts also wants to increase penalties for fentanyl distributors and eliminate sanctuary cities. He supports giving Border Patrol agents “the tools they need to get illegal immigration under control and keep deadly drugs like fentanyl off our streets.” [iv]

ECONOMY & JOBS:

Ricketts considers agriculture the “backbone” of Nebraska’s economy and has emphasized the need to prioritize domestic food production in the wake of global supply chain disruptions that occurred during the pandemic. As governor, Ricketts promoted biofuels like ethanol, sought to grow the livestock industry, and worked to spur rural economic development. Ricketts opposes the Biden administration’s 30×30 plan and the expansion of Waters of the United States rules under Presidents Obama and Biden.

TAXES:

Ricketts supports a federal tax cut on Social Security income. [v] He proposed ending the federal tax on 10% of the Social Security income that recipients pay taxes on in tax year 2024. The measure would increase the tax cut to 20% in tax year 2025. “That’s the way it originally started out, that Social Security benefits were not taxed,” Ricketts said. 

CRIME & PUBLIC SAFETY:

In May 2024, Ricketts referred to police officers as “the backbone of our communities.” Ricketts went on to propose increased funding for police departments, saying, “We need to provide new tools to officers to protect themselves and we need to block anti-cop, soft-on-crime policies that would hinder law enforcement’s ability to do their jobs with excellence. I am committed to working with anyone who wants to make this happen.” [vi]

CLIMATE CHANGE, ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT:

Ricketts believes in achieving American energy independence. He is a longtime supporter of ethanol and a proponent of year-round E15. He has advocated for high volumes of biodiesel and other fuel technology, like sustainable aviation fuel. Ricketts supports reform that focuses on “reliable and expeditious permitting for energy generation, transmission, and storage projects.” Ricketts opposes expanded definitions under the Waters of the United States rule and emissions mandate that would “force a mass transition to electric vehicles.” [vii]

FOREIGN POLICY:

Ricketts supports “maintaining peace through strength” by investing in the United States military. Ricketts is particularly concerned with the Chinese Communist Party and Russia and is “fighting to modernize and strengthen America’s nuclear deterrent.” He supports investments in the Sentinel ICBM weapon system that is partially based in western Nebraska. Ricketts is also a supporter of Israel; in 2023, Ricketts introduced legislation that would enact a permanent ban on U.S. funding for United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). [viii] 

HEALTHCARE & SOCIAL SAFETY NET:

Ricketts campaigned on protecting seniors’ access to healthcare and is a member of the Senate Special Committee on Aging. [ix] He has worked to improve home care services for seniors leaving the hospital. He protected the rights of individuals who receive in-home personal care. Ricketts has been a long-time critic of the Affordable Care Act, calling it “bad policy.” More recently, he criticized the availability of the Affordable Care Act to people who make up to 400% of the federal poverty level, or an income of $106,000. [x]

DEMOCRACY:

In July 2022, Ricketts called the Select House Committee’s hearing into the January 6 attack on the Capitol a “partisan rehash of mostly old information.” He has called President Trump’s actions prior to the insurrection, “appropriate,” going on to state, “I believe everybody who went into the Capitol building intent on doing violence did so of their own accord. We have a system of laws that holds people accountable for their actions.” Following the 2020 election, Ricketts also called for establishing a commission to investigate voter fraud. [xi]

SOCIAL ISSUES:

Ricketts has expressed opposition to transgender athletes participating in sporting events. Ricketts claims that expanding Title IX rules to allow the participation of transgender athletes according to their gender identity “would force girls and women to share dorm rooms, bathrooms, and locker rooms with boys and men.” He also believes the rules allow for too expansive a definition of sexual harassment, which could include the failure to use a transgender athlete’s preferred pronouns. Ricketts has also argued that the participation of transgender athletes allows “male students to take academic and athletic scholarships from women.” [xii]