Ronald Reagan once observed that, “as government expands, liberty contracts.” It is a lesson in reality that Idahoans have long understood. A government that can give us everything can take everything we have. Its role is not to lift people up but, rather, to stop holding them down.
Idahoans get it. We are a fiercely independent people who want to live in freedom, raise our children according to our values, work hard, enjoy this world, and leave it a little better for our having lived.
We don’t need leaders who have spent 50 years in office, shut away from the day-to-day realities of average citizens. Endurance should never be confused with experience.
My platform is based on one of the oldest tricks in the book: common sense. It reflects and understanding shared by Idahoans at every station of life, that the things that serve us best are the things we are able to do for ourselves.
I am a member of the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the Idaho Second Amendment Alliance (ISAA), and I understand and respect America’s commitment to the Second Amendment and the need to protect our rights from infringement at every level.
The passage of S1389 in 2016 (permitless carry) was an important victory for individual rights and personal safety. In 2018, I supported passage of several 2nd Amendment bills: S1313 to strengthen Stand Your Ground/Castle Doctrine; H565 to allow retired law enforcement officers to carry a concealed weapon at schools, public colleges, and university events; H443 to authorize school districts to offer elective firearms safety classes.
We need to continue efforts as a state to take control of our lands. Many of our natural resources, from tree harvesting and mining to recreation and cattle grazing, are off-limits or severely limited to citizens of our state. The Federal Government claims about 63% of Idaho land, which could be used to put Idahoans to work. We also need to stop the Island Park Wildlife Overpasses and find alternatives.
Read more about this issue HERE.
We cannot raise a free people on captive land. I will work in the legislature to restore Idaho’s land to its citizens.
I believe all life is sacred, and I am encouraged by recent bills in the Idaho legislature to educate women, via ultrasound and other methods, before they choose to end a pre-born baby’s life. I also believe we need to protect our religious freedom and make efforts to return basic universal principles to our educational facilities.
In 2018, I supported H638 which establishes reporting requirements for health complications arising as a result of abortion, and S1243 which requires information be provided to patients on reversal pill.
Obamacare, otherwise known as the Affordable Care Act, is neither affordable nor has it made people healthier. Our version, the so-called “state exchange,” is creating new levels of spending, artificially driving up insurance costs, and reducing work hours as employers attempt to cut back on the number of workers they’ll be forced to cover. Slowing down the economy is not progress. We need free-market solutions that lift people out of poverty, rather than trap them into subsistence-level lives with welfare programs.
I will oppose any further government expansion into the area of health care. The solution to poverty is to eradicate it, not to subsidize it.
It never ceases to amaze me that the same government that can’t prevent crime in its prisons expects us to believe they know how to spend our money better than we do. If progress revolved around government spending, we’d have solved our problems long ago. The truth is this: the money you take home to spend on your family, invest in your business, or make your own life better, doesn’t belong in some bureaucrat’s pocket.
I signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge in 2012 and I’m standing by that pledge today. I’ll oppose and vote against any and all efforts to increase taxes on Idaho’s citizens.
In 2018, I supported H335 which reduced unemployment tax contributions required of businesses, H463 which reduces the individual and corporate rate and provides a child tax credit, and H675 which increased the credit from $130 to $205.
In a region dominated by agriculture, government has imposed a plague of artificial regulations and rules that stand in a stark contrast to a way of life as old as the Garden of Eden. Agriculture, small business, transportation, and virtually every other means of earning a living is inundated with fees, audits, permits, licenses, and assorted barriers that discourage business startups and job-creating business expansions.
I will propose legislation to “sunset” regulatory agencies, requiring them to be reauthorized by the legislature. Every four years, government agencies should be forced to make the case for their continued existence, or be eliminated.
In 2018, I supported S1324, the Barber and cosmetology services act, which reduced required hours, combined the two boards, and will give more flexibility to individuals.
From a modest background with a strong will to make the world a better place I have studied and advocated for Constitutional principles for many years. I have served many youths for the better as a Scout leader then as an intern at the Juvenile Correctional Center. I have supported my husband and family with our farm operations and understand the needs of small businesses. As a proud Idahoan, I want to promote and protect our way of life.
Raised in the Idaho Falls area and Idaho-educated from high school through college, Karey Hanks was raised on the values and traditions of the American West.
As faith representative at the Five County Detention Center with a degree in psychology from Brigham Young University Idaho campus, she has insights stretching across the life experiences of people in the 35th District.
A member of the National Rifle Association and the Idaho Second Amendment Alliance, Karey understands and respects America’s commitment to the Second Amendment and the need to protect those rights from infringement at every level. She hails the passage of Senate Bill 1389 in 2016 as a victory for individual rights and personal safety.
Her rich and varied work history reflects a woman with a respect for hard work. She has driven a bus for the Fremont County School District, worked a big rig for Generation Farms, worked as a merchandiser at FGXI, and as a harvest worker at Crapo Farms.
She and her husband, Burke, have lived and farmed in the Egin area for 32 years. They know the importance of water rights and the burden of taxes and overregulation.
A lover of the outdoors, be it skiing, biking or hiking, she understands Idahoans’ connection to the land. That’s why it troubles her that 63 percent of Idaho land is controlled by the federal government, and not Idaho’s citizens. She knows that Idaho’s future must be determined by its own people, and not from behind a desk in Washington.
Idaho’s economic development is irrevocably tied to the soil and without control of its own land, Karey knows that the state cannot advance. She is committed to carrying that message to Boise and beyond. A people without control of their land can only be serfs. She views it as an issue of human rights and liberty.
Her political experience began with the Fremont County Central Committee and the Republican Women’s group in a variety of roles. One of her favorites has been speaking before school and scouting groups about Constitutional principles.
She and Burke have been married 41 years and have 7 children and 14 grandchildren.
Karey understands and appreciates the importance of public service, but she also cherishes the awesome significance of her other roles in life: wife, mother, and grandmother.
Rexburg Standard Journal — What is your line in the sand? (11-14-19)
Post Register — Vaccines, parental rights dominate health rules hearing (08-24-19)
Redoubt News — Rep. Karey Hanks – Idaho District 35 (02-01-17)
Ammoland.com — Urgent Call to Action For Idaho Second Amendment Supporters (01-27-17)
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Please let me know if you are willing to help with cottage meetings, signs, donations, or letters of support. Thank You!
I welcome any comments and requests — Let me know how I can help you!
