Barker and Hill continue fight for Kansas' 70th District

Jul. 29—Incumbent Rep. John Barker and challenger Scott Hill are in a contentious race for Kansas' 70th District.

Here's how both candidates feel about some hot button issues.

Abortion

Both Barker and Hill are pro-life.

Hill said he is against abortion.

"As a physiologist, I have respect for what life is," he said. "And I don't think that we really spend time examining what life is we just assume it exists. And we don't really think about what it is."

Hill said he believes life begins before conception.

"Life is in both parents — is combined into a new life — And that is life," Hill said. "Now we can argue all kinds of things about convenience and situations and all that but there is no disagreement about when life begins. Because the sperm and the egg are both alive. They both have all the characteristics of life. And the newly formed embryo, at conception exhibits all the characteristics of life. It reproduces, it grows, it has intelligence, it has direction. When you look at the cellular level, there's absolutely no question that life begins before conception."

Hill said he also considers himself a Christian.

"My religious point is that I'm a Christian and I believe that life should be protected," he said. "I don't think it should be destroyed. So anything that I will support will be the encouragement of the protection of life."

Barker said he has been pro-life for his entire career.

"I've always been pro life," he said. "I've worked on it for 10 years."

In 2016, Barker said he and his fellow representatives worked to outlaw dismemberment abortion.

How far restrictions go is "a debate that the legislature will have," but Barker said he is against abortion.

Hill and Barker are in favor of the "Value Them Both" amendment. Barker is the one who introduced the amendment.

"I helped draft it," Barker said. "I introduced it in the house, ran it through my committee."

"This is an amendment that reinstitutes restrictions on abortion, which which I support," Hill said. "So I will be voting yes on it. But even further than that, I think from a constitutionalist (standpoint) that it is the correct interpretation of the Constitution for issues like abortion to be regulated by the legislature, and not dictated by the judicial branch."

Hill feels it was wrong for the judicial branch to take on the roll of regulating abortion, which he said it did in 2019.

Law Enforcement Officers

Both Barker and Hill support law enforcement.

Barker worked in law enforcement starting in 1970 as a military police officer with the United States Army after which he became a criminal investigator in the Army. When he came to Dickinson County, he took a job with the county attorney's office.

"I'm I'm pro law enforcement — I know law enforcement," Barker said. "And, you know, I've worked with the Sheriffs Association. I'm the one that introduced the constitutional amendment to make the sheriff a constitutional position, which was supported by the Attorney General. And the sheriffs the she sheriffs throughout the state — the Sheriffs Association. We hold them accountable. But we let them do their job too and support them in every way we can."

The amendment to make sheriffs a constitutional position throughout Kansas will be on the ballot in November.

Hill said he also supports law enforcement.

" I think what you do from the from the state level is that you support and encourage, and you provide, you know, when you say provide funding, that's a is a little bit naive," Hill said. "Because there again, most of the funding comes from local property tax. The idea that that essential government is doling out all these cookies to people and they're able to survive, because the central government gives them those cookies is such a socialistic idea. And it's very contrary to what made America great — that local communities saw what their need was and developed a way to solve that situation. And so, as a state legislator, would I be involved in local law enforcement? Absolutely not ... But I do support law enforcement."

Hill said he hopes to help law enforcement by addressing the meth and opioid epidemic if elected.

Experience

Barker has been in the legislature for the past 10 years.

If the "Value Them Both" amendment passes, he said he will consider that one of his greatest accomplishments from his time in the legislature.

Barker lists his other accomplishments as the introduction of the "I like Ike" license plates honoring President Dwight D. Eisenhower, the fees from which support the Eisenhower Foundation. Barker also got a tax credit instituted to help people who donate to the Eisenhower Foundation.

"People that donate to the Eisenhower Foundation, they can take a state tax credit," he said. "If you give them — for example — $5,000, you can get the tax credit for that. And that's really helped them fund themselves because they don't get any federal money. The foundation doesn't. And I've worked on a number of other issues. I've tried to write letters of support for the cities and counties get grants."

These grants include a grant to help with sanitation when Chapman needed a pond to help with wastewater and grants for Solomon. He has worked on grants for Marion to help with road maintenance.

A hard surface road is being built between Marion and Pilsen to help with traffic to Pilsen which has increased as former Pilsen priest Fr. Kapun has been considered for sainthood.

Gun rights — including reciprocity for concealed carry licenses from other states — are another thing Barker said he has worked to protect.

Hill has not been in the legislature before, though he once served on the state board of education and he has served on boards and committees on a local level.

"Our system of government is designed for citizen legislators," he said. "And so my number one qualification that I have for this position is that I'm a citizen of the states. I am a normal person. I have experiences that will help me in this. But what we really need to get away from the idea that only a few elite people are qualified — everyone is qualified, if they are a reasonable person that has some ability to think and understand. I have a lot of education, obviously. I have a PhD. So I've, I've been around education circles a lot. I served on the State Board of Education for four years."

He said he believes his experience in agriculture and business will also help guide him if he is elected.

"My whole life has been in the private sector," Hill said.

Redistricting

There was a controversy earlier this year when redistricting moved the line of the 70th District. The shifting lines cut off along K-18 and moved Hill's ranch out of the 70th District after Hill had voiced his intent to run for the Kansas House in the 70th District.

"It's a function of the legislature to redistrict," Hill said.

When asked if he believed he had been cut from the district on purpose, he said he had no idea.

"I'm not accusing him," Hill said. "Don't get me wrong. I am not accusing him of purposely districting us out. I have no idea. It's all a closed door process. None of it's done where we can see what's what's happening. So we have no way of knowing"

He and his wife moved to Abilene after the redistricting, which is why he is still able to run against Barker in the 70th District.

"We were committed to run," Hill said. "We were committed to run for the people that supported us. And then when redistricting came out, and we were no longer included in the district, it was really a no brainer for us to move into Abilene — which is perfectly legal to do."

Barker did sit on the committee that helped redraw the lines, as Barker himself admits.

"That's done by legislative services, a nonpartisan group, but we have a committee for it. I happen to be on that committee," he said. "the guy that was in charge of it is a retired 06 full colonel United States Army — retired. Scott Hill's people asked him and he said 'I didn't know where he lived.' He said 'we just drew the lines when the population is right.'"

Barker said a similar thing had happened to him when he ran for election in 2012. He said he went to bed one night in the 68th District and woke up in the 70th District. He said he switched to running in the 70th District.

He said redistricting was done based on population and that lines had to be moved along markers that people recognized — such as K-18.

"This district lost about 2500 people in the last 10 years," Barker said. "So did the district north of us — Clay County."