Aug. 4 marks the date of the primary elections.
That means it’s time to meet the candidates for State Senate District 29, which consists of Taney and Stone counties, as well as Barry, Lawrence, McDonald and Ozark counties.
On the ballot, you will see David Cole and Mike Moon, running for State Senate District 29. The current Senator David Sater could not run again because of term limits. The following interviews are the answers supplied by Cole and Moon to identical questions. Their answers are edited for space.
Background
David Cole
“I grew up, and I’m actually from Barry County. My family’s been in Barry County for five generations. I grew up on a farm in western Barry County up around Wheaton. I grew up and went to school in Wheaton then I graduated from there. I think there were 23 people in my graduating class. Then I went to work and met my wife. My wife and I got married what in hindsight looks to be extremely young, I was 20 she was 19. We just celebrated 35 years together in April. After we got married, our oldest daughter was born a couple years later. I went back to school at night at Missouri Southern, graduated with a degree in business administration from Missouri Southern. First person in my family to graduate from college so I’m certainly proud of that, my parents were certainly proud of that.
Then I went to law school at the University of Missouri in Columbia. Then I came back to Cassville, and that’s where I’ve been ever since. My wife grew up in Granby, her father died when she was 3, so she was raised by a single mother over there. We’ve been in southwest Missouri for a long, long time and our families have been for sure. I have a law office on the square in Cassville, I’ve been here for 27-28 years now representing the people and families and businesses in Barry county.”
Mike Moon
“I was born in North Carolina, finished my high school years in Virginia, moved out to Missouri 42 years ago, completed college, completed a career at Mercy hospital at 27 years and been in the legislature over a little over seven (years), and I’m a full-time rancher/cattle producer outside that. Been married 40 years, I have five children (and) five grandchildren.”
Why are you running?
David Cole
“I’m running so we can have a true, southwest Missouri conservative voice in the State Senate. I have been involved in volunteering for the Republican party my entire adult life, starting with Ronald Reagan. What I’ve done is I’ve worked hard to elect a conservative candidate all my entire life. You see too many of them get up to either Washington D.C. or Jefferson City and they like to say one thing, but they get up there and they vote another way. That’s extremely frustrating to me. What I want to do is take southwest Missouri values and good common sense and judgment and take it to Jeff City and apply it to public policy that positively affects our homes, our businesses, our communities and I think I have the experience, the temperament and the ability to do that.”
Mike Moon
“After serving in the House I’ve recognized that there are some needs that we have not addressed such as reducing unnecessary regulation, eliminating corporate tax and finally putting an end to abortion of developing human babies. So, I’m hopeful that as a Senator I’ll be able to draw more attention and be able to get some debate and votes on those three issues.”
What important issue is impacting your district right now?
David Cole
“I think the most important issue right now is the economy. I think that before COVID-19 our economy was growing, unemployment was at its lowest ever, people had money to spend. What this virus has done is it has impacted and certainly the Branson and the Tri-Lakes region has felt this as much as any place in the country. It’s been devastating, and what we need to do is we need to bring back the economy, we’ve got people pushing socialist policies…wanting to increase taxes, things such as that. That’s not the solution, that’s not how we got the lowest unemployment on record and the best economy in history. We got there by rejecting those policies, and what we need to do is we need to get back to that, we need to where we were before, and that’s a very steep hill to climb but it’s important because I think that’s clearly the No.1 most pressing issue in the 29th.”
Mike Moon
“COVID-19 and the measures that are taken to keep people safe, and I think that the virus is a real virus; however, I believe that people need to be given the opportunity to exercise personal responsibility to wear a mask if they choose to wear a mask, to go about their daily business, to operate businesses if your a business owner, and I believe that the economy has been devastated as a result. The Branson economy is in dire straits, and I’ve spoken to business people who are extremely frustrated. So, I think that both those issues go hand in hand and the virus, the resulting economic constraints that have resulted due to decisions that were made, forcing people to comply with mandates, and so I believe that our liberties are at stake, and I believe that people need to be given the freedom to make choices that are right for them, their families, their businesses and our communities.”
Is there anything about your campaign that you want voters to know?
David Cole
“Well, I think that I want them to know that my campaign and what we’re doing is, we’re out talking to the people, talking to businesses about their lives and the things they’re going through. And what I want them to know is that if I’m elected, I’m going to go to Jefferson City and I’m going to vote in the way that I tell them I’m going to vote. We’ve had representatives go up there and they like to talk like they’re conservatives and say that they’re tough on crime and they say they’re for lower taxes and then they go up there and they vote ‘no’ on lowering taxes and they vote ‘no’ on vitally important pro life bills. They say they’re for veterans and they vote ‘no’ on bills to support veterans and they always have these excuses as to why they voted ‘no’, but those excuses are unacceptable. What they’re going to get from me is I’m going to vote to advocate policies that I tell you I’m going to. What you see is what you get, and it’s not all talk. It’s not what you say, it’s what you do and it’s not how loud you are, it’s how you vote, and that’s what I want people to know.”
Mike Moon
“I’ve been fighting for liberty for the seven-plus years I’ve been in the House. I am not a ‘go along to get along’ representative, and I believe that there are issues that are important to the people that are not being heard, and as a Senator I will be able to forward those issues that are important to the 29th Senate District, and I’ll be a voice to the people. I have stood for them, I stand for the Constitution. I am the most pro life, most constitutional, most conservative candidate in this race. I’ve got a proven record and a lot of people run away from their records and I’m running on mine. So, I’m challenging people to look up what I’ve done and tell it to their friends and ask them if they’re for freedom and liberty, and if Mike Moon is the candidate they need to vote for on Aug. 4.”