In The Loop - Issue #86

November 14, 2025

The Shutdown.... is OVER!

So our federal government is finally open!!!. The Republicans, lead by President Trump stuck to their principles. The Democrats caved. A number of items were included in the Continuing Resolution including full funding of Agriculture, Defense, Congress, SNAP and WIC through next September! The rest will be funded through January 30th 2026. The NEGOP press release is later in this newsletter.

President Trump and his cabinet members amaze me and probably you too! He has enabled others to also stand up for us. Thank you to Speaker Johnson and Senator Thune for holding your ground. Now let's get the rest of the agenda accomplished!!!

We have been working to get featured leaders to write articles for you. This time we have an article from State Senator Lippincott. He talks about the filibuster rule, which President Trump had wanted eliminated. This is the Senator's opinion. There are probably those who disagree, and we welcome those respectful opinions, also. Through discussion a solution can be found. Probably the best solution is to elect enough representatives to create a filibuster proof Congress and state legislature. We need to step up and learn who will be our greatest representatives in the 2026 elections. Get educated.

Third District Rep. Adrian Smith talks about the IRS and it's overreach. Adrian has been an important part of the pull back on the invasion of the IRS, he talks about that in his letter.

Our District Chair, Chris Vail, has a great message for this Thanksgiving season. We may be disheartened, but we must not be divided. Focus on the end game, work together. Although we may get down, we need to look at the great things that have happened. One of our own has fought the battle and is now on the road to recovery, we are so thankful that Morissa is home and healing.

The 2026 Vote Red Auction planning is going on! Susi Wilkinson has a page on news. She already has some great items that are going to be auctioned off, but she is looking for more. It is an opportunity to showcase your county and its businesses. Check it out later in this newsletter.

Candidates for next year's election are making the rounds across the state. It's a great time to get to know them and find out what's fact or fiction. We encourage dialogue with all of our Republican candidates, that's for sure. There are also quite a few petitions going around, on December 4th you can hear all about them. See the upcoming events section.

We, also, need to remember to take time for ourselves, our families, our Lord, and our communities outside of politics. Pray for those hurting. Somehow we need everyone to understand that life is precious, our time here is finite, as we were reminded of on a daily basis, we need to cherish that and spend it wisely. Slow down, take a deep breath...

On that note, I will delay sending out the next newsletter until Saturday, November 29th, since it will be Thanksgiving week. May you all have a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving!!!

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CD3 Update - You get what you give

by: 3rd District Chair Chris Vail

Recently, I have started to feel overwhelmed with all that is going on everywhere. Friends getting sick, long-term pillars of our community passing away, siblings fighting and no one seems to be able to get along. Is it because of the intense magnetic energy being created by solar storms? Is it because of the financial pressures of life? Is it because we see a negative future?

All of these questions combined bring back memories of optimism and hope I had for our family, my children, and society in general. Now, it seems there is a sense of despair and loss. A sense, especially in younger people, is that something isn't right. We know through our recent experience with the assassination attempts on Donald Trump and the subsequent assassination of Charlie Kirk how much risk these elected officials and conservative leaders take speaking out against the far left. There seems to be a trend even in the mainstream to acknowledge the patriots are right. I have been called out numerous times in the past couple of months by people in our own party mainly by the single issue people who decide if you don't fit the narrative that day it is ok to post on social media against you personally. I get it. It is easy to lash out and that behavior seems to have become acceptable.

What I can't seem to ever understand is ‘why you would burn a bridge that you will not ever be able to cross again'? Why would you, for your own political gain attack someone, when you may need that person or organization in the future? When I became involved in politics I honestly could not understand how you could aggressively work against someone and then when the election was over be buddies. It is still hard for me to grasp the concept when this movement is about engagement. I engaged, not because of the Republican Party, but because the McCain, Romney, Bush choices were the lesser of two evils. But, Trump was different. I wasn't as much of a Republican, as I was MAGA. I believe in American greatness, about making America Great Again.

Making America Great Again is also the politics of Trumplicans. People who became re-energized, active and purposeful when they saw how the mentality and business logic of Trump were and are exactly what America needed in 2016. We have been patient, watching, hoping and praying for the evil that perpetuates the democratic party is exposed. The child abuse and trafficking, the corruption, the graft and the cheating is exposed... we wait, we watch and we are getting impatient. This is understood. But, if we know anything about our President, it is that he is a rule follower. He waited for the courts to run the circuit and prove him innocent; he waited for the courts to override overreaching temporary injunctions; and now we wait for the courts, through legal procedures to find guilt of those who sought to ruin America. The truth always comes out and good wins if good people get in the game.

That is the people of the 3rd District. Patriots, voting for conservatives and being proud. The Third District Makes America Great and will continue to do so. Thank you for all you do for Nebraska, for your community and for families we care for. We have much to be thankful this Thanksgiving and remember all the blessings in our lives. Have a wonderful holiday!

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Protecting Taxpayers and Stopping IRS Overreach

Message from our 3rd District Congressman Adrian Smith

For years, Nebraskans have told me that they want a tax system that is simple, fair, and respectful of the people it serves. Families, farmers, ranchers, and small businesses work hard, pay what they owe, and expect their government to treat them with dignity. Unfortunately, the Biden administration took a very different approach. Their plan was to supercharge the IRS with $80 billion, expand audits on ordinary Americans, and place federal oversight directly into household financial activity.

Due to our efforts in Congress and the Trump administration's actions, that plan has now been stopped. Most Nebraskans may not be familiar with this story, but it is one of the most significant taxpayer victories of the last several years.

The Biden administration began by attempting to increase surveillance on family bank accounts. They pushed a rule that would have required banks and credit unions to report account activity for anyone with more than $600 of annual transactions. At the same time, they lowered the threshold for reporting digital accounts like Venmo and PayPal to the IRS to $600 per year in the American Rescue Plan, creating new burdens for online sellers, small businesses, and even friends who split dinner checks or families who pay their dog walker. It was effectively a new babysitter tax.. I opposed these provisions early because they targeted ordinary families. These families are simply trying their best to pay their taxes in full and on time, and the vast majority of them do exactly that.

Next, the Biden administration attempted to build an IRS controlled tax filing system called Direct File. Congress never authorized such a program. The law permitted only a limited feasibility study, yet the IRS moved ahead with a larger system. When I questioned Biden administration IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel about where the IRS believed it had authority to create Direct File, he could not identify a specific statute. The program was costly, unnecessary, and ineffective. It was estimated to cost at least $138 per user, and fewer than 0.5 percent of taxpayers even tried it. Private sector options already provide free filing for eligible families at no cost to taxpayers.

The Biden administration also provided $80 billion to expand the IRS workforce by 87,000 employees. Their claims that these agents would only target the wealthy never matched the numbers. Their revenue estimates required audits of the very middle-class families and small businesses that define Nebraska's Third District. That would have placed thousands of farmers and ranchers directly in the IRS spotlight.

In January 2023, Congress responded. My bill to repeal the $80 billion IRS expansion became the first bill passed by House Republicans in the 118th Congress. Throughout 2024 and 2025, I led letters urging appropriators to defund Direct File, pressed the IRS for answers on its authority, and introduced legislation to terminate the program entirely. These actions laid the groundwork for repeal language I worked to include in our Working Families Tax Cut bill.

The Trump administration then took decisive action. President Trump, Treasury Secretary Bessent, and IRS CEO Bisignano moved to suspend and replace the Direct File system after reviewing its lack of legal authority, high cost, and duplicative nature. Their November 5th report confirmed the program's termination and called for improvements to existing free file services rather than an IRS run alternative.

This combined effort delivered a major victory for taxpayers. The IRS expansion has been significantly rolled back. Direct File is terminated. Surveillance proposals have been stopped. And families and small businesses across Nebraska can be confident that Washington will not insert itself deeper into their financial lives. I am proud of my work to lead this effort.

There is more work ahead, but we have taken meaningful steps to ensure that our tax system respects the people of Nebraska's Third District. I will continue working to strengthen customer service, modernize technology, and protect the voluntary compliance structure that has served our country well for generations.

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Thoughts from State Senator Loren Lippincott

Is it time to dump the filibuster?

The filibuster became part of the Nebraska Legislature's procedures in 1937, when the one-house Unicameral first convened. Nebraska's filibuster operates through unlimited debate, which can be ended only by a cloture motion requiring a two-thirds majority (currently 33 out of 49 senators) to cease debate and force a vote. This supermajority requirement for cloture making minority obstruction possible stems from the Unicameral's design which hopes to promote thorough discussion and protect minority views in a nonpartisan system.

The formal cloture rule allowing a vote to end debate after time limits have expired, has existed since the rules were adopted in 1937. Refinements, like automatic cloture votes after eight hours on general file, were added in 1990 and clarified in 1994. Prior to 1937, Nebraska's bicameral legislature lacked a comparable supermajority cloture mechanism, relying more on majority rules. The filibuster's prominence has grown over time, and became a key tool for compromise in the nonpartisan Unicameral, akin to the U.S. Senate but unique among states.

Nebraska closely mimics the U.S. Senate rules, so perhaps we should look closely at the kerfuffle happening in D.C. Unfortunately our Unicameral is following the same obstructionist path.

Here are some of the primary arguments commonly made in favor of abolishing the filibuster in the U.S. Senate. They illustrate how the filibuster rule undermines democratic processes and efficiency. Note that the filibuster refers to the procedural requirement that typically needs a 60-vote (3/5) supermajority to end debate (cloture) and advance most legislation.

First, it is undemocratic and anti-majoritarian, to allow the minority to block the will of the majority. The filibuster enables as few as 41 senators potentially representing far less than half the U.S. population to halt bills that have majority support, violating the principle of majority rule embedded in the Constitution, which specifies supermajorities only for limited cases like treaties or impeachments. This is exacerbated by the Senate's existing structure, where small states are over-represented. (By 2040, projections show two-thirds of Americans will be represented by just 30 percent of senators, making the filibuster a tool for “minority tyranny.”) As George Washington said, “The fundamental principle of our Constitution requires that the will of the majority shall prevail."

Secondly, it promotes gridlock, partisanship and inefficiency rather than deliberation. Contrary to claims that it encourages debate, the modern “silent” filibuster (post-1975 reforms) requires no actual floor speech to block action, reducing overall Senate debate by up to 28 percent and wasting resources without changing outcomes. Filibuster usage has exploded since 2006, with cloture motions doubling and productivity plummeting (e.g., passing under 4 percent of bills recently vs. 52 percent in 1947), leading to legislative paralysis on popular issues like healthcare and immigration. This allows the minority party to obstruct without a mandate which forces executives to bypass Congress via administrative actions.

It also blocks urgent and popular reforms, making the government unresponsive. The filibuster routinely stalls majority-backed priorities, such as democracy enhancements (e.g., automatic voter registration, campaign finance limits, gerrymandering fixes under bills like H.R. 1), economic policies and infrastructure updates. In a polarized era, it disproportionately benefits parties with narrower agendas, while frustrating broader public mandates and contributing to crises like recent government shutdowns, where it prevents quick resolutions on funding for workers and services.

The filibuster is not constitutionally required and has been changed before, proving reform is feasible. The Constitution leaves Senate rules to the body itself and favors simple majorities. Therefore, legal scholars argue the filibuster is unconstitutional. Not part of the original design, it emerged accidentally in the early 1800s, and has been modified multiple times such as reducing cloture from 67 to 60 votes in 1975 and carve-outs for nominations via the "nuclear option." So full abolition could occur similarly via rule changes or precedents, without needing a supermajority.

These arguments have gained traction with the debacle of the recent government shutdown. Calls to end the filibuster aim to break deadlocks and advance popular agendas like repealing the failed Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). Partial reforms like lowering thresholds or requiring active talking filibusters, are often dismissed as inadequate, with full elimination seen as necessary for a functional U.S. Senate.

Perhaps our Unicameral should consider this as well.

"When all is said and done, the Constitution of the United States is a set of words on a piece of paper. The only way that the Constitution can protect us is if we protect the Constitution."
-by Thomas Sowell

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Upcoming Events in the District and with NEGOP

• November 17th: The Lincoln County Republican Party will hold its upcoming meeting on Monday, November 17, 2025, at the Lincoln County Historical Museum at 2403 North Buffalo Bill Avenue in North Platte. Senator Jacobson and David Huebner are set to speak at this meeting. The meeting will also include a brief business session to address two open leadership positions on the Lincoln County GOP Executive Team Chair and Vice Chair. An election will be held to fill these key roles as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen local leadership. A light dinner will be served at 6:00 p.m., followed by the business meeting and program, which begins promptly at 6:30 p.m.
• November 18th: the Kearney County GOP Public Meeting will be held, in Minden at the Kearney County Fairgrounds Building in the meeting room, at 7:00PM, with the doors opening at 6:30 PM. Mark Bonkiewicz will be presenting information on the Epic tax.
• December 4th: Pierce, Madison, and Stanton County Republican parties and others will host a meeting to learn more about the petitions circulating the state. Find out more and ask questions from 6:00 to 8:00 PM at the Pierce Fire Station, 106 South 1st St in Pierce. See flyer for more info.
• Sundays, beginning January 4th, 2026: In Adams County there will be a 12-week U.S. Constitution Course. See flyer below.
• January 31st: NEGOP will hold their SCC meeting in Kearney at the Younes Center. Meeting will start at 9:30 AM. Registration fee now through 12/07/25 is $50; 12/8/25 through 01/11/26 is $75; 1/12/26 - 01/26/26 $100

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Spotlight on the Third

Diana Johnson and York County GOP hosted a petition drive forum to let everyone hear about the petitions circulating. It was a great time for questions to be answered.

Clay County GOP held a planning meeting on Mon, Nov 10th. State Senator Dave Murman spoke about the legislature and activities to try to solve the tax crisis and other issues in Nebraska. Also, there to speak were 2026 candidates for Dave's seat as he is term limited. Wes Wilmot, Jon Capps, and Tim Anderson introduced themselves and talked about what they want to get done in office. Lots of great questions were asked and it was very informative.