By: Ryan Duey
Photo Courtesy of Ryan Duey
Reverend Adam Hamilton of Kansas City visited the Clay County Museum in Clay Center on Wednesday, March 11th, during his ‘A Kansas Conversation’ exploratory tour for the U.S. Senate. Hamilton is considering running for the U.S. Senate as an Independent.
Hamilton is the founding pastor of The United Methodist Church of Resurrection in Leawood, which has grown into one of the largest churches in America. He has written multiple books and is a powerful leader in the church.
He is currently on a statewide listening tour to hear about concerns and answer questions. He said the country is very polarized right now.
“I’ve watched as our country has become more and more polarized. I’m sure you see this too.”
“Just a couple of weeks ago, I saw in the news that 53% of Americans say that they feel their fellow Americans are bad or somewhat bad; in Canada, it’s 7%.”
“There’s something in the water here, I guess; we have the sense that those other people, there’s something wrong with them.”
“Right now, only 36% of Republicans are hopeful about the future, and only 28% of Democrats are hopeful.”
“So, there’s something about this divisiveness I feel, and we see it in the news every day.”
The recent political divisiveness, along with many people asking him to run for office, are the reasons he is on this exploratory tour. Hamilton said he values ideas from both sides, which is why he would run as an independent.
“The reason I would run as an independent is that I fundamentally believe that’s a better place to stand at this time, where we’re so polarized.”
“I love Republicans, I love Democrats, so let’s work together. Because what we’re not getting is people working together right now.”
“For example, you’ve got the Farm Bill, which was approved 8 years ago. It’s supposed to be reset every five years, but they can’t agree on even that and a whole host of other policies.”
“I think if we’re going to have any chance for really resetting how we work in government, I think it will require more people who are standing in that central place.”
Hamilton answered many questions from the audience pertaining to things such as health care, immigration, education, rural life, and more. He plans to decide and announce his decision on running for Senate after Easter; he would run against incumbent Roger Marshall.
To learn more about Hamilton and his tour at adamhamiltonexploratory.com.
