Ricketts expresses optimism about bridging political divide, says he ran government like a business

LINCOLN — As he approaches his final day as Nebraska governor, Pete Ricketts expressed optimism that the United States will bridge its political divide and stated confidently that he ran the state like a business.

“This is not the first time in our history where we’ve had political contention — think about the 1960s,” Ricketts said. “We just have to hold on.”

Country can ‘right itself’

“This country has an amazing ability to right itself,” said the 58-year-old Republican.

Ricketts, a member of a wealthy family that owns the Chicago Cubs and founded TD Ameritrade, leaves office in less than two weeks, handing the reins to Jim Pillen, a Columbus hog producer whom Ricketts backed financially and politically.

Before he departs the governor’s office, the Examiner sat down with Ricketts to give his take on his legacy and his future, which almost all observers believe will be appointment to a U.S. Senate vacancy by Pillen.

Ricketts, who initially wouldn’t say if he was interested in the seat being vacated by U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse, made no bones during the interview that he thought he was “best qualified” for the job.

‘Best qualified’

“If you look at our record here over the last eight years, we’ve done some fantastic things,” he said. “And I would put that record up against anyone else who wants to be the next U.S. Senator.”

He side-stepped a question about whether he’s worried that some people might not see his appointment as legitimate because he gave $1.4 million to help get Pillen elected.

 “I supported Jim Pillen because he was the best candidate to be the next governor of Nebraska,” Ricketts said. “He’s a business man, he’s created over 1,000 jobs and I believe he’s going to take what we’ve done to the next level.”

“That’s why I supported Jim Pillen,” the governor said.

Ricketts has previously said he was unaware that there would be a Senate vacancy until October, shortly before Sasse announced he was taking a job as president of the University of Florida, which was months after he donated most of his funds to Pillen’s campaign.

When a handful of political observers were asked (see sidebar) what Ricketts’ legacy as governor will be, more than one mentioned his heavy spending on Nebraska political races, including contributions to defeat incumbent Republicans in the State Legislature.

Donations are ‘free speech’

Ricketts said he has no regrets for that.

“Supporting candidates is a matter of free speech. Can you have too much free speech?” he asked.

Overall, Ricketts said he wants to be remembered as a governor who made government run more efficiently and customer-friendly, mentioning Amazon as a model.

He launched an “Office for Operational Excellence” which, among other things, drove changes that reduced the wait time on hold on the state’s economic assistance help line, sped up processing of food stamp applications, and delivered reimbursement checks faster to parents of disabled children.

Overall, he said the center, which trained administrators in “process improvement,” tackled 900 projects, saved over 900,000 hours of worker time, avoided $100 million in spending.

People want good service

“People are used to the great service they get when they call up Amazon and get things delivered the next day,” he said. “There’s no reason government shouldn’t improve their services as well.”

On other issues, Ricketts said:

— The state struck the proper “balance” in dealing with COVID-19. He said the goal, working with the University of Nebraska Medical Center and state health officials, was to slow down the virus so that hospitals wouldn’t get overwhelmed, and provide testing stations and vaccines, when they became available.

In the end, Politico ranked Nebraska No. 1 in its “scorecard” of how states responded, giving the state high scores on factors of education, health and the economy.

— Holding the line on annual growth of state spending — it averaged 2.8% over his eight years — allowed the state to reduce property and income taxes. There’s more work to do, he acknowledged, but this year, Nebraskans will get a 30% rebate on their property tax bills for K-12 schools and community colleges. “That’s significant,” Ricketts said.

‘More work’ on corrections

— “There’s more work to do” on state prisons, which rank as the nation’s most overcrowded. The first step, he said, is moving forward with construction of a new, $270-million replacement for the State Penitentiary in Lincoln, the state’s oldest prison.

Ricketts said there were “good ideas” that came out of a justice reinvestment study with the federal Crime and Justice Institute a year ago. One idea is already being pursued by the Board of Parole, he said, which is to develop “prep houses” for inmates who are struggling on parole.

— “If you hear someone my age talk about the ‘good old days, stop them’ because there’s never been a better time to be an American or a Nebraskan,” Ricketts said was his recent advice to a group of college students.

He cited advances in technology and transportation, and a wider array of restaurant choices, though said people need to learn how to better interact on social media.

— The series of “Stop 30-by-30” rallies he held a year ago, to oppose President Biden’s plan to urge conservation on 30% of the nation’s land to combat climate change, worked to “put a check” on the plan. Ricketts criticized the effort, portrayed as all voluntary, as an ill-conceived, undefined effort to take land out of private hands.

‘Think differently’ about workforce recruiting

— Businesses need to get more involved, and “think differently,” if Nebraska is going to solve its workforce shortage. For instance, he said, the state has been recruiting information technology workers while they’re still students at Southeast Community College. Now, Ricketts said, 30% of the state’s IT workers are from that school, and their attrition rate is a fraction of the rate nationally.

— While the State Chamber has been calling for increased immigration to help solve Nebraska’s worker shortage, Ricketts said changes cannot occur until the “crisis” at the southern border is resolved.

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