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Dear Voter: I am well acquainted with the duties and responsibili- ties of being your state senator. I have had the privilege of serving as the senator for the 51st Legislative District since February 2009, when Sen. Frank Watson retired. Like Sen. Watson, I have put people before politics in the fact that I won more than 61 percent of the vote in an evenly-balanced Republican-Democrat district in 2010. In addition, my background as a small business owner and job creator in the manufacturing sector, former president of the O’Fallon-Shiloh Chamber of Commerce, and former mem- ber of the St. Clair County Board helps me understand the issues confronting Illinois from more than just one perspec- a practical, common sense approach in address- ing our state’s challenges, which is something we desperate- ly need right now. As state senator for the new 54th Legislative District, I will continue putting people before politics and work with com- munity leaders and groups to help make Southern Illinois economically vibrant once again. We have good people and communities, but unfortunately, those in power at the state level of- ten ignore the needs and assets of our region. We will put people back to work, balance our state budget, and work together toward common goals. Service to others is an integral part of my family’s life and faith, and I consider serving as state senator a privilege in that regard. I look forward to representing you in the new 54the Legislative District. Sincerely, Kyle McCarter State Senator Personal Message to Voters Fall 2012 Voted to Save Murray Center I voted YES on SB 2454, Murray Center’s Budget, and YES on SB 2409, the Animal the Murray Center residents as well as Southern Illinois. www.votemccarter.com E-mail: [email protected] Find on Facebook at “Kyle McCarter, State Senator” Follow on Twitter “@senatormccarter”
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October Mailer

Mar 14, 2016

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Kyle McCarter

Kyle's McCarter's (State Senator for the 51st Legislative District of Illinois) news bulletin
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Page 1: October Mailer

Dear Voter: I am well acquainted with the duties and responsibili-ties of being your state senator. I have had the privilege of serving as the senator for the 51st Legislative District since February 2009, when Sen. Frank Watson retired. Like Sen. Watson, I have put people before politicsin the fact that I won more than 61 percent of the vote in an evenly-balanced Republican-Democrat district in 2010. In addition, my background as a small business owner and job creator in the manufacturing sector, former president of the O’Fallon-Shiloh Chamber of Commerce, and former mem-ber of the St. Clair County Board helps me understand the issues confronting Illinois from more than just one perspec-

a practical, common sense approach in address-ing our state’s challenges, which is something we desperate-ly need right now. As state senator for the new 54th Legislative District, I will continue putting people before politics and work with com-munity leaders and groups to help make Southern Illinois economically vibrant once again. We have good people and communities, but unfortunately, those in power at the state level of-ten ignore the needs and assets of our region. We will put people back to work, balance our state budget, and work together toward common goals. Service to others is an integral part of my family’s life and faith, and I consider serving as state senator a privilege in that regard. I look forward to representing you in the new 54the Legislative District.

Sincerely,

Kyle McCarter State Senator

Personal Message to VotersFall 2012

Voted to Save Murray CenterI voted YES on SB 2454, Murray Center’s Budget, and YES on SB 2409, the Animal

the Murray Center residents as well as Southern Illinois.

www.votemccarter.comE-mail: [email protected]

Find on Facebook at “Kyle McCarter, State Senator”Follow on Twitter “@senatormccarter”

Page 2: October Mailer

My parents, Linda and Calvin, taught me the value of service to others including mission work. A�er university, Victoria and I were married and worked as missionaries in �araka, Kenya for two years. We helped build a school and medical clinic in a remote region of northern Kenya. We still have close ties to �araka and worked there this past sum-mer to help begin an orphanage. Sadly, Kenya, like many other African countries, has a large baby orphan population due to the AIDS/HIV epi-demic. We are growing our mission to include the care of these orphans.

As part of our outreach to Africa, we spent time at an orphanage in Uganda to get a better un-derstanding of how things should be set up and administered. Our faith in God leads us to serve others, no matter where they live or what their position in life is. I sincerely hope that everyone has the opportunity to serve in some capacity – locally, nationally, or internationally – because it is a personally humbling and rewarding experience in one’s faith. �ere is more to life than politics. Taking time to serve others is a big part of our family life. �ere were few times growing up when our home was not full of families needing a place to stay a�er a �re, abused kids and women, or young people getting o� drugs. Serving others and sacri�ce was a way of life that I learned from them.

My wife Victoria and I have been married for 28 years. I graduated from Oral Roberts University with a degree in Accounting. Victoria is a certi�ed elementary school teacher in Illinois. A�er �nishing school and doing missionary work abroad, Victoria and I settled into family life in Collinsville, my wife’s hometown, and now live in the O’Fallon area.

We have two grown sons, Zach and Austin. Zach, a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, is married to Claire Bauer and serves as a �rst lieutenant in the U.S.

Air Force.  Austin is in his �nal year at Oral Roberts University studying marketing and recently became engaged to Catherine Coussens. We are members of Faith Family Church in Shi-loh, and serving others is an integral part of our faith. I support pro-family issues and believe life begins at conception and marriage is meant to be between a man and woman. I also believe the corruption in Illinois govern-ment has brought about a terrible economic injustice to our families. What some legislators of the past have done is �scally immoral. �e tremendous burden of taxes on our Illinois families – income taxes, property taxes, sales taxes, and fees – prevents us from saving for a college  education, giving to our churches and favorite charities, and investing in our dreams. �e reason I �rst got involved in politics was to �ght the injustice I experienced in St. Clair County. I will con-

tinue �ghting for our families as they are the bed-rock of a strong community.

Faith and Family

Endorsed by Illinois Federation

for Right to Life

Service

www.votemccarter.com E-Mail: [email protected] on Facebook at “Kyle McCarter, State Senator”Follow on Twitter “@senatormccarter” to Others

Page 3: October Mailer

My family is well represented in the military service of our great nation. My father is Lt. Colonel Calvin McCarter, a retired U.S. Air Force chaplain. He dedicated his life to others in many ways. Most importantly, his military service taught me the respect and admiration the members of our Armed Forces deserve. My brother, Je� McCarter, is a career o�cer in the U.S. Army, and my son Zach is serving as an o�cer in the U.S. Air Force a�er having graduated from the U.S. Air Force Acade-

my. �eir service has taught me to honor our current as well as former military service members. I have lived close to Scott Air Force Base for several years, and currently repre-sent many mil-itary members and their fam-ilies as a state senator. I have the privilege of

attending functions on base in an o�cial capacity as well as participate in special holidays,

such as Memorial Day and Veterans Day. �e new 54th State Senate district has many military veterans. We should honor all of them and their service to our country. As a state senator, I feel honored to be representing their interests and will always have time to hear their concerns. I will continue to recognize the sacri�ces they have made so that we can live in a free society.

We are in the throes of a �scal crisis in Illinois, but there is Hope. If we change attitudes and change public policy, we can re-turn Illinois to �scal good health, pay o� our long overdue back-log of bills, and begin reducing the debt burden on our children and grandchildren. It is clear Governor Quinn and Democrat leaders in the Senate and House do not have the courage to make real cuts in spend-ing. Over the past ten years, the party in charge has increased spending by about $1 billion each year. �at’s $1 billion more than state government collected in tax revenue. And, a�er passing a massive 67 percent increase in the state in-come tax hike in January of 2011 that cost Illinois taxpayers $7 bil-lion, state government still is run-ning billions of dollars in de�cits and owes more than $8 billion in overdue bills, the same amount of past due bills they started with. For the past three years, I have made and supported realistic pro-posals to get us out of debt, such as: • Identifying and eliminating the waste with a forensic audit of state government, programs and

policies; • Reforming Medicaid to reduce costs, respecting the poor by holding them accountable, and protecting access to quality healthcare; • Reforming Workers’ Compensation in a meaningful way that lowers the cost of hiring to create more work opportunities for Illinois families; • Filing SB 3932, a common sense pension reform bill that

saves the pension system from bankrupt-cy; • Introducing a detailed budget, www.IllinoisRealityCheck.com, that creates surpluses instead of de�cits. �ere is Hope for Illinois but it will take a policy shi� away from the failed policies of the past. We should demand an honest commitment to �scal responsibility. I’m committed to putting our �scal house in order. Working families, small businesses and our neighborhood chari-ties are cutting back, tightening their belts, holding the line on spending and paying o� the debt they already have before even considering new debt. State government should do no less and the taxpayers who ultimately pay the bills deserve no less of an e�ort.

Honoring Veterans

There is Hope for Illinois

My father serving others in Vietnam.

www.votemccarter.com

E-Mail: [email protected]

Find on Facebook at “Kyle McCarter, State Senator”

Follow on Twitter “@senatormccarter”

Page 4: October Mailer

I am proud of the fact that we live in a free-market and dem-ocratic society which allows anyone to pursue their dreams. I wake up every morning feeling blessed because I have my own business and help others by providing good jobs for about 25 families. Entrepreneurial spirit is the hallmark of American capitalism; risk takers are rewarded for their hard work and

perseverance, despite any failures or set-backs along the way. I have been in the man-ufacturing sector for over 20 years and currently own two plants in Lebanon, Illinois – Custom Prod-uct Innovations (CPI)

and Custom Coating Innovations (CCI). CPI does die cutting, sewing, and dielectric sealing for the �tness equipment and emergency respiratory industries. CCI specializes in dip molding and coating solutions. As a local business owner, I served as president of the O’Fallon-Shiloh Chamber of Commerce as well as chairman of its Economic Development Committee. In this capacity, I know that the small business owners on Main Street USA are also the folks who belong to civic organizations, sponsor charity work, provide jobs to local residents, and support ed-ucational programs. �ese small business owners help create a true sense of community. Losing any of them would be det-rimental to our communities. Unfortunately, Illinois has not been a friendly state in which to do business in recent years, and eco-nomic growth and job creation have su�ered as a result. �is sad reality is a direct re�ection of the poor lead-ership quality of our current elected o�cials that control the governor’s o�ce and Illinois General Assem-bly. We have simply been over-taxed, over-regulated, and over-spent as a state. �is has especially been a di�-cult time for family-owned and small businesses. I will continue �ghting in Spring-�eld for a more friendly business en-vironment. �is includes repealing the 2011 tax increases on families and businesses as well as reforming Workers’ Compensation, Unemploy-ment Insurance, and the tort laws. We must make Illinois a “destination economy” once again.

I started my business with a $5000 commission check in a rundown leased warehouse. Victoria and I are blessed to have succeeded. I continue to work in the business while serving as senator. I have a legitimate way of making a living. �e people of Illinois need a proven “job creator” in Spring�eld �ghting for them.

Small Business Owner, Job Creator

Endorsed by Illinois Chamber of

Commerce, Illinois Manufacturers’

Association, and National Federation

of Independent Business.

Named Champion of

Free Enterprise by

Illinois Chamber of

Commerce and Friend

of Agriculture by Illinois Farm

Bureau – ACTIVATOR.

www.votemccarter.com

E-Mail: [email protected]

Find on Facebook at “Kyle McCarter, State Senator”

Follow on Twitter “@senatormccarter”

Page 5: October Mailer

Second Amendment Rights My gun – My right. Plain and simple, I support the Second Amendment. I am also a strong advocate for Concealed Carry legis-lation. Illinois is the last state in the Union which does not allow its law-abiding citizens to carry a concealed �rearm for personal protection. However, in Illinois, be-cause of the strong in�uence of City of Chicago lawmak-ers, passing Concealed Car-ry has been di�cult at best. It’s also why we supporters of the Second Amendment also must �ght to prevent an erosion of that right. �e �ght to protect the Second Amendment never ends because year a�er year, one proposal a�er another from Chicago seeks to undermine our Second Amendment rights.

Whether it’s a high tax on ammunition, FOID card re-newal or an outright gun registration plan, we must re-main vigilant. Since 2009, I have been honored to be invited to speak at the Illinois Gun Owners Legislative Day (I-GOLD) rally

on the steps of the State Capi-tol. More recently, I met with a group of supporters and gun owners in front of one of my billboards in Centralia, which clearly expresses the message: My gun – My right.

As I have said to rally supporters and gun owners who I’ve met throughout the district and at my Capitol o�ce, perseverance, determination and courage must be our watchwords. I will continue to stand up for our “unalien-

able rights,” our God-given rights as stat-ed in our Declaration of Independence and outlined in our Constitution. I’m reminded of the perseverance, de-termination and courage of Otis Mc-Donald, a 77 year old Chicago man who fought all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court to defend his right to self-defense, to defend his Second Amendment rights.

He knew, as we all know, gun laws only impact law-abid-ing citizens. A�er years of watching his neighborhood turn into a war zone, Otis McDonald knew he had to do more. He fought and won, and I was proud to sign on to his lawsuit. �e time for Concealed Carry for law-abiding citi-zens has come. Our oppo-nents have had their chance at cleaning up the streets and neighborhoods. �eir 20,000-plus gun laws are simply ignored by the crim-inals, and our law enforce-ment heroes simply can’t be everywhere at all times. By virtue of their own arguments, those who ad-vocate for more laws to �ght crime admit that GUN CONTROL DOES NOT WORK. Concealed Carry’s time has come to Illinois. Our right to self-defense is in-terwoven into the very fab-ric of our nation so it’s not to be taken away or regulat-ed away by government. It’s a God-given right we call the Second Amendment.

Endorsed by National

www.votemccarter.com E-Mail: [email protected]

Find on Facebook at “Kyle McCarter, State Senator”

Follow on Twitter “@senatormccarter”

Page 6: October Mailer

Not truly having a balanced budget is an insult to the people of Illinois; the citizens whose tax dollars pay the bills racked up by state government. Anyone who pays attention to the numerous media reports in recent years knows that Illinois’ �nancial house is in disarray. Some might argue that it has collapsed. But this current crisis shouldn’t surprise anyone. It was pre-dicted years ago. At the time, my predecessor Republican Leader Frank Watson, warned that a ‘House of Cards’ of overspending, risky borrowing, one-time revenue gimmicks and excessive taxation was being as-sembled and that one day it would collapse. Without a doubt the downturn in the national economy hasn’t helped but that made ignoring Senator Watson’s original assess-ment more foolish. Our econo-my goes through normal cycles of upticks and downturns but ignor-ing the possibility of an eventual “rainy day” proved to be quite un-wise. Now, state government (and taxpayers all) is paying the price. We have billions of dollars in budget de�cits, billions of dollars in a backlog of overdue bills and multiple tens of billions of dollars in long-term debt because of ex-cessive borrowing and failing to properly pay for public pension systems guaranteed by the state constitution. So, what can we do to solve to-day’s problem? And, what about avoiding this situation again in the future? We must start with a drastic change in public policy and a new way of looking at the state budget equation, which is: Rev-enues minus Spending equals Balance or De�cit. On the Revenue side we need to grow our economy by cre-ating new jobs to generate revenue rather than tax increases on families and employers, which only drain money out of the private sector where true job creation occurs. We can make this happen by improving the climate for business expansion and job creation and lower the cost of doing business by: • easing regulations that slow or discourage expansion; • passing meaningful reforms to the Workers’ Compensa-tion System; • repealing the 67% tax increase; • limiting excessive litigation by reforming tort law. �ere’s no reason why Illinois employers must pay 2 or 3 times the business regulation fees and charges than their

competitors in Missouri, Indiana or other states. Our employ-ers are at a competitive disadvantage, making it harder to make a pro�t and keep people employed. �ese reforms can make Illinois a “destination economy” once again. By that, I mean make Illinois a place where business and in-dustry want to relocate. In the 1990’s, Illinois was ranked at the top of states as a state to do business but not so much anymore.

On the Spending side of the equation, Illinois gov-ernment can no longer live above its means. �at means spending fewer dollars than government receives through tax col-lections. Tax revenue is the people’s money. So we need to: • reform government ser-vices and programs, with pensions and Medicaid �rst; • eliminate duplicative programs; • assess the costs of pro-grams and services to en-sure taxpayers are getting value; • prioritize those pro-grams and services that provide help to those who truly need it; • perform a forensic audit on all state government. We can and must address our �nancial house. De-cisions today will have an impact for years to come. Unfortunately, over the past ten years state govern-

ment has been spending the tax dollars it has yet to collect from people whose parents have yet to enter the workforce. In other words, Illinois government is spending and dumping debt on our children and grandchildren. To continue the same irresponsible ways of the past ten years will guarantee a future of state debt and de�cit, with taxpayers ultimately being le� holding the bag. We are on an unsustainable path. But, we can turn things around and erase the enormous budget de�cit. �e question remains: Does Spring�eld have the political courage and wisdom to act in a responsible manner, to imple-ment practical common sense reforms and stick to a program that respects taxpayers? With a reputation for corruption, political favors and “pay-to-play,” Illinois government has a trust de�cit as large as or

larger than its budget de�cit. If government is going to regain the trust of its citizens, state government must prove that we are serious about doing business in a new way.  I’m committed to putting our �scal house in order. Working families, small businesses and our neighbor-hood charities are cutting back, tightening their belts, holding the line on spending and paying o� the debt they already have before even considering new debt. State government should do no less and the taxpayers who ultimately pay the bills deserve no less of an e�ort.

You can’t spend, tax, or “smoke” your way into prosperity.

The Illinois State Budget:What Government Spends in Your Name

www.votemccarter.com E-Mail: [email protected]

Find on Facebook at “Kyle McCarter, State Senator”

Follow on Twitter “@senatormccarter”

Page 7: October Mailer

Tweeted in by Next Gen of

Conservative Leadership?

At a GOP fundraiser a few weeks ago George Mette intro-duced me to his grandson who just graduated from law school and recently came back to work in E�ngham. �is is the way it should be. George is playing the role of a seasoned leader and mentor. He brought with him the next generation of conserva-tive leadership. It was Saturday night and his grandson surely had friends to hang out with or even a party to attend. Instead, he came with his grandfather, partly as a sign of tremendous respect his grandfather George surely deserves, to be with us mostly older party loyalists. I recognized that evening in my speech the seven young peo-ple who have worked tirelessly for our campaign throughout the summer by walking in parades, knocking on almost every door in E�ngham, showing up to debates, and helping keep our social media fresh. �ose of us elected to public o�ce, no matter what our age is, need to have as a priority the mentoring of our young people as conservatives. We want them to be involved in the GOP not just because their parents were. We want the next generation of leaders to understand why they are conservatives, why it makes sense to have conservatives in o�ce so that their families have the ability to prosper and build communities via the freedom our nation currently still a�ords. Some older politicians see me as young and aggres-sive. I know that; however, being 50 years old myself, I recognize the importance of bringing the youth into the leadership of the conservative movement now. �e pres-ent time in our country and in our state is critical. We must act now. We must take a stand now. We must elect conservatives and put them in charge now. And if we tru-

ly believe that conservative principles are worth �ghting for, as we will soon become again the decision makers for our coun-try, we must invest in those who will soon replace us through as much preparation and mentoring as possible. �e role of our older political leaders is to share the wisdom that comes from the experience of living, making mistakes, and having learned from them. Our role is to always bring the youth along, pay their way, pick them up, give them responsi-bilities, and listen to how we can reach their generation with the proper lingo and communication. We must allow them to teach us how to tweet. Yes, the message of conservatism will be tweeted in. �e next election will have signi�cant consequences, as they all do. However, the di�erence in who we put in charge of the State of Illinois this time may decide whether it takes us 15 min-utes to go across town to see our kids or grand kids or 15 hours to go see them in another state. If we leave Illinois in the hands of the Democrats, as we have for the last 10 years, our youth will be forced to leave and our small towns we are so proud of will su�er. Home values and the taxes they generate for our schools will decrease and the tax burden per Illinoisan le� will become unbearable. Our children are obligated to pay the national debt but they are in no way obligated to pay the State’s debt. �ey simply have to leave and go to another state. �erefore, it is up to conservatives to communicate the urgency and the impor-tance of this election. George Mette is a blessed man to have his grandson come back home to E�ngham. We all hope to be so fortunate. If conservatives are going to take Illinois back, we cannot forget the important role our youth will play. �e “well seasoned” GOP establishment must be prepared to tweet them in.

I support and have sponsored legislation that requires a person who seeks to vote on election day to present a government-issued photo identi�cation card to the election judge. Photo ID’s are o�en required in everyday life. Here are just a few instances where and when you need a photo ID: 1. To open a bank account. 2. When applying for a passport. 3. To get on an airplane to take a trip. 4. When applying for a hunting license. 5. When you purchase a gun. 6. Many times when you use a credit card for a purchase. 7. Stores require you to show a photo ID when you want to cash a check. 8. Applying for a job. 9. Buying cigarettes and alcohol. 10. Go to a sporting event and order a beer, and, regardless of how old you are, they will ask for a photo ID. 11. Ordering liquor in a bar or restaurant, if you look too young. 12. Applying for food stamps, housing, welfare checks, unem-ployment checks, and Social Security.

13. Even UPS requires a government-issued photo ID to enhance security measures around shipments that originate at retail shipping locations worldwide.  Voter ID is a simply but common sense measure to protect the integrity of the ballot box, which is essential to our democracy. It is voter fraud protection and it helps ensure election results accurately re�ect the will of the people. Adding a photo ID requirement to voting is not asking too much. �e fact that a voter ID provision is not in place makes our elec-tion system unable to detect voter fraud because how do we know there isn’t any fraud? �e Bi-partisan Commission on Federal Election Reform (head-ed by former President Jimmy Carter and former U.S. Secretary of State James Baker concluded: “�e electoral system cannot inspire public con�dence if no safeguards exist to deter or detect fraud or to con�rm the identity of voters.” Do we really want to wait for the fraud to occur, a direct assault against our democracy, before implementing common-sense safe-guards? No, we must protect the democracy we are so fortunate to have.

Voter ID: A Common Sense Solution

www.votemccarter.com E-Mail: [email protected]

Find on Facebook at “Kyle McCarter, State Senator”

Follow on Twitter “@senatormccarter”

I’ve been fortunate to work with and learn from Sen. Dave Luechtefeld.

Page 8: October Mailer

THERE IS HOPE FOR ILLINOIS

www.votemccarter.comE-mail: [email protected]

Find on Facebook at “Kyle McCarter, State Senator” Follow on Twitter “@senatormccarter”

PRSRT STDU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDST. LOUIS, MO

PERMIT NO. 5584

�e people of Illinois need a proven “job creator” in Spring�eld �ghting for them.

Paid for by Citizens for Kyle McCarter 40 Commerce Lane, Lebanon, IL 62254