Fulton to fill Legislature seat

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By JoANNE YOUNG / Lincoln Journal Star

Gov. Dave Heineman on Tuesday appointed small businessman and family man Tony Fulton as District 29’s representative to the state Legislature.

Fulton will fill the seat vacated by Mike Foley, who was elected state auditor earlier this month. District 29 covers a large portion of southeast Lincoln.

Heineman said he chose Fulton over 17 other candidates because of his knowledge of state issues, his focus on tax reform for the benefit of families and his enthusiasm, excitement and energy.

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Tony Fulton
Age: 34
Address: 5935 S. 53rd St.
Education: Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Party: Republican
Occupation: CEO, Guardian Angels Homecare; registered professional mechanical engineer; Lifedegrees.com, Internet novelty gift sales; marketing consultant
Family: Wife, Judy; children, Thomas and Augustine, 7, Bede, 5, Bernadette, 3, Basil, 9 days; parents Bob and Lucy, Auburn.

Tony Fulton
Age: 34
Address: 5935 S. 53rd St.
Education: Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Party: Republican
Occupation: CEO, Guardian Angels Homecare; registered professional mechanical engineer; Lifedegrees.com, Internet novelty gift sales; marketing consultant
Family: Wife, Judy; children, Thomas and Augustine, 7, Bede, 5, Bernadette, 3, Basil, 9 days; parents Bob and Lucy, Auburn.

“This is a job that requires a very high energy level,” Heineman said. “I’m confident he will do a good job.”

Heineman said Fulton matches up well with the district. He is politically active and fundamentally conservative, particularly when it comes to fiscal issues.

Fulton said there are a number of families, businesses and retirement facilities in his district, all things for which he has sensitivity.

“I believe firmly in the value of family life,” he said. “It is the most fundamental building block of society.”

Fulton said he considered running for the seat in 2008 when Foley’s term ended. Foley’s election as state auditor just accelerated the timetable.

Foley recommended Fulton’s appointment to Heineman.

“Tony’s a very successful small businessman,” Foley said. “He has a good background in public policy. … I see this as a home-run appointment by Governor Heineman.”

Like Foley, Fulton is strongly pro-life.

“It runs deep in me,” Fulton said. Not as a matter of religion, but as a matter of logic.

Americans have debated abortion for decades, he said, and the fact that there are strong sentiments on both sides is a good thing.

“I firmly believe abortion is an abandonment of women … an injustice to women and their children.”

Fulton runs Guardian Angels Homecare, a business that employs about 90 workers and aids those homebound for health reasons. He also works as a consultant on domestic and international energy projects, and he does marketing consulting.

As an engineer, Fulton said, he is detail oriented and has good analytical skills.

In 2005, he represented Nebraska at the White House Conference on Aging, which takes place once a decade, helping to recommend policy to President Bush and Congress.

From that experience, Fulton said, he learned a lot about Medicaid and Medicare.

“Medicaid reform has to happen,” he said.

A bias exists that favors institutions, he said. But people who are able to stay in their homes with help live longer, healthier lives.

Fulton’s highest priority for his new job in the Legislature is tax relief.

High taxes affect businesses and, especially, families, he said. His goal is to help provide “intelligent, policy-driven tax relief.”

One way to do that would be to end the estate tax, as Heineman has proposed, he said.

“From a policy standpoint, that makes perfect sense to me,” he said.

He wants to help provide incentives to keep Nebraska families in Nebraska, he said. That keeps creativity, drive and initiative in the state.

“They will start businesses and lead the state in the future,” he said. “We need to keep them here.”

Fulton is a Republican. The party holds many of the principles and ideals he holds, he said. But he and the party don’t agree on everything.

Although he thinks partisan politics has its place, it’s probably not in the Legislature.

“There are no R’s, no D’s, no I’s in the Legislature, just N’s for Nebraskans,” he said.

Reach JoAnne Young at 473-7228 or jyoung@journalstar.com.