Dr. Spiehs speaks at Lawrence City Commission meeting
Article - 4 minute read
Dr. Justin Spiehs, who is running for Douglas County Commissioner District 1 as a Republican, gave a fast-paced speech at the Lawrence City Commission meeting on Tuesday, June 21. As part of the public, he was allotted three minutes to speak.
In his speech, he highlighted Lawrence schools seemingly struggling with funding while current Democrat Douglas County Commissioner for District 1 Patrick Kelly, who is also USD 497 school district administrator, has received a more than $10,000 raise since 2020. He also highlights Democrat Douglas County Commissioner for District 3 Shannon Portillo who is leaving a year and a half into her four year term. He ends his speech reminding people to vote yes on August 2 on the Value Them Both Bill.
A transcript of his speech is below. You can also hear his speech starting at 1:14:55 here.
“My name is Dr. Justin Spiehs and I’m running as a Republican for Douglas County District 1 Commissioner. The seat is currently held by Democrat Patrick Kelly.
“I’m known around here for starting a protest in July 2021 against the school mask mandates. I did this because I believed then and still believe today that masking children is child abuse. It involves serious negative consequences, and therefore needed to be stopped. No one listened.
“Current District 1 Commissioner Patrick Kelly is a USD 497 school district administrator and he makes $122,813 a year which is an increase from his 2020 salary of $109,938. The school district continues to be in a massive budget crisis right now that has led to an increase in teacher and staff resignations. In fact, LJWorld ran an article on the nineteenth on the 141 teachers and other certified staff who have resigned from the USD 497 school district. An increase of more than two and a half times since the 2019/2020 school year. Additionally, in order to cut costs, the school district plans for one-third of elementary classes to be multi-grade next year.
“What do you all think out there? Do you think that understaffed and overcrowded classrooms are going to turn out well, or not well for the education and development of our students? You’re kids? But keep cashing them checks, Patrick. Keep cashing them checks.
“Another Douglas County Commissioner Democrat Dr. Shannon Portillo recently announced she’s leaving her elected seat on the commission list 18 months into her four year term for a more prestigious job in academia. I look at her resignation as the third scalp I’ve had to collect since I started my child-mask mandate protest last July. First Douglas County Health Department Director Thomas Marcellino couldn’t handle the pressure I put on him so he resigned. Then USD 497 Superintendent Anthony Lewis couldn’t handle the pressure I put on him, so he applied for a new job in his home town in Alabama, but didn’t get the job. But now we all know that he don’t want to be here now and would leave if he could. And now Commissioner Portillo resigned for selfish reasons having to do with money and greed, of course, but also because she can’t handle the pressure I put on her. I got three of you in less than a year and I’m coming for all the rest of you.
“Don’t forget to vote ‘yes’ on August 2 to keep baby murder illegal because it’s baby murder, and therefore it’s wrong, and it don’t get any simpler than that. If you support baby murder, then they can get you to support anything. I mean, think about it. Is there anything worse than baby murder? Anything worse than killing a baby? During an abortion, what is essentially a turkey baster is stuck into the baby’s head, through its skull and into its brain. Now, keep in mind here that the baby is still alive. Just chilling in the womb, fully alive, fully human up to this point. Once the turkey baster is in the baby’s skull, the doctor turns on the suction and the baby’s brain is sucked out from its head.
“Another way abortion is done is we have the baby in the womb who, again is fully alive, fully human, just chilling in the womb, and the doctor uses forceps to rip each of the baby’s limbs off one at a time. So, the baby’s arms and legs are ripped from its body while it’s alive. So, if you’ll support that, there’s nothing you won’t support. This dehumanization of life has led to a genocide of hundreds of millions of babies being killed. If you will dehumanize a baby by claiming it’s not even a human, and then support killing it, then imagine what they can get you to think and do to anyone. Imagine what they can get you to think and do to the people you already don’t like, like political opponents and people you disagree with. They can get you to dislike people tomorrow who you like today and the evil powers that be know this all about you, baby murderers. Keep that in mind. Remember, there’s no such thing as safe abortion since it always results in the murder of an innocent baby. Don’t let them fool you. If murder is involved, it’s not safe.”
Dr. Spiehs speaks at city commission meetings for Lawrence and Douglas County Commission meetings frequently. He touted a similar message at the Douglas County Commission meeting on Wednesday, June 23 which you can listen to here at 2:15.