On campaign trail, Peterson holds meet and greet in Sidney

Doug Peterson, candidate for attorney general, spent some time in Sidney on Friday during his campaign turn through the Panhandle.

As a former assistant attorney general, former deputy county attorney, and having spent 24 years in a private practice as a lawyer, he feels he has the experience necessary to serve in office.

"I have twice the number of years of experience of the other candidates for this position," he said at a meet and greet in Dude's Steakhouse on Friday. "I think that's what distinguishes me."

Peterson was born in Columbus and grew up in Lincoln. After his three children grew up and left home, he and his wife Sandi decided it was time he run for office as a way to give back to the state they love.

In his February speech announcing his candidacy for Nebraska's attorney general, Peterson said, "I've had some people say, 'Doug, why do you want to get into politics? It's just messy.' And I've responded that I just don't think as a citizen we can abandon our government. To those that made it messy, I don't think we can turn it over to them."

Peterson is a fiscal conservative and a proponent of limited government. He believes that the federal and state constitutions only allow for a limited governmental role, and that when government tries to go beyond that role, he says, "it's neither qualified nor particularly effective."

Strongly pro-life, Peterson believes in "traditional family values." He sees himself as a protector of the 2nd Amendment, and also feels that sex-trafficking laws in Nebraska need to be strengthened. He wants to increase awareness about these and other issues such as scamming of the elderly and prescription drug abuse.

For Peterson, it's more about addressing and getting problems solved than it is about being in the public eye.

"It's not about being on the radar," he said on Friday. "I like to consider myself more of a workhorse than a show-horse."

Peterson said that he wants to be a public servant, which he distinguishes from being a simple politician.

"What gives me a fire in the belly, what gives me a passion is being an advocate for a cause," Peterson stated in his announcement of his candidacy. "And when there's a cause that I believe in, being able to pour myself into that cause and then seeing the benefits...it's very fulfilling,"

Former Nebraska governor Kay Orr has given her official endorsement of Peterson.