All four Democratic candidates for the Ninth District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives gathered at Friday’s Muleskinners meeting to answer questions from the Democratic club’s members.
Questions covered topics such as transportation and the War Powers Act, which allows the president to deploy troops without congressional approval as long as Congress is notified within 90 days.
Former Sen. Ken Jacob said the act should be renegotiated because the executive branch had proved itself untrustworthy.
“Somehow some control needs to be placed on the president,” he said.
Other candidates used the question as a segway into their views on the war in Iraq.
Marion County Commissioner Lyndon Bode met with visible dissent when he said he would not support a timeline for withdrawing troops from Iraq because it would only give enemies a heads-up.
“It’s what I believe,” he said.
Baker said it was important to withdraw from the war and ensure the U.S. is never involved in anything similar.
“We are bankrupting our country,” Baker said. “We are bankrupting our standing the world by staying there.”
“We need to end the war in Iraq,” said Gaw as he met with applause. “And we need to do it in a way that ensures stability in the region.”
In response to a question about transportation, Bode emphasized his plan to “rebuild America” by diverting federal funds to infrastructure needs in state and local governments.
Jacob agreed that American infrastructure needed attention, and said it should be a priority in the budget. Gaw emphasized the need for hybrid cars, and Baker said it was important to plan for new transportation needs as part of a “comprehensive, new energy economy.”
At first, the candidates emphasized unity, but the forum’s tone turned from friendly to competitive as Gaw, Jacob and Baker clashed over Baker’s pride in voting for a bill that increased funding for the state’s Utilicare program but also allowed a powerplant near Peculiar to remain open Jacob and Gaw said Baker had failed to stand up to special interests.
Baker said she was proud that she had worked bipartisanly to make sure people had heat in their homes but that there were more important issues to discuss, such as gas prices, the economy and the war.
The candidates are scheduled to speak at another forum on Monday.
Filed under: Elections, National Government, Politics, State politics | Tagged: Catherine McComb, Democrats, events, Judy Baker, Ken Jacob, Lyndon Bode, Muleskinners, Steve Gaw
