Who should I vote for in the 2008 Pennsylvania 10th District House Race?
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After winning his primary, Republican candidate Chris Hackett took the opportunity to pay back taxes for one of his Luzerne County businesses, Workforce Solutions Inc. Owing $17,000 in outstanding state taxes, Hackett thought it would be better to sew up any existing controversy that may hinder his ability to take Pennsylvania's 10th Congressional District's House seat. However, the lien of $16,915, filed Aug. 12, 2004, is still outstanding and may not be off his record by November. Side: Hackett Pays Back Taxes
Carney Protects Kids Democrat Chris Carney makes a bid for the votes of parents with young children. He declares that he has protected children from both sexual predators and poisonous materials. In this campaign ad, Carney points out two pieces of legislation that he has introduced to protect children. He passed the Effective Prosecution of Child Pornography Act of 2007 and the Lead Free Toys Act, which bans lead from toys and other products used by children under 6 years old. Youtube Video
Side: Children
Carney: Schools Should Teach Basics and Creativity Carney has taken a firm stance against No Child Left Behind. Lamenting the principles behind the program the former teacher states, “’Teaching to the test’ has led to the intellectual neutering of our academic programs rather than encouraging academic creativity and exploration. No Child Left Behind effectively means that no child gets ahead.” He believes that NCLB is just another failed program that suffers from underfunding. An unintentional consequence of the program, according to Carney, is that citizens are forced to pay higher property taxes. As an alternative to NCLB, Carney wants to in vest in teachers, schools, curriculum, and technology. He wants to make sure that children learn the basics that NCLB strives to teach and allow children to explore and be creative. Side: Education
Carney’s Road To Stimulate the Local Economy The rural 10th District has faced trying economic times. Carney believes that the problem in a lack of infrastructure. He proposes to create the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund, which would fund road construction and communications. In the short-run, road construction would create jobs; in the long,-run, better infrastructure would create a strong economic base for commerce to develop. The Democratic incumbent believes that that Bluestone shale, abundant in the region, could become a local industry and support road construction. Side: Economy
Carney Health Care for Children (Only) Carney supports health care coverage for children. He voted for a bill that would have, according to his numbers, covered 10 million children. President Bush vetoed it and Carney voted to override the veto. He has stated, “Insuring kids is morally and fiscally responsible. Healthy children are more likely to succeed in education and life. This is an investment in our nation's future." However, it is not clear how the government would fund this program. In addition, his prioritizing of health care is limited to children. His campaign website never mentions the words “universal health care,” how he will address rising health care costs, and how he will handle the 47 million Americans that are uninsured. Side: Health care
Carney: One for One Withdrawal Like many Democrats who are against the war, Carney has continued voting for funding for troops while they are in Iraq. Against reflecting his party affiliation, Carney supports an immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq. But not all at once. The veteran supports one of the more nuanced withdrawal plans on the table. He calls his a “one for one” policy.” For every Iraqi battalion trained by America, one American battalion will come home. He believes that at this point, 50,000 troops should come home. It remains to be seen whether this would be a sensible policy. It is not clear that one trained Iraqi battalion will be as effective as one American battalion. Side: Iraq
The battle of the Chrises is a tight one, within 4 points according to one poll right at the poll's margin of error. Carney runs stronger than Obama who trails McCain in this district by 9 points but that means he will have to win without a coattail effect. Side: Chris Carney
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Having come to power in the Democratic takeover of 2006, Congressman Chris Carney has failed to support the issues of the Gay and Lesbian community. The GLBT backed Carney in the last election cycle, even paying for a 30 second spot to help get him elected against Don Sherwood. However, Carney voted against the Hate Crimes Bill that would require that crimes based on gender, sexual orientation, and disability be prosecuted as federal hate crimes, despite stating he would support it on his Project Vote Smart survey. Carney is running for reelection in Pennsylvania's 10th Congressional District.
Supporting Evidence:
I Want My Money Back-- Chris Carney Betrays GLBT Rights
(www.huffingtonpost.com)
Side: Carney Turns Back on Gay Community
Hackett Will Privative Social Security In the video below, Hackett sticks to his main talking points of lowering taxes and eliminating earmarks. He attacks the McCain Feingold law saying that it infringes on freedom of speech. Notably, Hackett talks about Social Security. He pledges not to touch the program for senior citizens. However, for younger generations he advocates privatizing Social Security. He wants citizens in their 20s and 30s to invest the money that would have gone into the program into private accounts. Hackett faith in the market leads him to believe that citizens will earn more on their investments. However, Hackett does not acknowledge that these savings would be subject to market fluctuation and would not make security a necessity. Youtube Video
Side: Social Security
Hackett’s Economic Ideology Offers Few Details Republican candidate Chris Hackett pledges to reduce spending and regulation. He proposes to cut spending on wasteful earmarks such as the much-ballyhooed Bridge to Nowhere. The word earmark has come to automatically mean wasteful this year. If all federal funding were eliminated, then local governments may not be able to fund projects on their own. Which earmarks would Hackett save and eliminate? He cites the Competitive Enterprise Institue and states that federal regulations cost the economy $1.1 trillion annually. Yet he does not mention the money that may be saved through regulations. Nor does he address the idea that lives and health may be better off because of these rules. Side: Economy
Hackett Believes Tax Cuts with Create Jobs and Stimulate Growth Hackett follows a long line of Reagan Republicans who believe that low taxes will automatically lead to economic growth. He pledges to make the 2001 and 2003 Bush tax cuts permanent, and he will eliminate the estate tax. According to Hackett, “The tax cuts of Presidents Kennedy, Reagan, and Bush all led to increased revenue and job growth.” What is happening in today’s economy calls this assertion into question. This month the unemployment rate reach a 5 year high of 6.1%. The economy has grown – but only marginally. And with news of bank failures and government buyouts on the front page of the newspapers every week, Hackett’s claims are unjustified. Side: Economy
Hackett Wants a Free Market-Based Health Care System What is the biggest problem with health care? Chris Hackett believes the problem is rising health care costs. He wants to expand Health Saving Accounts. Seniors will be able to buy prescription drugs at cheaper prices from industrialized countries such as Canada. Malpractice suits will be limited. Hackett wants to give citizens tax exemptions for buying health insurance. He in no way supports universal health care. He states, “To make health care more affordable and expand coverage for children the last thing we need is the Hillary Clinton model of socialized medicine. That model always leads to increased costs, year-long waits for care and ultimately rationing. We don't want to put the people who couldn't figure out how to deal with Hurricane Katrina in charge of health care!” Ironically, Hackett shoots himself in the foot. His party’s leadership was supposed to be in charge of Katrina. Side: Health care
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Hackett and Federalist Education Hackett believes it is a fundamental right for parents to choose where their children go to school. His economic ideology again inundates his policy stances on supposedly non-economic issues. The Republican contender believes that a free market solution will give create competition among schools and more choices for parents. He believes that education is a state matter and that states should have the flexibility to teach students in the way they think is right. It is unclear where he stands on No Child Left Behind. Side: Education
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