of social security and medicare for the next generation, not privatization. i support accountability for wall street, not making them accountable does a great injustice across society. i will support, if given the opportunity, helping our housing sector to help this country recover. it is a vital for the construction trades and the real estate business. it will put people to work and help restore our nation. we do not want to go back, we want to move forward. i believe the programs i have supported over the years had been compassionate ones. every day, i learned from you. everyday we work together to try to go forward. whether we look to new energy industries across this region,

the manufacturing that is recovering, the arts community, tourism, if we think about the wonderful high-value agriculture and food companies that have been lodged in the region -- i want to thank everyone for pulling for together to turn a region over to the next generation in better condition that we felt it. >> we are wrapping up our closing statements for the evening. we want to thank everyone who has been watching. we will close our statements with a two-minute closing statements from mr. rich iott. >> thank you for the and the station to join you here today. our economy is in a shambles. despite massive amounts of government spending it is not getting any better. changes in the economy will only come if we change the way washington runs.

the unprecedented spending by congress has put the future of our nation at risk. if we do not make a hard turn around and do it fast, our children and our grandchildren will lead to far less prosperous lives that we do today. we can no longer sit idly by. that is why i am here. that is why you are here. that is why you are watching at home. it is time to act. the time to do it is now. if we are ever going to change congress, each and everyone of us must change to we send to congress. let's get this done together. we can do it. >> mr. iott, we thank you very much for your time. if you missed any part of this debate tonight, the statements and questions will be posted on foxtoledo.com. if you want to see some of the

commentary that is happening and some of the responses, you can do that as well throughout the evening. will have video as well. we like to thank everybody in the audience today. you have been quiet and on your best behavior. it is important that we got out some of the issues that we did tonight. it was a respectable crowd. the election is so important and is coming up in a couple of weeks. you can vote early if you want to. we discussed absentee voting. the toledo free press will be having a wrap up on this debate tonight. we want to thank you both for answering questions this evening. we know there were quite a few personal questions, tough questions. we appreciate everyone's's honesty and integrity when it comes to answering those questions. it is what the voters need. most importantly, thank you at

all for watching today. -- thank you at home for watching today. we thank leadership toledo. they are creating the leaders here in northwest ohio. we encourage you to check out some of the things they are doing. ross is very much for your time. get out there and vote. have your voice heard. [applause]

>> she will talk about what are known as houseplants that the restaurant chain mcdonald's offers to its employees. "washington journal" each morning on c-span. i think it is a part of what we are seeing nationally. it is the unhappiness with the obama administration, with the economy, particularly with all of the debate that went on with the health care vote. this is very big in the congressman's congressional district. he held a lot of town halls they got very mild. we know how that went down. that was a precursor to what this race is going to be like. there will be one overriding issue in this race. that will be his vote in favor

of the obama administration's health care legislation. in the first round in the house, rep oblate but did against the legislation. but then he voted for a key vote when it was passed. congressman boyd have a long fight. he won that 51% to 49%. that is closer than many people thought. congressman boyd did not get what they obama endorsement in that race. that wouldn't help them in the democratic primary. looking to the general election, he did not want to have that around his neck. the health care vote is emblematic of the larger debate, which is a referendum on the obama administration. his background is with the blue- dog democrats. he is fiscally conservative.

he runs his district with fiscal conservatism. it is the base of his physical -- fiscal philosophy. he has run conservative. in that vote for health care, it runs counter to that in the minds of what the republicans are going to paint him as. keith sutherland is a funeral director in panama city. he won a race in the primary. he is not compared to congressman boyd, but he will get a lot of help from the outside. we have democratic voters in the 16 county district. tallahassee is the state capital. it is highly democratic. it is the more liberal center of the district. however, many of the registered democrats are still old mind it

dixiecrats. they are very conservative. they have no compunction against crossing over and voting for a republican candidate. president obama did not carry the congressional district in 2008, although he did in florida. this is emblematic of how the democrats are going to do. how many seats they are going to lose in the house -- holding on to congressman boyd's seat will be key to doing that. >> c-span's local content vehicles are traveling the country, visiting committees and congressional districts as we looked at some of the most closely contested house races leading up to november's midterm elections. for more information of the content vehicles, visit our web site at c-span.org/lcv.

>> tomorrow on "washington journal," former white house budget director alice rivlin will talk about the budget deficit. then, sabrina corlette will talk about many-and that health plans that the restaurant chain mcdonald's offers to its employees. "washington journal" at 7:00 eastern every morning. on c-span2, the bernanke talks about the u.s. economy. live coverage begins at 8:30 eastern. >> now, nevada democratic senator harry reid and

republican candidate sharo ron angle face off in their only debate. both the cook political report rate this race a tossup. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] ♪ >> good evening and welcome to the 2010 nevada senate debate, sponsored by the nevada broadcasters foundation. i am mitch fox, and i will serve as your moderator for this

important political event. joining me this evening is the republican candidate for the united states senate sharron angle and senate majority leader harry reid. welcome to both of you. we want to thank each of the participating 60 nevada television and radio stations who are providing this important one hour block of time as a public service. but it goes beyond that, the broadcasters feel an obligation to engage the electorate. the format we will follow has been accepted and agreed to by both campaigns. each candidate will give a two minute opening statement. the candidates will then be passed a series of questions, some of which were submitted by youtube and beit tv viewers and radio listeners in the state of nevada -- and by tv to yours and radio listeners in the state of nevada. the program concludes with one

minute closing statements from each candidate. it was determined by a flip of the nevada quarter that the first opening statement would be offered by senator harry reid. >> thank you. thanks to the nevada broadcasters for or arranging this. growing up in searchlight, i had some interesting times. my dad was a big man, broad shoulders, weightlifter arms, but times were tough. the mines were not doing well at all. when he worked, sometimes he did not get paid. my mom took in wash from the brothels. so i have some idea what it is like to struggle. we work at the top of the economic food chain in nevada for 20 years. when wall street collapse, we

felt really hard. there was a big hole there. we've struggled. i believe my number one job is to create jobs as the united states senator. i worked hard to do just that. we reduced taxes for 95% of nevadans and all americans. we did tax reform for small businesses. 75% of all jobs are small businesses. we reduced tax for small business a eight times. wall street reform. we changed the law. mortgages. i understand houses are under water. i have three boys that have houses in of the. i have a home in nevada. that is why it worked hard to $200 million into the state to

help homeowners. we know about energy. we have a lot of jobs for renewable energy and i am glad we did. the economy. everything we talk about tonight is related to the economy, everything. social security, energy. i want you to look at my facebook, twitter to make sure that you check all the facts, because we will fact check them. >> thank you. >> good evening. thank you nevada broadcasters for sponsoring this event. tonight, we will see a contrast between me, sharron angle, and senator harry reid. the contrast will be what you will make your choice on when you are voting. the contrast begins. i am not a career politician. i am a mother and a grandmother. i was a teacher for 25 years. senator reid has been a politician for 30 years.

i live in a middle-class neighborhood. senator reid lives in the ritz carlton in washington. i voted over 100 times against tax increases. senator reid has voted over 300 times to raise taxes. he voted for stimulus and bailout. and he voted for unconstitutional bills like obama-care. these are not just policies. these are policies that have heard nevada. we have the highest rate of unemployment in the nation, the highest rate of foreclosure and the nation, the highest rate of bankruptcies in the nation, and these are not just numbers. these are real people. when i call my grown children and i say, how are doing, what i am asking is, are you still able to make that mortgage payment

and do you still have your job? our founding fathers knew that the best government was of limited government of the people, by the people and for the people. tonight, you'll see the difference between senator harry reid and the government and sharron angle and limited constitutional government. >> the next series of questions will focus on immigration. in the minds of many nevadans, your policies have allowed thousands of illegal immigrants to stream across the border because you have not made border security of priority. why is it only this year you have talked about securing the border when this problem has been going on for years, if not decades? >> immigration is a problem. we have a system in america that is broken and needs to be fixed. that is why, in august, of this

year, i introduced legislation that was finally passed to do something about our borders. we now have on our border predator is flying over 24 hours a day. we have 45 for hundred border patrol agents. we have the national guard there. -- we have 4500 border patrol agents. i am frustrated. i believe we have to do comprehensive immigration reform. we cannot ignore. that is the reason we have to do something about the people that are here that are undocumented. have them pay taxes, pay penalties, and of course, by doing that, we will be able to not demagogue this but do something about it. we have to work together on the issue. >> thank you. ms. angle, your response? >> what we have is an illegal alien problem. the solution is simple -- secure the borders. i think everyone should have a

sharing like joe, and we should be supporting arizona instead of suing arizona light senator reid and the president have done. foreignllowed 11 countries to be included in that suit. they are dictating our immigration law. that is nuts. we need to get back to simple solutions to these problems. once we secure the borders, then we can deal with internal problems, but we have to stop incentivizing those folks that are coming here for jobs, for medical and for education free and also for social security benefits. those are for citizens. >> you can respond. >> thank you. the number one issue here is a comprehensive immigration reform. we have to do something to solve the issue. we cannot keep talking about it.

that is why our worked very hard in the last congress to work with john mccain. it was his legislation. it is the same legislation we are working on now. >> our next question, ms. angle, is on immigration. in a television advertisement you claimed that senator reid , voted to give tax breaks to illegal aliens and to give it illegal sources security benefits. most fact checkers have said this it is false, especially the line of all social security benefits. the advertisement was criticized by the chair of the republican caucus. would you like to denounce the advertisement or give voters a documented evidence about its accuracy? >> not at all. i am glad to give voters the opportunity to see that senator harry reid has voted to give

social security to immigrants. he voted to give it to them before they were citizens. he voted to give them the benefits of our social security. our social security system is one that needs to be addressed, and we are not addressing it. in fact, what we need to do is make sure that we keep our promise to our senior citizens and make sure that our younger folks have a personalized social security retirement account similar to the thrift plan that senator reid has. >> senator reid? >> mitch, my opponent did not answer the question. ever since she said in an advertisement -- everything she said in an advertisement was false. i never voted for social security benefits. that is not the law.

she needs to stop saying it. that is why she moved toward social security that had nothing to do with the question you asked. >> i think the question has everything to do with social security and what has gone wrong in our system because we have not secured the borders and enforced the laws. senator reid talks about comprehensive immigration law, but what he is talking about is something that did not work in 1986. i am a great fan of ronald reagan, but he had it wrong when he gave amnesty. we need to first to secure the border. >> on this next question i will ask for a simple yes or no and response. would you be in favor of a constitutional amendment establishing english as the official language of the united states? >> yes. >> english is already the official language. >> we will go on to the next category and that has to do with health care reform.

youtube has partnered with the nevada broadcasters' association. so far there have been 50,000 hits on youtube. by far, the biggest issue is our next one, which is health care. senator reid, you'll get this question. according to the medicare's catchword, the health care reform bill will increase costs, including $100 million to nevada's medicaid budget. in light of the backlash, why didn't you and president obama focus on jobs and the foreclosure crisis first, knowing how nevada has suffered more than any other state? >> for a long time in this country, insurance companies have dominated the health care delivery system. you pay your premiums, you get sick or hurt and they walk away from you. we passed health insurance

reform because we had no choice. i do not know where you got a question, but the facts are wrong. according to the congressional budget office, independent, we have been told that we will reduce the debt by $1.30 trillion. we allow people to have children who have pre-existing disabilities like diabetes to no longer be denied insurance by those folks. it is something that we had to do, including extend the life of medicare for 12 years,, fill the doughnut hole. we had to do health insurance reform to maintain competitiveness in the world economy. it creates thousands and thousands of jobs. presidentdn't you and obama focus on jobs and the foreclosure crisis first, knowing how nevada has suffered more than any other state? >> we did focus on foreclosure first. one of the first bill we passed

was mortgage fraud. we moved into that quickly to prevent this people who are taking advantage of folks in trouble with their homes. remember what i said earlier -- health insurance reform creates jobs. 500 new bringing alon people. as a result of what we have done, they will bring more people there. >> ms. angle? >> obama-care cut a half a trillion dollars out of medicare, right at the point where senior citizens in need to have that medicare advantage. that is where their choices are. it also cost as half a trillion dollars in new taxes. the solutions to the health care insurance cost problems are simple, and they reside with in the free market. we need to get the government out so we can go across state

lines to choose insurance companies. we need to get the government out of the process so that we can take off the mandated process these. we need to have tort reform. the solution to the health care cost of insurance are free market. >> senator reid? >> the facts are wronog. g. i read a letter from secretary sebelius, medicare recipients from the state of nevada will pay less rather than more. there'll be more medicare advantage people on the rolls daes now. she is against mammograms -- my opponent is against mammograms,call in of the colon. that is extreme. >> senator reid paraphrased my

question. you voted in the state assembly to do away with mandated coverage of mammograms and colon cancer tests. you can out in favor of eliminating coverage for autism. is there anything you think the insurance companies should be forced to cover? >> america is a country of choices, not forcing people to buy something they do not need. what we want is a basic policy where we can and the coverage that we need. children.utisitic i know this is a biomedical disorder, and it needs to have its own insurance card so that families can get the right treatment and be covered. but the insurance mandate we passed in this state only cares for 25% of the one out of 110

children that have autism. we need to stop making band-aid applications and look at real solutions when we talk about health care, and really, forcing someone to buy something they do not need is not the way to solve a problem. >> let me refreeze that question again. is there anything at all that you think the insurance companies should be mandated to cover, anything? >> anything at all? >> yes. >> what we have here is a choice between the free markets and americanism. america is about choices. the free market will weed out those companies that do not offer as many choices and do not have a cost-effective system. let the people decide where they want to buy their insurance. you do not have to force them to buy anything or force anyone to

offer a product no one wants. >> ok, so no insurance mandates. senator reid? >> mitch, insurance companies. insurance companies do not do things out of the goodness of their hearts. they do it all of the profit motive and they have almost destroyed our economy. 20% of all costs prior to health insurance reform was because of health care costs. if we did not change it, it would go up in less than 15 years to 36 cents of every dollar. it would break us. we needed them to be forced to do mammograms. that is why you see breast cancer awareness month. you see the baseball players wearing pink shoes and football players have aing pink helmets. people dread breast cancer. you detected if you do it mammograms. colonoscopies.

if you do them, then colon cancer does not come. it will save money and all long run to do this. >> pink ribbons are not going to make people have a better insurance plan. what makes them a better insurance plans is competition, and that is what high i have ben saying. they will cover the things that we want them to cover. that is all the free markets work. that is why our solutions reside in the free market. when we talk about what destroyed this economy, obama- care is destroying our economy. i know a company that laid off five people because of obama care. >> do you think the health care reform act should include coverage for abortions? >> no. >> we maintained the hyde

amendment. >> that would be yes or no. >> under the law, the hyde amendment is still there. >> nevada has the highest foreclosure rate in the country. las vegas has the highest unemployment rate in the country. it has soared 5 percentage points since president obama took office. at what point, will you stop blaming president bush and start blaming the current president? >> there is plenty of blame to go around. the fact is, i have worked hard to help beleaguered nevada homeworkers. working on mortgages that are under water. 48,000 people in nevada now have houses as a result of the first- time home buyers tax credit. as a result of my pressure on

bank of america, we now have no more foreclosures by them. there is a moratorium there. we have to do more, but we have to understand that they will not be able to do to us again as i indicated earlier what they did to us before, because we passed wall street reform that will stop these greedy bankers on wall street from taking advantage of home waters. >> do you think president obama shares as much blame as president bush? >> of course not. when president bush took office, he had a surplus of over 10 years of $7 trillion. we were paying down debt during the clinton years. we paid down the debt by $600 billion. we lost 8 million jobs during the bush years. we created 3.5 million. no one is satisfied where we are. let's realize where we were. that's no solace to someone who

lost a job or a home. >> the housing bubble was caused a long time before the recent recession. it has to do with things that we have refused to deal with and are senate over the years. the first one is that we have a problem with the federal reserve. we need an audit of the federal reserve. secondly, freddie mae and fannie mack -- fannie mae and freddy mack, they keep sweeping that away. in this last finance reform bill, we could have dealt with freddie mac and fannie mae, but they said it was too big to deal with. we need to start looking at these and looking at true solutions. first, we have to investigate what caused the problem in the first place. this problem has been going on

ever since senator reid has been in leadership, and that was before the obama administration, but they failed to do with it in the obama administration as well. >> we do have a commission. to find out what really happened at the collapse. i called for a federal reserve audit in 1985 -- 1987. so i agree with my opponent on that. there should be an audit. we have not gotten that yet, but we have made some progress. fannie mae and freddie mac, all experts say it needs reform. but you cannot do away with them. we would have no way of sustaining the housing market we have today. our next question goes to, ms. angle, and it is on unemployment record. t. you're quoted as saying we can

make more on unemployment then getting a job. we have put in so much entitlement into our government that we really have spoiled our citizenry. two questions. do you the unemployed are spoiled? and what do you plan to do to fix the unemployment problem, especially if you believe getting jobs for nevadans is not your jobs? >> first of all, no, i do not think our unemployed are spoiled. that was mischaracterized by my opponent. he taught -- he called us you wanted to know the answers celtuce and childrselfish child. we need to encourage the private sector to do what they do best, with policies from the government that they can do better.

right now they are in a cloud of uncertainty and holding back $2 trillion that they would like to invest in jobs, , but they are holding back because of more taxation and regulation coming out of senator reid's administrative policies. follow-up.ask a do you believe that getting jobs for nevadans is not your job? >> my job is to create a policy is to encourage the private sector to create jobs. >> that would be no. >> yesterday, we had a company from china come here to create jobs. they have been building windmills. that is a result of tax policy that i put into a bill. we now have $2 billion worth of work going on in nevada. that is a result of tax policy,

incentives to have them do that. mccarren airport, as a result of tax policy, we have a $3 billion project going on there today. -- as a result of language in the bill, we save jobs at harrah's. my opponent is against that. my job is to create jobs. what she is talking about is extreme. we have to do this. we have been doing it since boulder dam was created years ago. >> once again, harry reid, it is not your job to create jobs. it is your job to create policies that create confidence for the private sector to create jobs. they have lost confidence because of things like obama- care. there is a business in reno, where he wanted to hire 25 more employees but laid off five just because of the provisions in obama-care.

we are seeing those kinds of policies crush our economy over the last 20 months. >> the next question goes to senator reid. this has to do with the supreme court. one of the most important duties and given a u.s. senator is the approval of an individual to a lifetime appointment to the u.s. supreme court. so we can get a sense on how he would vote, name are current or former supreme court justice you admire and why and name a current or former supreme court justice who should never have been approved by the senate. >> this may surprise everyone. don't agree with scalia's opinions, but he is a masterful mind. he does good things. scalia is an example to anyone who appreciates the law. white, i like him because of his

opinions and because he was an all-american football player. we can go back to the early days of the country. there were opinions written dealing with slavery that were wrong. my opponent keeps talking about obama-care. remember, 30,000 small businesses in nevada have the ability to get health insurance supplements. if they have an insurance policy that cost a certain amount of dollars, they can get reductions of 35% to 50% on that. she keeps talking about losing employment because of health care. that is not necessary. they should be able to do much better now because of health care. it does not understand the law. >> you have the supreme court question out. >> i admire clarence thomas because he understands his constitutional boundaries. we need justices that will sit on the supreme court and to do their duty constitutionally, and

not legislate from the bench. i would not have confirmed sonia sotomayor or elena kagan, because neither one understand the constitution. they said they would vote against our second amendment rights. those are things that are dear to us. our founding fathers wanted supreme court justice who would stand up for the constitution, a constitution that was created for we the people to be free. >> senator reid? >> i think we should stop running down the supreme court. i do not agree with all the opinions. take for example, and four versus bush -- gore versus bush. i believe in our constitution, which i have in my pocket. even though i agree with -- i disagree, when they made that ruling, george bush became my

president. we should leave the supreme court along and pick the best lawyers we can find. >> we will talk about don't ask don't tell. you get a first question, ms. angle. a federal judge's order to halt enforcement of the policy was hailed by gay activists as a landmark ruling in their struggle to expand their rights. don't you think it's time to end discrimination of gays and lesbians and our military? how you feel about republicans like dick cheney and laura bush coming out in favor of gay rights? >> the policies are under review right now. we should be waiting for the review of our military to make those decisions, not jumping ahead to making those decisions as senator reid tried to do by putting a provision in the defense bill. we have been very careful to define a marriage between -- as

between of man and a woman through to general elections. over 70% of the population has voted to define marriage as between a man and a woman. i support what nevada has done and i will represent our constituents on that basis. >> what do think about republicans such as the former vice president and first lady laura bush coming out in favor of dear rights? >> that is their personal opinion. every american has the freedom of speech, and they have the freedom to have an opinion. that is great. >> senator reid? >> i respectfully suggest to my apartment that she does not understand what went on in washington. the bill that -- i respectfully suggest to my opponent that she does not understand what went on in washington. the secretary of defense signed off on that, and the president certified it would not hurt our defense.

they can only do that after our report was issued as to whether or not it was good for the military. the legislation on the senate floor did not say we would get rid of don't ask don't tell. it said that a republican secretary of defense would have to certify that it would do no harm to our troops only after the report by the pentagon came down. >> ms. angle? >> i submit that is the wrong way to do legislation. just like when nancy pelosi said we should pass of bill and then read it. the review needs to come out first, and then the bill. i do know the process. the process is read the bill first and then pass it. >> we have a question on social security. earlier in the year, they announced that the social security will pay out more in benefits this year than it receives in payroll taxes, an

important threshold it was not expected to cross until 2016. your opponent blames you for the shortfall. she claims you rated the social security trust fund to offset the deficit. what is your response? >> social security is a promise we have to keep. it takes care of seniors in their golden years. that is our -- that is why our work hard to protect it. i took on a president of the united states when he tried to privatize it. social security is an important program. the actuarials of social security and cbo said social security will pay out 100% of benefits for the next 30-40 years. even after that, there'll be a shortfall of 15% to 20%. we need to take care of that in 35 or 40 years from now. do not frighten people about

social security. the deal was made -- that was made by president reagan and tip o'neill is holding strong. it will take care of our folks for the next 35 years. >> man up, harry reid. you need to understand that we have a problem with social security. the problem was created because of government taking that money out of the social security trust fund. in 1990, you said it was stealing her to use social security for anything but social security, and then you voted to put that money into the general fund where it could be used for anything. when you did that, you left i.o.u's, that are fat -- kept in a filing cabinet in west virginia. what we need to do is keep our promises to our senior citizens by putting the money back and a trust fund and allowing our workers to have the option of a

personalized social security retirement plan and that becomes an asset to them, just like your savings plan is an asset to you. if it is good enough for you, it should be good enough for the rest of the. >> these ideas are really extreme. i said cob. bo. there is plenty of money and that trust fund account. during the clinton years, we did not use the trust fund money to offset the deficit. we were strengthening it by not using it to offset the deficit. >> you said during a primary election debate, " we need to phase social security and medicare out in favor of something privatized." before the primary, you used the word privatize. now you use crystalize.

and why did you change your position? >> because of the idea that personalized covers of both private and public. as i stated, harry reid and many government employees have a personalized retirement account. it is called the thrift savings plan. that is an account that is their personalized account. if it is good enough for harry reid, it should be good enough for the rest of us. when we talk about social security -- remember that the we'dsaid that by 2016 be in the red. if we do not do something to fix this by 2037, anyone under 40 will not receive the benefits of the money they paid in. >> senator reid? >> cbo, i repeat for the third time, i said for the next 35

years, everyone will get all the money they want. even after that, it takes minor tinkering to take care of it. the arrangement that was made by president reagan and speaker of the house tip o'neill looked forward to today, recognizing that amount of money came in initially and as time went on, we would have to pay out more. she has talked about for years talked about getting rid of social security. this is not something just during the primary. i have heard her say, why don't we have a program like they had in chile or england. those countries went broke. you cannot put that money into the stock market. look what would have happened if you put the money into the stock market as was suggested by president bush. this is an extreme idea that would destroy it social security. >> there you go again trying to hedge on this idea that what is going on is that our social

security system has 2.5 trillion dollars, -- had $2.5 trillion and now it has i.o.u's. we need to keep the promise to our senior citizens to put that money back. >> our next question is on yuca mountain. last week, they directed agency scientists to stop work there. this is what ms. angle said. "harry reid has demonize the nuclear industry. there is a pot of money out there. we have potential for job creation and diversification. did we miss a golden opportunity to create jobs and receive benefits from the federal government during a time when we needed it?" >> we tried for 28 years to get something from the federal government.

nothing. yuca mountain is bad for nevada. the most poisonous substance known to man a few miles out of las vegas, no. we need to use it for something else. my opponents suggest using it for a nuclear reactor. there is not enough water and the state of nevada to build a nuclear reactor. the only nuclear generate -- that uses more water than coal is nuclear. i am not against nuclear power. i am opposed to try to bring all the garbage from it to our state. >> i always voted to making nevada the nuclear waste dump of the nation. but the science has outpaced the need for a dump in nevada. we do not want a dump in nevada,

but we need to quit demonizing the nuclear energy industry. what we have our submarines that use liquid metal to cool. it is not always water that is required for nuclear energy. we should look into the potential for nuclear energy. we should not be dependent upon foreign oil. we should develop all our resources. we should also allow coal-fired plants to be built in nevada, which harry reid killed. we need to stop with this extreme environmental out. look. we need to use those things to create jobs in nevada. >> i heard my opponent talk about these coal-fired plants. we have something much better. we have a power line that has worked out between the owner of the power plants from north to

south, all using renewable energy, except one in this heat -- in mesquite, that will use -- solar. we have made great progress. i appreciate what the energy company has done backing off the coal plants that have not worked. we have created a lot of jobs with renewable energy. >> the next topic is education. you said on multiple occasions, ms. angle, that you wanted to eliminate the department of education, which means, you favor eliminating funding to schools with low income students. you favor eliminating pell grants. you favor of limiting head start -- eliminating head start. and you want to zero out funding for three-year-old

children with disabilities. is that correct? >> totally incorrect. i was a teacher for 25 years. i served on a school board in my county and was on the education committee for eight years in the state assembly. what i know of the department of education at the federal level is that it is an agency that makes one size fits size policies that fits no one, like no child left behind. we send our money to washington to be skimmed off by bureaucrats. they sent it back to use in the form of underfunded mandates. and we need to keep that in the state, where parents and teachers are making policies. that is our 10th amendment right. >> mitch, the department of energy does wonderful things for

the states, to programs they have initiated. we've reduced the amount of interest that parents have to pay for their children's l oans. we have been able to do something with pell grants, $550 a year more. we have brought $400 million to the state to help k-12. this is initiated through the department of education, and we need to protect the department of education. ronald reagan had the idea -- maybe we should try to get rid of that. when he left, she knew it was the wrong thing to do. some of the best programs that we have were initiated by ronald reagan. >> the department of education has been around since the early and sinceate 1970's, then, the quality of our education has diminished. we would be so much better off

taking our 10th amendment rights, just the way that arizona did with illegal aliens and the way that missouri did with obama-care. we need to put at education as close to local level as possible where parents and teachers make the policies. >> our next question is on iraq. senator reid, you're quoted as saying the following "the war is lost and the surge is not accomplishing anything as indicated by the extremist violence." do you believe that your statement demoralize the troops and that you were an accurate concerning the success of the surge? >> this statement i made was following the words from general petraeus that said the war could not be won militarily. he said that the war could only be one of militarily, economically, and diplomatically. that is why after we made our

statements, we did the surge then, not late. it was the right thing to do. it worked because we brought in the economy working with the sunni. the sunni awakening, so they started fighting the people causing the problem. general petraeus is my friend. i am supported the troops with wounded warrior legislation. i have been to afghanistan and iraq and see how courageous they are. that is why i have been in a vote -- endorsed by the veterans of foreign wars for they know what i have done for the trip. >> i do not have the access to special security briefings like the senator does, and i did not get to vote for either one of those wars, like the senator did, but i do know this -- that we needed to support our military with all our resources, not only our military service right now but veterans and their

families as well. that is one of the priorities in the enumerated powers of our constitution. we should be setting our priorities on our military. when you said this war was lost and that and general petraeus was a dishonest, that emboldened our enemies, demoralize our troops and endangered them. and you need to apologize to them, senator. >> i have been endorsed by the largest military organization in the country, the veterans of foreign wars. my opponent -- listen to this idea -- if she wants to privatize the veterans administration. think about that. i have worked hard. we have the veterans hospital that will be the finest in the world. it is a prototype for other hospitals. we had not had a new one in 15 years. i am glad i worked on that. i am glad i worked on the

g.i. bill of rights. >> on saturday, you have a political rally and referred to "favor-buying politicians, " referring to senator reid. people want to know that if you engage in favor-buying, would you provide political juice if scott -- dropped out of the race? >> they want to know that when they come to washington, d.c., they will be heard. when a request a town hall meeting, that they will be heard. i want to go back to the veterans administration. my father is a veteran of world war ii and the korean war. he has an injury related to that.

she is 88. he has social security cut medicare and the -- social security, medicare and the v.a., but he pays a lot. we need to do better. that's to be our top priority occurred . >> her dad should come to our office. he should nioot be doing this. my friend has berated healthcare, health-insurance reform. i have health insurance like 6 million other federal employees. i want others to have that same health insurance that i have, and that is one of the reasons we worked hard to get health insurance reform passed. .y opponent's husband they have a pension from the federal government. they have health care just like

i have. i want to help others to do not have what i have. that is where setting up exchanges with entry. five years, they will have that. >> 32nd. >> certainly, obama-care is nothing like the insurance policy that my husband and i have. every year there is a window and we make a choice. obama-care offers no choices, so it is not at all like what senator reid has. and what we really do need is something like what senator reid has, which is that we should all of the choices that we can pick our own insurance companies and insurance policy rather than having the government dictate and mandate the coverage we by. >-- we buy. >> the bush-era tax cuts are set to expire. without congressional action, the taxes americans pay will rise. why do you want to raise taxes,

even on the wealthy, in the midst of a recession? >> mitch mcconnell -- we agree on one thing. that we have to wait until after the election to find out what the economy will be. i guarantee there will be no increase for middle class people, no tax increase for middle-class america. we have to see what we are told by the experts, what we should do with the people that make more than that. i personally am not in favor of giving billionaire tax cuts right now. we will do that when we get back. my time is not up. i also want to say it. . my friend is talking about exchanges. exchanges, every year we had exchanges dislike people who will have it under the health care insurance that we pass. they will get choices just like we have. i repeat, i want everyone to have the same choice as i have.

she does not. she can pick and choose. i want 50 million other people to be able to do that, also. >> could you repeat the question? >> the bush tax cuts are set to expire at the end of the year. i asked senator reid why he would want to raise taxes even on the wealthy in the midst of a recession. >> the tax cuts need to be made permanent. if they are not, we will experience the largest tax increase in the history of america. and with a voting for over 300 tax increases, senator, we cannot trust you with our taxes. you came to the senate with very little. now you are one of the richest men in the senate. on behalf of the taxpayers, we

would like to know, how did you become so wealthy on the government payroll? >> that is a low blow. i think most everyone knows i was a very successful lawyer. i did a good job in investing. i have been on a fixed income since i went to washington. i lived off of what i made in the private sector. i trip -- i put my five kids through school and paid for every penny of it. her suggestion that i made money being a senator is false and i am disappointed she suggests that. i would further say that if she wants the tax cuts made permanent, we have a deficit problem to worry about, also. $4 trillion it would cost to have these tax cuts extended to the future. that's quite a load. >> continue along those line. we are talking about the bush tax cuts. it would cost the federal government $4 trillion over the next decade and almost double

the deficit. are you concerned that these tax cuts place an unfair burden on our children and grandchildren? >> first of all, let's really talk about whose money that is. it is not the federal government money. it is our money. when he says we are squandering the federal government's money, it is really squandering our money. those tax cuts will create that confidence that businesses need to go forward and provide those jobs. right now, as i said before, they are holding back because they can only see a climate of taxation and regulation. we needed to give them that confidence by making those tax cuts permanent. if we do, then a business like the one in reno, where the senior partner is 82. if he should die, 55% of their business will go away and 33 employees will lose their jobs. we need to make the tax cuts permanent.

>> we reduced the load of debt on the american people during the clinton years. we had a pay-go system. as a result of that, we had the most successful economic splurge and the history of this country. we created 22 million jobs and reduce the debt by going on -- $1 trillion. we can do this. when president bush came into office, he had a surplus. that was squandered with two wars, taxes on paid for, and now we have an $11 trillion debt. we have to meet the demands of this country and pay down that debt. we need to reestablish the pay- ago rules and we have done that. we did that together. >> we are going to go to closing statements. senator reid, you will have

about 45 seconds. >> got to find my notes. a lot of paper here. thank you very much, mitch, for what you have done here. first of all, i think we found tonight that my opponent favors big banks. she is against wall street reform, oil companies, she said bp had too much regulation. insurance companies -- it is obvious from the discussion on health care how much she cares for them. i am for the middle class. what we talk about tonight is jobs. we need to create more jobs. renewable energy jobs? she mocks them. i am a fighter. i will continue to fight for what i believe is best for the american people. we have a long ways to go, but i will continue to do everything i can for the people of nevada. >> people often ask me why i

smile so much. it is because i am an optimist. like ronald reagan, i believe in american essentialism. i believe that with god's help we have the solution for economic problems. they are as simple as cut back spending, payback the dead, and take back our economy by repealing obama-care. we have the right contract with america. that is our constitution and bill of rights. we have the right message -- lower taxes, less government regulation, more individual freedom, and stop the spending. we have the right angle for the u.s. senate. i am asking for your vote. >> once again, thank you to senator reid and ms. angle. thank you for being part of this event. do not forget to vote occurred early voting begins this saturday and election day is november 2. november 2.

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>> all month on c-span, we are bringing you coverage of the election. live coverage from a level, kentucky, began sunday at 7:00 p.m. eastern time. now, the first debate between the senate candidates in washington, democratic senator patty murray and dino rossi.

the debate is being held at the public television studios in spokane. >> did evening and welcome to the first double the two special debates between the candidates running for u.s. senate. we are coming to you live from the ksps studios in spokane,

washington. we are also being heard on news radio 920. patty murray is the incumbent democrat seeking her fourth term. she is challenged by republican candidate dino rossi. the candidates will face questions. the candidates have one minute for opening statements. mr. rossi will go first. >> america is in trouble.

that is why i am running for the u.s. senate. we are going to wake up 24 months from now in a country that we do not recognize. uncontrolled spending and government controlled health care -- we are giving them a path that is dangerous. many people believe the problem with washington, d.c., is that they cannot believe reject they cannot admit when they are wrong. we are going to have the spirited debate tonight. it is a spirited debate between two candidates. i have a lot of respect for senator murray. it is not personal. i believe she is headed in the wrong direction. i think we have gone down the wrong path. i want to say thank-you to ksps for putting on this debate. i also want to thank senator murray for joining us today. >> senator murray? >> thank you for joining us this

evening for a very important discussion about who will be your voice and advocate in the united states senate. how many families are struggling today because of the mistakes and agreed on wall street? this state is my family. my family is hurting. that is why i am working so hard with your community leaders to get you jobs and get this country back on track again. i will take on even the most powerful to make sure that you have a voice at the table. i grew up in a small town in washington. my dad ran a store on main street. i learned as main street values of hard work and fighting for what you believe in. those are the values i take that to be your voice in the united states senate. i believe that by working together we can solve the problems in front of us if we

had the courage and take the responsibility. >> our first question is for mr. rossi. >> the war in afghanistan is becoming one of the longest wars this country has ever waged and the casualty count is rising as the surge strategy employed there is similar to what we did in iraq. i am wondering if you two can say how long we should be willing to stay in afghanistan and under what conditions should be be willing to leave? >> i want to say thank you to the military families, especially in our state, and the men and women serving right now. let's take a step back and look at pre-9/11 and what happened in afghanistan. you had terrorist training camps. you had people there that hate americans. they want to kill you, your children, and your

grandchildren. we cannot let that happen again. we cannot let them come back into power. you can see what happened with the surge. a lot of people do not know that it has taken six months for the 30,000 troops to show up. they have only been there for a couple of months. i agree with president obama with his choice of general petraeus. let's see how this works. i do not agree with having a date certain as to when we will withdraw our troops. i think they would just hide out in the caves and wait till we leave. they will come back down and we could end up with more terrorist camps training people who want to kill us. we cannot allow that to happen. we have to give our military every tool possible so they can achieve their objective and come home as soon as possible. i want to give general pretorius a chance to make this work. -- general petraeus a chance to

make this work. >> senator murray? >> i looked out the window and saw the smoke rising from the pentagon. even though it was a very divisive time, we came together, republicans and democrats, and voted together to go to war on terrorists wherever they exist. we have a number of military families who have sacrificed so much for our nation. they have gone to iraq and afghanistan three, four, maybe even five times. we owe it to them to tell them when and how long they will be there. we have been in afghanistan for nine years and now to the tune of billions of dollars. i am one of the few senators who voted to tell this president that he does need to tell the american people how we can show that we are winning a war on terrorists wherever they exist. i do not believe that we have a willing partner in president

karzai right now that we can count on. at this time in our nation's history when we are struggling with our economy and our precious resources, i think we owe it to the men and women who have been fighting for us to ask those tough questions about whether or not a war on terrorists wherever they exist and making sure that we take care of our military in a tough economic time, having boots on the ground in afghanistan is the right policy. it is the right question to ask. >> in at 30 seconds for rebuttal. >> we just read in the wall street journal yesterday that president karzai was meeting with the afghani taliban. they were meeting to discuss some sort of reconciliation. i am not sure how that is going to work. we need to be cautiously optimistic. when karzai fired his interior

minister, people were concerned about that. the new interior minister brought in 27 the police chiefs. they are making progress. we need to have progress on the ground if we expect to have any lasting effort in afghanistan. >> senator murray, you have 30 seconds for rebuttal. >> the one important question that has not been answered is how we will pay for this. we are in trouble today because we went to two wars without paying for it. my opponent wants to extend tax cuts to the wealthiest americans. how'd you tell our troops who have fought so hard for us and come home with mental and physical wounds of war that we are going to pay and be responsible for the decisions that we make. if we agree to do that, we have to say how we are going to pay for it. >> our next question is from the viewer. >> my name is robert.

i am from spokane, washington. my question is this, what will you do to create more jobs for washington state? thank you. >> senator murray, the question is for you. >> thank you for that question. it is a very important one. it is one that i talk about all the time because so many families are hurting in our state because they have lost their homes. we need to make sure they get back on the job. i come home every weekend and i talk to community leaders all over the state about the needs in their community. then i get back to washington, d.c., and fight for them so that we can get people back on the job. here in spokane, i talked to your community leaders about the university district and creating a river. campus -- creating a riverpoint campus.

we have students there now studying and getting jobs in the health-care industry. my opponent says he will fight for those targeted investments. it is my job to fight for those investments to get you back to work again. it is why i went to talk to so many mainstream businesses who told me that they need capital to keep their doors open and the goods on their shelves or hire new employees. we passed eight main street vending bill. the president has signed into law. we can now have capital going to those businesses so they can keep their doors open. mr. rossi does not support that. my job is to make sure your job is secure. >> we had a partial unemployment rate of 17.4% in washington. you're talking about two out of every 10 people you know who are not feeding their families are keeping a roof over their head. i had been talking to a lot of

small-business owners. i am a small businessman myself. i know what we need to do to create jobs. whether they have two people in a gift shop or a couple of hundred people in a manufacturing industry, they cannot expand their businesses. why? they do not know what the government is going to do next week. they do not know about the tax cuts that should have been reauthorized. this uncertainty is leading -- leaving them in limbo. they are not going to extend their businesses. senator murray decided to adjourn before the tax cuts were passed. we'll have the largest tax increase in american history. businesses are deciding who they will have to lay off to do this. senator murray's job was more spending -- borrowing money from

the chinese and others. the stimulus bill. they said the unemployment rate would not go up above 8%. clearly that did not happen. now we have a very large deficit. it did not work. the federal government can create a temporary government jobs. we need entrepreneurs to create jobs. >> senator murray, 30 seconds. >> i did not hear any jobs created in that answer. i work with your local community leaders to ask them where the jobs are going to be in your community and work with them to get the investments so we can get those jobs. i will make sure that our main street businesses had the credit they need to be able to expand. it is why i fought so hard to make sure that those tankers have a contract that is made by american workers. we based those tankers right here in fairchild. this is one of my priorities and

what i will keep working on. >> mr. rossi. >> they need stability and certainty said they can invest in their business. they need fair and predictable regulations. and let them to chase the american dream. when they are successful, you do not punish them with the success like senator murray wants to do with high taxes. her government solution has failed. it is clear. it has failed. she was to do more of it. i do not think we can afford that. >> now to another question for mr. rossi. >> the washington state of ecology has said it is necessary to clean up. would you cut and other parts of the federal budget to increase overall federal spending and, if so, what would you cut? >> we are going to have to make

reductions in this budget. as a state senator, i was chairman of the senate ways and means committee during the largest deficit in state history. i were to cross party lines to balance the deficit without raising taxes. we went on line by line by line to the budget. that is exactly what we have to do. i have done it here in the state of washington. i did it in a bipartisan fashion. there is not a lot of bipartisan effort going on in washington, d.c. there are lots of things that can be done. and the stimulus. there is $275 billion debt is sitting there. why should federal employees of a better deal than the ones that are flooding the bill? ooting the bill. having not read in a budget -- a

federal budget, i understand you can make deductions. i said i would not raise taxes. that is why i received the first annual defender of liberty award for being the architect of the most fiscally conservative budget ever written in our state. you can be fiscally conservative and still have a social conscience. >> center murray? >> what i did not hear in all of that was the answer to your question about the nuclear reservation. i have to tell you that my grandfather came here in 1915 and my father was in the tri-

cities when the reservation was built. i know that we have a moral and a legal obligation in this country to clean up the nuclear waste that is seeping into the ground water towards the columbia river today. i have fought republican presidents and democratic presidents and numerous secretaries of energy to make sure that we meet that obligation. today we do have tremendous challenges with our budget. the president has told us that he is going to reduce our budget over all by 5% next year. we have to hold it to that. i have told them that the nuclear reservation is part of our defense. he has told us we are not going to be cutting defense. i want to make sure that the nuclear reservation does not get cut. we cannot afford to have that waste seeping towards the river. i heard in my opponent's answered that he was going to repeal the stimulus money.

maybe he does not know this, but there are 3000 people employed by the stimulus money cleaning up that waste at the nuclear reservation right now. he will give them a pink slip and continue to let that waste the towards the river. >> 30 sector rebuttal. >> what senator murray is not telling you is that when president obama was a candidate he said that he would shut down yucca mountain in nevada. we are turning radio active sludge into a glass blocks. -- radioactive sludge into glass blocks. our nuclear waste is going to be all dressed up with nowhere to go. quite frankly we have to get nuclear waste out of washington state. senator harry reid has made that a platform in his campaign. it seems like senator murray is

more worried about senator reid's reelection. >> i did not hear an answer to the question. it is about the priority of making sure that we clean up hampford. i take it out with every president. mr. rossi is wrong. i have fought to make sure that yucca melton remains a nuclear mountain remains a nuclear waste site. >> 90 didn't that it seems that social security and other entitlement programs are underfunded, how would you recommend these issues be resolved for those already retired and for those eligible to retire in the next 20 years?

senator murray? >> social security and medicare are two of the most important programs we have four seniors and for many of the disabled in this country. we know from the meltdown on the markets and what happened to many people and making sure that social security is never privatized is absolutely critical. i have fought hard against the previous administration who did try to privatize it. medicare is an extremely important program. it is in the health care reform that mr. rossi was to repeal. we want to extend the life of medicare. we want to cut fraud and abuse. we need to make sure that our senior citizens are covered. it is part of the health-care bill that he was to repeal. we need to make sure that those programs are there for the future. we need to do it within the budget and the challenges we have today. the president has a commission that will make recommendations by the end of this year.

everything is on the table and we have to be responsible and look at every area of our budget. but i know that my own parents use medicare. my father had multiple sclerosis and my mother had heart problems. i know how important it was for medicare to be with them when they turn 65. we have to make some very tough decisions in the future. you can call on me that the value of taking care of our parents is important. >> we have to make sure that we come through with what we promised to seniors. unfortunately center murray and others in d.c. had used social security as a piggy bank. there is no trust fund. it is all iou's. the biggest threat is going to be the debt. right now we are borrowing money

rather cheaply. when interest rates go up, and i think they will go up, 80 cents of every dollar you sent to d.c. will be gone. when senator murray was first elected, she voted to raise taxes on social security. i do not think that is the right way to go either. what we have in here is a center that says one thing in washington and does another thing in washington, d.c. we have to be very careful. senator murray booted to cut medicare by $500 billion in that health care bill. half of the people who have medicare advantage are going to lose medicare advantage because of senator murray's vote on that legislation. we have some serious issues to deal with. we have to make sure we come through with what we promised our seniors. >> senator murray, rebuttal?

>> i did not hear an answer, again. if mr. rossi gets his way and we extend the bush tax cuts to the wealthiest americans there is no way we can sustain the programs that are so important in front of us. i want to make sure that we do cut our budget. i am a tough mother when it comes to our budget. we have to preserve the programs that provide stability for families in our communities. i'll make sure medicare and social security are there for you. >> orbital? >> once again, senator murray voted to raise taxes on social security. with the health care vote, senator murray isolate voted to reduce spending on medicare by $500 billion. i do not think her spending is

going to help us preserve social security for the future. things that we promised seniors that we should come through with. >> our next question is for mr. rossi. >> i am staying on the subject of health care. my question is in two parts. the first part goes to mr. rossi. republicans say they want to repeal health care reform. >> you're going to get a $695 fine if you do not by the health care. you are talking about a $500 billion cut in medicare. it will partially paid for a new entitlement when medicare is already in shovel. you're talking about a $500 billion tax increase. that will cost the boeing company along $150 million. you're talking about tens of

thousands of jobs that will be lost or not created because of senator murray's vote on this legislation. it is a problem, this health care bill. you're losing your freedoms. you're losing your choice. there are solutions. there are things you can do. there are a number of things you can do. you can help individuals buy health insurance coverage across state lines. you could have savings accounts. it is jordan money. -- it is your money. not a single one of these ideas cost the taxpayer a dime. it will not add $2 trillion to the deficit. there are answers here. unfortunately senator murray is marching down the wrong path. this could potentially bankrupt america. it could also impair medicare as

well. >> senator murray, how much of the legislation did you actually read before voting on the plan? >> not only did i read it, but i helped write it. the only group of people that health care in this country was working for was our health insurance companies. every family, every business, every community was struggling with double-digit increases. i believe that you should be able to pick a health-care plan that works for you and your family and you should be able to choose your doctor. i want to make sure that we do control costs and increase access. i want to put the decisions of your health care back into your hands and not into insurance company's pants. i talked to a woman from spokane to came to me with a stack of papers and told me that

was the correspondence she went back imports with her insurance company to the last year. her husband was diagnosed with cancer and every single procedure and every single bill that she got the insurance company refused to pay. she had to fight back. i believe that our health care bill will move the system to where you have control once again and your insurance company cannot deny you coverage or discriminate against you for the coverage you deserve. i believe it is important that we move forward to deal with the costs. businesses were going under. they could not compete. we were not competitive globally. this plan, although not perfect, is a step in the right direction. we will finally give you control over your health care instead of an insurance company. >> rebuttal? >> we have some serious problems

with this because we were told that this would reduce costs and increase access. most businesses in talking to are saying there is an 80% increase because of this piece of legislation. we were also told we could keep our health care. clearly that is not the case. senator murray just voted against and -- a piece of legislation. which washington does she represent? >> what i just heard where the talking points from the insurance companies. my opponent wants to repeal health-care reform. tell that to the woman who just told me that for the first time she can sleep tonight because her daughter with cystic fibrosis will not be denied coverage for her health care. tell that to the senior citizen who is now, because of health care reform, will not fall into

that do not hold -- will not fall into that donut hole. >> our next question is from adam. he sent us an e-mail question. as a senator, what would you do to stop any of dam removal of the columbia and snake rivers? our jobs rely on the shipping lanes and hydroelectric power they provide. >> this is a very important question and one in faced many times. our river system is extremely important to the economy of this region and to our entire state. we need to make sure that our farmers can ship their wheat to market overseas. we need to make sure that the barges can go up and down that river. we need to make sure that the fish get passage to the columbia river out to the ocean. we need to make sure that those people who rely on the

hydropower system had that securely in place. i have been very consistent with saying that we will not remove the dams in eastern washington. we have to make sure that this region worst for everyone. that means we have to work hard for passage. we need to make sure our farmers have irrigation. we need to make sure that everybody comes together to solve the problems for the future. i know the importance of the columbia river. >> mr. rossi? >> i actually flew over when they had the state the dams rally. i was on the bridge that very cold night. we had a number of elected officials from the city of seattle who thought it would be a good idea to breach the dams. it clearly would have been the worst thing you could have done for eastern washington and the state of washington. hydroelectric power is a blessing.

it is a blessing for the state. it is a low-cost. it is renewable energy. as far as i know, it is good to keep on writing. if they keep on writing we will have more power. that is the good news. we have to make sure that we protect these dams. they are vital to our economy. they are vital to the entire state of washington. i have already been there in this battle. i was a western washington state senator at the time when i flew over that bridge. i am here with you today too. >> center murray, 30 seconds for rebuttal? >> there is more to this issue than talking about? removal. there is the issue of making sure we had the resources in place to fix the locks and dams to make sure that they are maintained. mr. rossi was to give a big tax

increase and we will not have the resources if he gets his way. >> i have already covered the dam issue. i may as well cover the tax increase. she is talking about giving us the biggest tax increase in american history because she voted to adjourn big four -- the added to adjourn. we are talking about small business owners it will take money and invested in their business. that is how we will get out of this problem we have with unemployment. we have to help small businesses be successful. unfortunately senator murray does not understand that. >> our next question is for mr. rossi. >> a federal judge ordered a nurse back to her reserve unit

after being dismissed for don't ask don't tell. if this standard is going to be applied across the military, the military will have to show that an individual soldiers discharge is better for the unit. should congress repeal "don't ask don't tell" or let it stand? >> till now it appears to have been working, but there will be a report that comes out. i want to see what the report says. i want to see what the commanders in the military men and women have to say about this. what is it going to mean to the military? how is it going to work? i will listen. i will listen to what this report has to say. i was thoroughly investigate this before making a decision. the way i look at this thing,

like three hours of public service. is it the responsible thing to do? that is the plans i will look through when i make that decision as a u.s. senator. >> i am not only going to tell you that i am a sponsor of the repeal of "don't ask don't tell." there are so many veterans who came home from iraq and afghanistan who served their country honorably. they note that everyone who wants to get back -- give back to this country by serving in the military ought to be able to do it. the major is a hero. i hope that she and many other gay and lesbians can serve our military just like everyone else. i talked to a young woman here in spokane it is a senior in high school. she said it was her dream when

she graduates to serve our country militarily. she told me that she will not be able to serve because she is gay. i think that is wrong. she should be able to pursue her dream. i think we should repeal "don't ask don't tell." >> would you like a rebuttal? >> we will see what the report has to say. we have to make sure that it actually works and makes sense. i will look at the report and make a decision based upon that and also for further investigation talking to men and women in the military. they are the ones that will be affected. all this has to be done in a rational way. >> i do not know how you look someone in the eye after they have served 20 years for our country and done remarkable, amazing work that all of a sudden they cannot serve. >> we are going to hear another

taped question. this was a local college student. >> my name is ryan. i am a senior at eastern washington university. my question has to do with college tuition. i am currently going to school full time and working part time. i am in the process of getting a second job and took out another student loan. unfortunately my parents probably -- my parents combined and come makes it hard to get assistance from the government. what would each candidate do to help bring relief to middle- class families who are not poor enough to receive assistance from the government but are not rich enough to pay for my college? >> i know exactly how you feel. i grew up in a family with seven kids. my father was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. we did not know if we would be able to go on to college. my family struggled, but they made the decision that they

would work very hard to make sure all of us were able to go to college. all seven of us were able to go to college through pell grants and student loans. that is exactly why i just voted to make sure that the banks got out of the business of providing student loans to prop it the bank's and but that money back into student loans for people like you said you could go to college. we are increasing the number of students who get federal assistance because of that decision. it is imperative that we work in every way we can to help our young people get to college. our state legislatures are struggling because of budget cuts. tuitions are rising. it is the federal government's responsibility to make sure that students have the ability to go to college. it is important for our country and our future and our competitiveness. i will continue to do everything i can to make sure you and anyone like you can go to

college. >> mr. rossi? >> i am the youngest of seven kids raised on a schoolteacher's salary. we did not have any money. i worked construction and as a janitor. i also received need grants and other help. that is why when i was writing the budget in olympia as the chairman of the ways and means committee when we had the biggest deficit in the state's history that the nea grant was available. there were try to funnel it into a few different areas. i said no. a way to make sure it was available for kids like me. for that i received an award from independent colleges for doing exactly what i said i would do about protecting that funding. as a father of four, or all this is a sophomore in college.

i know exactly how expensive it is. i know what it is like to fill out the forms. it is a problem. we need to make sure that there are loans available. we need to make sure that for children they cannot afford it that need grants are available. education is going to be the key to their future. it certainly helped me. i am well aware of that. >> senator murray, 37 is to rebut. >> what i did not here is whether he agrees with me that we should not be giving the banks the responsibility for these loans so that they can profit. i consistently outvoted that that money goes directly to students so more students are served and our banks do not make a profit. >> the part of the takeover of government has been part of the student loans. not yet to get to the government. having many banks and other options to go to makes more

sense. all like to see every student have options in front of them. i had options. students should have options. parents need to have options. unfortunately the options are getting a limited because of government control. >> our next question is from the tri-state herald. >> what do you support, providing amnesty to be adopted -- to the undocumented workers in the united states. had you addressed the resulting shortage of seasonal agricultural labor if those workers are deported? >> this is a bigger issue. it is a complete and total failure on the federal government's part. i do not support amnesty, number one. we have to take control of our borders. we have people who have come across an been deported that have committed violent crimes in our state. we have to make sure that we

have a tall fence with a high gate. that means a physical barrier some people cannot just come across. we have to know is coming. what does a high gate? it has been a complete federal -- a complete failure on the federal government as well. my grandparents came from italy. they came to ellis island. they came to america because they believed it could be a better place for themselves, their children, and their grandchildren. we got to know who they are. we have to know if they have a criminal background. we also have to have a system that allows people to come to work temporarily, whether it is agriculture of the high-tech industry. we have to know who they are so they can come here legally. we have a serious challenge ahead of us. unfortunately the federal government has failed us. we have to do something about this. it needs to be done because i

agricultural committee needs help. our high-tech community needs help. there are lots of people who want to come here to chase the american dream. >> senator murray? >> i think we need comprehensive immigration reform. this is something that affects our economy. it affects our way of life and our competitiveness. i talked to some farmers just recently who told me that because we do not have adequate laws in this country, they cannot get their crops picked right now. their businesses are in jeopardy. we do need to protect our borders. we need to make sure that those people who come here come here legally. that includes our northern border. i have fought to make sure that our northern border is protected just like our southern border. we also need to make sure that

young people who come here at a early age a good to our school and get good grades have a place to go when they graduate. i talked to a young woman who lives in the shadows because she came here when she was three and now she has no place in our country. we need a clear, concise pathway to citizenship that does include a find, that does include learning english, that doesn't include clear direction. i voted for comprehensive reform. all of that answer is what my opponent would include in a package that has failed to pass support. >> you just heard what senator murray does. she approves of amnesty. what needs to happen is the first thing we have to do is secure that border. most all of the arguments we are talking about our academic if we do not secure the border. we have to know who is coming.

we ought to know the background. we have to have a system in place -- maybe a virtual ellis island -- so we can bring people here temporarily if they want to work temporarily, or if they really want to come to america to chase the american dream. >> i think he has forgotten. i do not know what this is election year politics or not. we need a comprehensive immigration reform system that includes agriculture jobs and make sure that high-tech companies can bring workers here. we need a clear path to citizenship and make sure that those employers have a secure work force. that is the kind of program i voted for. i will work with anybody to try and come to a reasonable compromise on this because it is important. >> i think our audience will like this next question.

it was inspired by one of our viewers. clearly frustrated with all the mud slinging that has been going on with this race. but that you are running advertisements that depict your opponent as someone who's made poor decisions in the past. is there anything your opponent has done in the state of washington that you approve of? [laughter] senator murray? >> that is a great question. i really do admire mr. rossi for getting into this race. i know how difficult it is. it is hard on your family. he asked his family if it was ok to make the sacrifice. i appreciate that. i respect that. i will tell your viewer who asked about negative advertisements that one of the things i am deeply concerned about is the supreme court ruling on a decision by one vote now allows advertisers to come

into our state. you do not know who pays for them. i voted to have them tell you -- disclose it is paying for that. mr. rossi opposes that. >> i believe that senator murray and her staff have done good work with veterans. i really do. as a senator i am going to have a great staff and i will do great work with veterans as well. you talk about the advertisements as if there is some sort of equivalency here. mine had the benefit of being the truth. that is white the tribune and the seattle times called senator murray's as faults and dishonest and grossly malicious. those are not just casual words. they take a half a sentence of though it into a whole commercial. that is the problem with what is

going on right now in politics. you are seeing things that are taken out of context and put on tv. you're seeing any, that is desperate to have six more years. she does not want to talk about stimulus for the bill allows the she voted for. she wants to change the subject. that is really what is going on here. you see it in at after an ad after ad. the newspapers are calling them false, malicious, dishonest, does not pass the smell test -- that is what the newspapers are saying. not made, the newspaper -- not me, the newspapers. senator murray had good intentions which he started all 18 years ago. i really believe that. >> senator murray, you can read but if you choose. >> i appreciate the endorsements of those newspapers that mr.

rossi just cited. i am proud of what i have done for the western state veterans and making sure that our committees have a strong advocate who will fight for them to make sure they have what they need in a tough economy. that is what i do. again, i think it is very important that we do discuss this -- >> i do not understand why he does not want those assets fund managers to say that they are paying for his advertisements. >> if we had full disclosure would talk about the fact that after the bailouts of the big banks that senator murray has $500,000 in contributions from the big banks. she has $1 million worth of contributions from health care.

the bottom line is you have a senator that says one thing in washington and does another thing in washington, d.c. which washington do you represent? >> we have another question from the viewer in a videotaped his question for our candidates. mr. rossi will go first. >> with politics becoming more partisan, what are your plans to bridge that gap? are you willing to risk your party membership to do what is best for the american people and not for your career? >> that is the hallmark of what i did as a state senator. when i was chairman of the senate ways and means committee we had the biggest deficit in history. democrats controlled the house. we had a democrat for a governor. i put together a bipartisan

budget that balanced the biggest deficit in history without raising taxes. we had to change 51 different laws to make the budget work. not a single one of those 51 bills or the budget passed on a party-line partisan vote. why? the problem was too big for one party to solve. that is the way i look at washington, d.c. the problem is too big for one party to solve. unfortunately senator murray has been working with a majority. she has been working with a majority that has been a ramming through legislation after legislation such as the health care bill. she has been at the epicenter of partisanship in d.c. this has to end. the problems that we have or too big for one problem -- for one party to solve. you have to open yourself up to

do that. i drove around the state with moderate democrats from my home town and said i needed their help. many of them came for to help me. it worked out for the state because without that budget, we ended up with the big surplus the state has ever seen. >> senator murray? >> i want to start with the premise that my state, my community, and the people i represent, first. i will take on anyone to make sure that we take care of our state. when president bush tried to close three veterans hospitals i went after have to and nail with veterans by my side. we get those hospitals open. when president obama made a proposal to cut veteran's healthcare, i went after them. when it came to the nuclear reservation, i have taken a republican and democratic presidents and will continue to do so because my state comes first.

i will work with anyone who will sit down with us to solve tough problems. it is exactly what i did when a republican and i worked together to pass important security asked to make sure the containers coming in and out of our ports after september 11 did not have anything that could hurt us, our jobs, our families, for our communities. it is why i worked with john mccain when three young people lost their lives 10 years ago. when it comes to immigration policy that we are talking about or health care for the challenge of creating jobs, i will work with our communities and our community leaders and anyone to try to solve the problems that come before this nation. >> we did not hear anything about how the health care bill was a bipartisan effort because clearly it was not. it was a very partisan piece of

legislation. that senator murray being no. 4 in leadership in washington, d.c., clearly did not reach across the aisle to bring republicans along. we have a serious problem here with a very partisan u.s. senator. one issue after another. finance reform is another one. you get to all the issues and it has been highly partisan. i will work with anyone he was to work in good faith to turn this country around. >> these are issues that are bipartisan. i have a strong history of working with senator enzi so are young people have the skills to get jobs in their own

community. i have worked with centers across the aisle many times. partisan rhetoric is troubling. i hope will come to an agreement on tax cuts because it is important that our middle-class families to have tax cuts. i will work to make that happen. >> we are at the point for our last question of the debate. this is just 30 seconds. and he will get a chance for a bottle. >> there has been talk about replacing the air force's tanker. yet both supported building building that tanker. yet also said that illegal subsidies for airbus -- if they can build a better plane for less money here in the united states, why it should the pentagon not give them the bid? >> that is exactly what i have

been fighting for for a very long time. we have a level playing field. those illegal subsidies or taken into account said that they cannot have a lower price, then i believe that we will when that contract and that boeing will be building those airplanes that our military is going to fly. it is also important to remember that this is a security issue for our country. i believe that those tankers should be built by americans and paid for by american tax dollars. >> airbus has an outrageous level of subsidies. they have caused a 60,000 jobs so far. we need to take that into account. i believe that the boeing employees will be able to outwork and put a better product out there. i have a family member that has worked for the boeing company since world war ii. the to something near and dear

to my heart. senator murray liked to be referred to as the senator from boeing. i say, where are you from? chicago or south carolina? the new plant has moved to south carolina. >> senator murray, 30 seconds? >> i take a backseat to no one went fighting for the people in our community and their jobs. boeing is extremely important. we have a lot of the aerospace industry here. i have a bipartisan effort going on to make sure that we do for our aerospace industry what we did not do for our automotive industry. we want to make sure that defense contracts are there. we want to make sure that we have the right kind of trade policy so that we have a strong aerospace sector in the future. i take a backseat to no one on that. >> we need to make sure that

boeing is healthy, but we need to make sure that all businesses in the state of washington are healthy. we need to go in a different direction than what we are going right now. the boeing co. does not like the tax increase they got with the health care bill. they do not like secret balloting and union organizations. senator murray is a sponsor of this point there are a lot of things that senator murray is doing right now there's detrimental to the boeing company. >> it is time for our closing statements. each candidate will have one minute. mr. rossi will start. >> process for putting this on today. -- thank you for putting this on today. we as a serious issues ahead of us. we have to make a decision here. which direction you want to go? you have an 18-year incumbent has voted for bailing out banks.

also, the stimulus which added $1 trillion to the deficit. we have an 18-year incumbent that is killing jobs in the state of washington. you can go in a different direction if you want. you can do with senator murray or come with me. i am looking at a very different direction. i one of entrepreneurs to be successful. -- i want of entrepreneurs to be successful. we can do this. as americans, we do not sit well we see something wrong. we want to fix it. that is what to do as our next united states senator. >> there is a clear choice in this election. i want to thank mr. rossi for participating tonight. what he did not tell you tonight is that he wants to repeal wall street reform. i believe we have to keep those

protections in place so that your mortgage and finances are never in the hands of a wall street banker again. he has said that he will not fight for you for targeted investments. i will fight for you every time. he did not tell you that he was to go back to the bush economic policies that got us into this mess, going to two wars without pay for it, and leaving us with tough decisions that hurt all of us. i want to make sure that we pay for what we responsibly do as leaders. that is the decision we need to make. when i grew up and my dad got sick and my family had to be frugal, we make tough choices but invested in the future. that is the cow the decision i will make as or senator. >> take you so much for our candidates, for you, for the panel.