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General election candidates speak at forum
On Thursday, voters had the opportunity to hear from national, state and local candidates for the Nov. 8 General Election. The Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce hosted a candidate forum at the Fort Scott Middle School.
Local candidates who are running unopposed during this election were not asked to respond to questions, but were allowed to introduce themselves and briefly speak. Those were Bourbon County Attorney Justin Meeks, Bourbon County Register of Deeds Lora Holdridge, Bourbon County Clerk Kendell Mason, and Bourbon County Treasurer Rhonda Dunn.
Other candidates were given two minutes to introduce themselves, then a minute for each of the three questions submitted for the forum. Each candidate was then given two minutes for their closing statement.
Larry Gazaway was the moderator and Chamber Board member Mark McCoy served as the timer.
U.S. Senate race
Jerry Moran (R) and Patrick Wiesner (D)
Moran was represented by Joshua Berg, who said one of the most important jobs of a U.S. Senator is to protect the people. Berg said Moran has done that by strengthening the military and immigration control in order to know who and how many are entering the country.
"And finally, I know Jerry feels very strongly about this, how can we expect to have a strong military and have it protect our country when we can't take care of the veterans who have served our country," Berg said. "He knows the incredible responsibility he has to hold the VA accountable and know we have healthcare coverage our veterans deserve."
Wiesner is a lifelong Kansas resident, having grown up in Ellis and currently working in Overland Park. He is an attorney and Army Reserve Retired veteran and CPA, whose specialties have been federal tax law and government fiscal law and defense appropriations.
"I am the get-us-out-of-debt candidate," Wiesner said. "There are no get-us-out-of-debt Republicans in this race. Every time I hear a Republican congressmen said 'balanced budget,' I push back."
He said he would work on public policy, such as immigration, tax reform and an energy plan.
"But my focus is going to be on Baby Boomers like myself paying off our national debt and doing it within 25 to 30 years," he said.
When asked if he supports the Second Constitutional Amendment, the right to bear arms, Wiesner said he does.
He spoke about U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia's opinion on the Second Amendment. Wiesner said he agrees with Scalia's opinion, which states individuals have the right to have firearms to protect themselves, but government entities, such as cities and schools, have the right to restrict firearms.
Wiesner also was asked if he supports a waiver to place illegal immigrants on the Affordable Healthcare Act. Wiesner said he would not support such a waiver if the person is in the country illegally or on expanded Medicaid.
"If they want to participate in all the privileges and immunities we have in this country, then they need to come legally, apply for citizenship or legal status here, and then take advantage of whatever social safety network we have," Wiesner said, adding he would make exceptions for emergencies involving children.
He was asked how he would work with the current administration to ease the burden of a large number of immigrants. He said a wall "is not going to work, amnesty is not necessary nor is it proper way to solve this problem."
He said he would like to establish a "path to citizenship" by establishing special immigration faculties in Northern New Mexico and during the next five years have them apply "legally" for citizenship. He said there would be a $4,000 fee for each individual going through the citizenship procedure.
In closing, he said the Baby Boomers were given this country debt free and it is their "moral obligation to take care of this problem before leaving this planet." Doing so will require discipline and budget restraint.
U.S. House of Representatives
Candidates Britani Potter (D) and Incumbent Lynn Jenkins (R)
Potter is from Ottawa and said she currently is working to obtain her master's degree and plans to become a family financial planner or financial consultant with low and moderate-income families to become educated on how the system works.
She said her goals are "to put people before politics," and "to get special interest money out of politics.
Jenkins, a native of Holt, said she is "honored to have served the people of Kansas." She said the past eight years have been "difficult" and she said the ability for people to reach "the American Dream" are "few and far between."
"Many in Washington don't share our Kansas values," she said. "I promise to keep fighting for each and every one of you to prevent some misguided ideas from overtaking this country and instead build a opportunity economy for everyone."
On the question of whether she supports the closing of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, and move those detainees to the U.S., Jenkins said she opposes closing the camp and bringing those detainees to the U.S. She said the first bill she wrote and introduced as a U.S. Senator was to prevent those detainees to be brought to the U.S. and during the past eight years, she has continued signing bills to prevent the closure.
Potter said she also does not support closing Guantanamo Bay, not because she doesn't believe the nation's penal system couldn't handle the influx, "I don't believe it should be here and it's as simple as that."
She said she believes there are ways to address the expenses of keeping the Guantanamo Bay facility open.