Vivian Davis Figures in 2008 Alabama Senate Debate

On Principles & Values: Challenges Jeff Sessions to debate; Sessions declines

Figures actually dropped by Sessions’ Mobile office Monday to deliver the debate challenge, but no one was at work on the Columbus Day holiday. So, Figures said she faxed & e-mailed the debate challenge to Sessions Tuesday. As of late Tuesday, Figures said, she had not received a response from the Sessions campaign.

The state director for Sessions, said the campaign had received nothing from Figures Tuesday. “We haven’t received anything to respond to,” he said.

Figures said she hopes Sessions will take her up on her offer. “I think the people of Alabama deserve to hear from both of us, see both of us together answering questions,” Figures said.

On Budget & Economy: GOP turned nation from surplus to deficit, and jobs get lost

Figures said people are “really finding it harder and harder to make ends meet. Look where we are. We went from a nation in the black to a nation in the red. Now we’re up to trillions of dollars in the red,” she said. “My opponent voted with the president 98 percent of the time.”

But Sessions broke with the Bush administration in voting against the financial bailout bill on Oct. 1. “Though well-intentioned, the administration’s plan represents unprecedented governmental intervention in the economy,” Sessions said in a statement. Sessions said he doesn’t believe in “protecting reckless investors” but supports “maintaining a healthy framework for investment.”

Figures said she doesn’t think anybody will be immune from the financial crisis. Without action by Congress, she said more jobs will be lost.

On Energy & Oil: High gas prices make it harder to make ends meet

Sessions, who serves on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said he has pumped gas at stations across the state while campaigning.

“I’ve seen people in Mobile buy $5 worth of gas. That’s all they had,“ he said. ”It just drives home that this surge in gasoline prices is sucking out large amounts of our American wealth that they could otherwise be using on other things important to them.“

Figures said people are ”really finding it harder and harder to make ends meet. You hear that more than anything else--economy and gas prices.“

On War & Peace: Bush sent troops to war on erroneous claims

On the Iraq war, Sessions said he “could not be more proud and pleased with the success of the surge and the progress in the last two years.”

“I think if we can continue this progress in Iraq and it emerges as a strong and decent country that’s independent and stable, it would be a very positive development for the Middle East,“ said Sessions, who has visited U.S. troops in Iraq, Afghanistan and neighboring countries multiple times as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Figures said she was not in a position to visit Iraq or Afghanistan. ”I was against the war from the beginning,“ she said. She said no weapons of mass destruction were found. ”Iraq was not responsible for 9/11,“ she said.

On War & Peace: Mideast less stable than before we invaded Iraq

Sessions said he hopes the US can withdraw “as soon as we possibly can. That’s my goal.” He said announcing a withdrawal timetable would be a “mistake--clearly not sound policy. It just tells our enemy when they should be prepared to attack.”