Rick Berg in 2012 North Dakota Senate Debates

On Budget & Economy: We need a budget that comes to closure, and reins in deficit

Berg said a new, comprehensive federal budget was the best strategy for reining in the growth of the nation's budget deficits, and that the Democratic-controlled Senate has not approved one in more than three years. "If we're going to solve a family problem, or a small-business problem, the first step is, you need a budget," Berg said. "We need a budget that comes to closure, so people can see we're going to balance it."

Heitkamp praised a budget plan she said was put forward by Sen. Tom Coburn, a conservative Republican from Oklahoma. She also backs a balanced budget amendment to the US Constitution, she said. "I think the path forward is, quit playing the blame game. I think it's atrocious we don't have a budget, but I think that the reason why we don't have a budget is because both political parties refuse to solve the problem."

On Environment: We will getwt the Farm Bill by year's end

"When we talk about gridlock, the gridlock we got was within the Republican Party," Heitkamp said. "You cannot look at any kind of activity that you had on the farm bill and claim any amount of success."

Berg said he has pushed repeatedly for a pre-election vote, including supporting a "discharge petition" that would compel a floor vote on the legislation. House Republican leaders have promised to have a vote on the farm bill by year's end, Berg added.

The farm bill includes money for a host of agricultural programs ranging from crop insurance to soil conservation, but the largest chunk of money, roughly 80%, is for food stamps

On Health Care: Give Americans an option to choose a better Medicare policy

Berg championed the proposal as giving Americans an option to choose a better policy, but he focused most of his comments on the effects of the Affordable Care Act. He challenged Heitkamp's on how long it would take Medicare to go bankrupt under Obamacare and said the law would raid Medicare of $716 billion and "people are going to quit taking Medicare patients."

"It cuts money from hospitals and physicians in North Dakota. It cuts hospice. These are real cuts," Berg said.

On Health Care: Repeal ObamaCare; it creates a cloud of uncertainty

Heitkamp, whose husband is a family doctor, said she supports keeping the act's provision for people with preexisting conditions and retaining the "frontier states" amendment, which outgoing U.S. Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., has said would address inequities in Medicare funding to states and boost payments to North Dakota hospitals and doctors more than $650 million over 10 years. Heitkamp said there is good and bad in the act, and "there is absolutely no reason not to amend the law as it currently exists."

On Health Care: Replace ObamaCare piecemeal; it hurts middle America

During last November's special session the House voted 64-30 against the exchange. Heitkamp went on to say that North Dakota should have a health care exchange, federal law or not.

Berg said the law needs to be repealed and replaced piecemeal. He said the law's mandate to purchase insurance will hurt businesses and families. "They hit middle America hard," Berg said. He pointed to the announcement earlier in the week that Olive Garden & Red Lobster will be moving away from hiring full-time employees to keep costs down under the law. The law states that businesses with 50 or more employees can be subject to fines if full-time workers aren't covered.

On Environment: Bring checks and balances to the EPA

Her opponent Rick Berg claims the problem lies in the senate and says he would work with both chambers of congress if elected to bring checks and balances to the EPA.

On Health Care: ObamaCare is an expensive government takeover

Heitkamp said changes are needed with the law when it comes to the mandate and the tax on health insurance. But that it should not be repealed. She says doing so would get rid of the frontier states amendment, which she says would be impossible to get back.

On Social Security: 2005: Supported Bush's privatization plan as state rep

When Berg said that this attack is "what's wrong with Washington," he was met with a loud chorus of boos from the audience:

HEITKAMP: When you say "I'm going to fix it," you're going to privatize it. That was George W. Bush's plan. That's the plan you supported, Bush's privatization plan. You can't run away from that record.

BERG: This is what's wrong with Washington. People blame, blame, blame and don't come up with solutions. [Loud boos from the audience]. What we need are solutions to Social Security. There's no question. But what we need is to get our economy going.

On Principles & Values: Declined to debate GOP opponent at two Tea Party debates

On Principles & Values: To get country back on track, change the Senate

"The Senate's not passing a budget, the Senate hasn't taken up bills passed by the House. To get the country back on track, we've got to change the Senate," Berg said.

On Environment: Crop insurance is the No. 1 priority for our farm program

Berg: "Crop insurance is the No. 1 priority for our farm program. Agriculture is a bright spot in our country right now, one that is creating jobs and new revenue. As a policy-making body, we need to encourage agriculture rather than put up barriers for its growth."

Heitkamp: "When I travel around the state talking to farmers and commodity groups, what I hear is that people understand it's time to make some responsible cuts in the farm bill, but that crop insurance is a key part of the safety net we need to protect and preserve. I will work to protect and preserve the crop insurance program that our farm community depends on."

On Health Care: ObamaCare takes power away from our elected officials

Berg: "I'm extremely supportive of it. Rural health care is key. The challenge in Washington is that they assume every city has a million people in it. Also, I worry about the president's health care bill, which implements an appointed board of officials to make recommendations about reimbursement levels. With that, we would end up going down a trail of power being taken out of the hands of our elected officials."

Heitkamp: "The vast majority of North Dakota's hospitals--36 of the 52 certified hospitals--are Critical Access Hospitals. The facilities are the lynchpin to North Dakota's health care system. The president has proposed cutting funding for Critical Access Hospitals and that's something I think he's wrong about."