Mitchell has pledged if elected to serve just one six-year term, while Risch says he'd like to serve for "a long, long time" in the Senate. Mitchell was asked in the debate why he'd volunteer to start right out as a "lame duck."
"Six years is a long time," he responded. "You can accomplish a lot," he said, particularly if there's no need to focus on fundraising or the next election.
Risch said, "Everything in the U.S. Senate is based on seniority. I'm very fortunate to have gotten there when I did," saying his seniority in the 100-member Senate already is nearing "the low 60s or actually into the 50s now."
A: Members of the Senate and Congress spend too much time grabbing for headlines. We have a tax system that plays favorites and is inefficient. We need to make our tax system fairer and simplify it. We also need to increase transparency and eliminate waste and fraud. Federal subsidies to profitable, well-established corporations are a waste of the taxpayer's money. For instance, oil and gas industries are highly profitable, but have been getting huge subsidies from the U.S. taxpayers for almost a century. A conservative think tank recently estimated that corporate welfare in the federal budget costs taxpayers almost $100 billion a year. That's $870 for each one of America's 115 million families. The Simpson-Bowles Commission provided a good starting point for serious work on tax reform and fiscal responsibility
A:My first priority is jobs and the economy. I would be an advocate for Idaho's economy and living wage jobs; there is a lot that a Senator working for Idaho can do. I would support and fight for funding for INL. I would be a staunch defender of Mountain Home Air Force Base and other federal facilities.
A: I strongly support Social Security, Medicare and Veteran's benefits and would fight efforts to cut or privatize those important programs.
The Bring Jobs Home Act would have offered an incentive for bringing jobs back to America and eliminated the tax break received by American companies for sending jobs overseas. "I can imagine that Washington lobbyists and special interests are happy with Risch's vote," Mitchell said, "but Idahoans should be angry. Idaho jobs will continue to go overseas, and Idaho taxpayers will continue to foot the bill. That's just plain wrong. Idaho lost more than 18,000 jobs to China alone during one ten year period."
Mitchell pointed out that on his website, Risch claims to support job growth. "Maybe he means job growth in Asia," Mitchell said, "because that's what his vote yesterday does. It hurts job growth at home and promotes outsourcing of American jobs to China and elsewhere."
A: We have a tax system that plays favorites and is inefficient. We need to make our tax system fairer and simplify it. We also need to increase transparency and eliminate waste and fraud. Federal subsidies to profitable, well-established corporations are a waste of the taxpayer's money. For instance, oil and gas industries are highly profitable, but have been getting huge subsidies from the U.S. taxpayers for almost a century. A conservative think tank recently estimated that corporate welfare in the federal budget costs taxpayers almost $100 billion a year. That's $870 for each one of America's 115 million families. The Simpson-Bo
A: Certainly, there are problems with the ACA, and they need to be addressed. We should keep what works and fix what doesn't work. In the U.S. Senate, I will work with colleagues from both parties to repeal, or amend, those parts of the ACA that do not make sense and to retain those provisions that are working well. Most Idahoans I've talked to tell me they are relieved that coverage can no longer be denied because of pre-existing conditions and that they appreciate the fact that coverage can no longer be limited by annual or lifetime caps on benefits. Parents are glad to know that their young adult children can remain on the parents' health care policies until they turn 26. But the ACA still needs work; consideration should be given to removing individual mandates and raising the cap on employer mandates. And, of even more importance, the ACA has not put the breaks on escalating health care costs in this country.
"Jim Risch wants to run as the anti-everything candidate because he has a dismal record of working for Idaho," Mitchell said. "It's no wonder he says it doesn't matter if he's on the job or not, because when you vote the way he does, it really doesn't."
"It's easy to vote 'no' when you're on the extreme fringe and your vote doesn't count," he said. "What's harder is to roll up your sleeves and get to work for Idaho. That's what I'll do."
"Instead of bragging about how far right he is, Jim Risch should apologize to the people of Idaho for doing little but promoting gridlock and dysfunction," Mitchell said.
Risch stands in contrast to his Republican Senate colleagues, not so much because he's more conservative but because he doesn't seek the spotlight like some, including three possible presidential candidates. Risch cedes the point. "I'm not running for president, and I don't have a book that I'm selling," he said. "So given that, there's a lot more work to be done right in this room than there is to walking over to the rotunda and getting on Fox or what have you."
Those who know him say he's a strict constitutionalist, a believer in small government and states' rights. His voting record is more conservative than those of Minority Leader McConnell (#25) and tea-party stars Cruz (#4), Paul (#19) and Rubio (#17).
Unlike Mr. Risch, I won't cast silly votes to shutdown our government; I won't use budget blackmail to harm Mountain Home Air Force Base or the INL, and I won't concentrate on Syria and Kazakhstan at the expense of Kootenai or Canyon County.
This election is about the record of a life-long politician who has held elected office for nearly 40 years and, in an entire term in the U.S. Senate, has not one major thing to show as an accomplishment for Idaho's families. The only desperation here is Mr. Risch's as he struggles to hold on to the job that pays him $174,000, one he recently said was so easy he could do it permanently.
"I don't think I've ever been within 150 miles of Harry Reid," Mitchell said of Risch's accusation that he was handpicked. He fired back that Risch has spent his term in Washington serving the interests of himself and hardcore conservatives.
Both camps hope to define the other as "extreme." Mitchell's campaign is focused on labeling Risch a "fringe" tea party conservative. The campaign's message aims to isolate Risch from at least two of his peers in the Idaho Congressional delegation. Mitchell said, if elected, he would team up with Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, and champion federal protection of the Boulder-White Clouds tract through legislation. He also said he would have partnered with Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, and co-sponsored VAWA.
Mitchell said, if elected, he would team up with Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, and champion federal protection of the Boulder-White Clouds tract through legislation. He also said he would have partnered with Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, and co-sponsored VAWA.
Mitchell said the 2014 election will be pivotal. "In 2014, we the people must reclaim the US Senate from the control of career politicians. It is not too late for the Senate to reestablish credibility and restore the confidence of the American people."
"They conceived of a Senate in which citizen legislators would step forward to serve their country for a limited time before returning to their private lives." Mitchell said. "For that reason, I will run for one term and one term only."
"I am not a politician. I have had a successful career, and it is now my turn to step up," Mitchell said. "Six years is a long time. During that time, I will work as hard as I possibly can to represent Idaho and its people. I will be beholden to nobody but the people of Idaho."
Mitchell said the gridlock in Washington can be addressed. "I do not believe, as Sen. Risch does, that it's impossible to accomplish anything in the Senate," he said. "If that's the case, why do we pay him? I commit to you that I won't make excuses and I won't take junkets. No excuses, no junkets, period."
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The above quotations are from 2014 Idaho Senate debates.
Click here for other excerpts from 2014 Idaho Senate debates. Click here for other excerpts by Nels Mitchell. Click here for a profile of Nels Mitchell.
Nels Mitchell on other issues: |
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