Jim Pederson in Arizona 2006 Senate Debate

On Abortion: Kyl proposed an abortion amendment with zero exceptions

KYL: Some of his ads are downright false, distortions even according to the Arizona print media. In one ad he suggests I want to make it a crime for women to have an abortion. I don't. I never did. There's never been a bill in the Congress to do that. Why would you take such a sensitive and emotional subject and put that in an ad that absolutely lies about somebody's career?

PEDERSON: You sponsored two constitutional amendments to prohibit abortion. You could have made an exception for rape. You could have made an exception for incest. You could have made an exception for the health of the mother. You didn't. If those constitutional amendments had passed, all of those provisions would have been contained in the constitution. We told the truth in that ad.

On Free Trade: Vote against making it easier to ship jobs overseas

On Immigration: The borders are broken; #1 priority for AZ

PEDERSON: This has to be the #1 priority for AZ. We have 4,000 illegal entries into Arizona every day. The borders are broken. We used to have a guest worker program; people came across the border to work, and then went back home. Now it's a one-way street. People come in and they don't go back. The impact on AZ is estimated to be hundreds of millions per year. The taxpayers of this state should be outraged about the impact on our hospitals, our schools, our law enforcement, our prisons. Let's get practical. Let's get real.

KYL: The question was, I recall, what's your plan. I didn't hear anything about a plan. I only heard that our borders are broken. I still haven't heard Mr. Pederson's plan. It's one thing to talk tough about securing the border, it's quite another to have a realistic plan for how to do it, without giving citizenship to all of the illegal aliens.

On Immigration: Aliens volunteering for "Mandatory Departure" is impractical

PEDERSON: In Kyl's bill, there's a section called "Mandatory Departure." An undocumented person is supposed to report to Customs, voluntarily, and voluntarily agree to be deported. How does that work? Practical? No. Let's get at this problem and solve it.

KYL: We just passed a bill for $13 billion for better border control. Much of that will go to enhancing our Border Patrol, and building fencing and vehicle barriers.

PEDERSON: You say you voted on bills. How many of your bills got passed for the benefit of the people of Arizona? Not one! I'm going to go back there and solve this problem for the people of Arizona in a practical, aggressive way.

KYL: My opponent said "Not one." The bill I just mentioned is now law. My amendment to double the number of border agents is also now law.

On Principles & Values: I'm unhappy with Washington today; Kyl's OK with it

I'm very unhappy with the way things are going in Washington today.
• The mess in Iraq.
• Broken borders we can't seem to fix.
• Katrina.
• Special deals for special interests.
• An unfair tax policy.
• No bid contracts - what's that all about?
• Corruption and immoral behavior at the highest levels.
• But most important, this administration doesn't know how to keep America safe.

On Tax Reform: AZ needs good schools & safety, not just low taxes

KYL: I support the tax relief that enables the economy to grow, so that we can bring in a record amount of revenue to the treasury and thus reduce the federal deficit. Because of the policies I've supported, we're going to get to a balanced budget. Not by raising taxes, as my opponent would do, but by reducing taxes to generate more economic activity, so the government collects more revenue.

PEDERSON: This administration started its term with a $500 billion surplus. With your acquiescence, you turned that into a $500 billion deficit. You're taking a myopic look at the economy, just focusing on one aspect--what do I need for a good business climate in Arizona? I not only need low taxes; but I need good schools, I need stable neighborhoods; I need rising incomes; I need safety for our citizens. That's being neglected.

KYL: One of the best ways to attract businesses to Arizona was by having stable and low tax rates.

On War & Peace: We're going backwards in Iraq; time for end-game

PEDERSON: I didn't say `get out'. We have a regional responsibility there. That region of the word, the entire Mideast, presents the biggest threat to the US of any locale in the world. This administration has a deer-in-the-headlights look when it comes to any end-game regarding our activities in Iraq, and Sen. Kyl has gone along with the administration every step of the way. The insurgents are gaining strength, and we're actually going backwards in Iraq.

KYL: My opponent just said he did not say `get out'. In one of his ads he says `I won't cut-and-run'. But he said on July 5, `Let's just retreat to a safe and secure place.' If he's going to complain about the leadership in this war, imagine him saying that to Marines. That's not leadership calculated to win. He's got a plan to get out, but he doesn't have a plan to win.