|
| | ||
| ||||
| ||||
| ||||
| HOME | ABOUT US | CONTACT US | SUBSCRIBE | NEWSSTAND LOCATIONS | ||||
| ||||
|
|
| | |
Hartsuch is GOP's choice in 1st District U.S. House race Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Republican Candidate for Iowa's First Congressional District
Agri News staff writer
State Sen. David Hartsuch works as an emergency medicine physician in Bettendorf. He received an undergraduate accounting degree from Northern Illinois University, a master's degree in computer science from the University of Minnesota and is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Medical School. He completed his residency at Detroit Receiving Hospital in Detroit, Mich.
In November 2006 he was elected to the Iowa Senate. Hartsuch and his wife, Christine, have three children.
Q: What distinguishes you from your opponent?
A: Bruce Braley and I reflect the values of our respective parties. We differ on taxes. He's voted in essence to increase taxes because in 2012 many tax credits and cuts will revert to what they were in 1993. He voted against funding for the border fence. His campaign contributions have come almost exclusively from trial attorneys and most of the legislation he supports tends to favor trial attorneys. In the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and legislation to allow individuals to sue the government of Iraq for torture under Saddam, both support the interests of trial attorneys. Most of my campaign contributions come from small contributors.
Working at the state legislative level for two years has also given me a wealth of experience.
Q: What are your plans for comprehensive immigration reform?
A: You have to allow immigration, but we should not just be opening up our doors and letting everyone in to the point where we cease to follow the values on which our country was based. Bruce Braley and his party have been weak at defending the liberties of this nation. Our leadership lacks the wherewithal to enforce the existing law. Someone caught here illegally should be sent back. There should be penalties for employers who knowingly employ illegal workers.
Q: How can we continue to promote renewable energy development and also make sure that rural Iowans get to share in this boom?
A: Bruce Braley supported a bill that required that alternative fuels purchased by the government have carbon emissions per unit weight that are not in excess of petroleum-based products. I don't believe any congressman from Iowa should be putting more rigid standards on purchases of alternative fuels. Two companies have put forward alternatives for aviation fuel. One makes jet fuel out of meat fats which has great potential for Iowa where we have large pork production. We need to extend the energy conservation tax credit to agriculture and expand the low income residential energy program.
I propose we cap the federal government's energy usage at current levels. Before we go cap and trade, we have to be sure federal government can do it. If federal government can't do it, how can we expect it of broader industry?
I support domestic oil drilling, expanded nuclear power and development of alternative sources such as wind, solar and ethanol.
Q: What would you like to see changed or improved as the USDA implements the farm bill?
A: I don't think I'd see huge changes.
Q: What can the federal government do to encourage more conservation on working lands?
A: Individual land ownership is good for conservation. Farmers in Iowa understand the importance of conservation and have done a very good job in that respect.
Q: What can we do to assist beginning farmers?
A: We've got to make sure we're not taking farms away because of estate taxes. A family being able to pass its farm from one generation to the next is very important. We don't want to let estate tax reform go back to the old tax rules we had before 1993 when people had to move from their farms because they couldn't pay estate taxes.
We have to look at whether we have a farming model that allows for small and mid-size farms to operate. We have to make sure anti trust laws are being followed and that we're not allowing large corporations to create an environment of monopoly and price control.
Q: What is your position on international trade agreements? Do you support giving the president fast track trade authority?
A: I don't like fast track. The proper function of the Congress is to allow the Senate to review trade agreements. I support the concept of free trade, but that does not mean you have to surrender your national sovereign to make that a reality.
Q: How do we improve our rural health care delivery system?
A: We need Medicare reimbursement parity. The federal government discriminates against rural communities by paying for the same service in a rural community at a significantly lower level than in an urban area. We need leadership in Washington that will fight for Medicare parity.
We have to maintain patient choice. The free market is the best way do it. We need to encourage the use of medical savings accounts and allow employers to pool insurance. No discussion of affordable health care would be complete without malpractice reform. Trial attorneys have been fighting limits on malpractice tooth and nail and ultimately that leads to increased health care costs.
|
| | |
| |
Copyright 2008 Agri News
All Rights Reserved
