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District 1 race heats upBy Geoffrey Cooper Sunday, September 12, 2010 Two candidates for U.S. House took verbal jabs at each other during a televised debate Sunday. U.S. Rep. G.K. Butterfield, D-1st District, and his Republican challenger Ashley Woolard took part in the hour-long debate sponsored by the League of Women Voters of North Carolina and NBC-17. Woolard, a Beaufort County businessman, said the idea of being a “citizen legislator” does not resonate with Butterfield or current members of Congress and that Butterfield has little to show for his six years in office. He said voters should send someone to Congress with small business experience. Lower taxes and limited government regulation could keep small businesses from operating with two hands tied behind their back, Woolard said. “It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to look around to say, ‘Hey, we got major problems in this country,’” Woolard said. Butterfield, a Wilson native and three-term congressman, said he better understands the needs of the District — which comprises 23 low-wealth counties. He lauded a recent $50 billion proposal by President Barack Obama that could give tax breaks to small businesses and improve infrastructure as ways to get residents back to work. “Small business is the engine that drives the economy. … It’s a step in the right direction,” Butterfield said. Health care also was discussed. Woolard said he believes health care costs need reform, but the current laws are not helping. He said tort reform should be a top priority and that it was unconstitutional for any resident to be forced into buying health insurance. “Let’s let the American citizen decide what’s best for their families and what’s best for their budget,” Woolard said. Butterfield responded by saying that he was proud Democrats expanded health care coverage to millions of middle-class families nationwide and keep rural hospitals operating. Woolard continued his criticism of Butterfield’s ethical behavior on Capitol Hill. Woolard disagreed with Butterfield pocketing per diem money for out-of-country travel. Butterfield said he would rather Woolard talk about the issues. The dialogue was taped last Wednesday at the NBC-17 studio in Raleigh and aired Sunday afternoon. The debate was moderated by NBC-17 political reporter Kim Genardo and featured questions on issues such as pork project funding, offshore drilling, ethics, government spending and unemployment. Questions were submitted by residents, NBC-17 and the League of Women Voters. The debate marked the first time that Butterfield and Woolard have met on the campaign trail. For weeks, Woolard has challenged Butterfield to step down from the House ethics committee and to return $4,000 in donations to U.S. Rep. Charlie Rangel, D-N.Y., who faces ethics charges. “Judge Butterfield would have never sat in judgment of somebody he was getting ready to try and take a (contribution) from there. Why should it be any different that he’s Congressman Butterfield?” Butterfield said it did not present a conflict for him to serve on the ethics committee. “I know the importance of justice and fairness,” Butterfield said. “(The members of Congress) know that I am willing and able to be fair to my colleague in this process.” |
