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Sep 19, 2006 11:18 pm US/Central
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Senate Candidates Debate Over Senior Issues
St. Paul (AP) ―
The two leading U.S. Senate hopefuls used an AARP debate Tuesday night to draw distinctions, not just in differences of policy but in honesty and effectiveness.
The debate gave Republican Mark Kennedy and Democrat Amy Klobuchar the chance to highlight significant differences on major issues, with a focus on those relating to senior citizens.
Kennedy defended the Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit passed by Congress in 2003 as flawed but good for seniors, while Klobuchar criticized it as she called for easy importation of prescription drugs from Canada and for the government to negotiate with drug companies for better prices.
"It's not perfect but it is a plan that is providing coverage for seniors," Kennedy said. "They don't have to choose between health coverage and food on the table."
Klobuchar said the plan amounted to a "$90 billion giveaway to drug companies," and criticized Kennedy for opposing prescription drug imports from Canada, pointing out imports are supported by Minnesota's Republican governor, Tim Pawlenty.
Even as they talked policy, the candidates repeatedly returned to some now-familiar lines of attack, with Kennedy criticizing Klobuchar for "saying one thing and doing another" and Klobuchar arguing that Kennedy repeatedly distorts her positions.
"The voters aren't buying your scare tactics," Klobuchar said. "That's why we're doing so well around the state, because the voters want some truth."
Independence Party candidate Robert Fitzgerald also participated, mostly ducking the sniping between the two leading candidates. "We are seeing a very polarized time in American politics, because Republicans and Democrats are so hand-tied to their platforms," he said.
The debate, which aired live on Twin Cities Public Television, touched on a number of issues of concern to seniors. Both Kennedy and Klobuchar said they opposed any move to privatize Social Security. Kennedy also said Democrats have purposely stalled efforts to reform the system so they can use the issue to scare seniors.
Klobuchar by contrast said Kennedy was being disingenuous, citing statements he made in years past that indicated support for at least a partial privatization of the system. Kennedy did acknowledge that he thinks private accounts could be part of the solution to Social Security's problems.
"Privatize is a word that's used to politicize the debate," Kennedy said. "Nobody's talking about that. I oppose privatization. I think we ought to look at options for young people to get more out of their investment."
The tone of the debate was somewhat muted in contrast to the recent, raucous faceoff at the Minnesota State Fair. Kennedy, who's trailed Klobuchar by significant percentages in a string of polls, seemed a bit more on the offensive, but Klobuchar hit back at nearly every turn. More than once she returned to an assertion that voters shouldn't believe Kennedy would fix problems in Washington after belonging to the congressional majority the last six years.
Moderator Mary Lahammer did question Klobuchar about one potential point of vulnerability, the recent rise in violent crime in Minneapolis, the seat of Hennepin County, where she is chief prosecutor.
"It's completely unacceptable," Klobuchar said of the increase in crime. But she pointed out that crime in the entire county is down, and said the Minneapolis increase can mainly be pinned on state and federal budget cuts that forced the city to cut the number of police.
Kennedy, somewhat surprisingly, bypassed the chance to nail Klobuchar on the Minneapolis crime rate, changing the subject to immigration when the debate turned back to him. He did so even though many Republicans have increasingly tried to yoke Klobuchar with the crime issue in recent months.
(© 2006 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)