The 2008 Kansas State Fair - The First US Senate Debate

hello and welcome i'm peter hancock statehouse bureau chief for the kansas public radio network on saturdays september sixth two candidates for us senate met at the kansas state fairgrounds in hutchinson to debate republican sen pat roberts and his democratic challenger jim slattery squared off before a live audience in a debate sponsored by wy be w television in topeka and the kansas agriculture network the event took place at the at and t are we now on the state fairgrounds our thanks to wi dw for the use of this today and now here's your moderator telling less judy us involvement the kansas state fair and his first us an update on two major and i'm with the kansas radio networks in your mirror in the ad in theory on the state

fairgrounds in hutchinson i have been that was there for over thirty years and i think this is one of the top i think it's going to get warmer in theory that today and many people who are listening to this broadcast on radio statewide we're watching this first ever debate on television that they are there they will be more first a quick review of our debate rules this morning you're an oil producer candidates will have one month to respond to each question the candidate responds first we'll have the option of thirty seconds of rubble and this is going to alternate at the conclusion of the debate each candidate will have a minute or a closing statement our media campaign that they include one for the news director with the campuses information

radio news network only a writer with today's daily news and well that we don't want the public television in topeka they will be your first some general information on party candidates the republican senator pat roberts is a corporation isn't from the city importance of a graduated high school in colton and one journalism degree from kansas state university and then worked as a reporter and editor for several newspapers before he started public service career served in the house of representatives turning and nineteen eighty he was elected to the senate in ninety six the day he served on the agricultural finance and health education labor and pensions committee senator roberts and white

children kansas senator pat roberts the pope asean is a generation and the reason why for years together they had sons jason lytle vote live in kansas and served in congress for twelve years and believes the people looking at systems are strong independent voice that it affects our health how i am there is all in one rule or auntie anne's in the debate today on what lay it out that

all that in today's debate it would be a lively one in fairness to all of our candidates we asked you read reporting from explosive europe or disapproval with the candidates they know they have stopped speaking that ripple and after they have stopped or you want to art as a great book or a program that they would get their opening statements first and we get their closing statement last quarter's opening statement will come from kansas senator pat roberts who wanted martin and thanks to that the idea that the un and the

state fair a special thanks also to the kansas farm bureau for embarrassing my campaign today we've been meeting here to talk about agriculture for many years and i have never missed a year not want this campaign will highlight a clear difference between me and my opponent i have dedicated most of my professional life public service retailers and i'm proud of that record of service because with your help we have made a difference i want tax relief i want to actually for kansans i've strengthen medicare i've brought high tech jobs to the state and through crop insurance and into government control of planning decisions i stop a killer tax on aviation workers brought new missions and new jobs to our military our military installations my opponent left and those fourteen years ago to become a washington lobbyist what

when he was in congress he cast the deciding vote for the largest tax increase in history an increase in social security taxes and a thirty percent increase in the gas tax that money out of your pocket and unbelievably my opponent voted for amnesty for millions of illegal immigrants i voted against it the choice in this election is clear a vote for a millionaire washington lobbyist or a vote for someone who has never stopped working for campaigns it's been mm hmm that the idea that you for making this

time available and it's really fun to be here at the kansas state fair in hutchinson io i've always enjoyed my visits here and it reminds me frankly of the times that it has suspended the atchison county fair in f ing him as a member of the good intent for each close so i have great fun memories of fires it is great to see you and i am looking forward to this debate i would also like to renew my challenge that you would join me in at least four fully televised debates in each congressional district i believe very strongly center that we have a duty to stand before the people of kansas and debate the issues of the day in these forums the people of kansas have the opportunity to hear our views on the very critical issues facing our country what are we going to do to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and get down the price of gasoline and diesel fuel and where we going to do to in this reckless

you're responsible fiscal policy that i call inner generational robbery that view frankly have supported the last six or seven years and what are we going to do to improve the quality of healthcare for kansans these are some of the issues that i think the people of kansas distorting here are beautiful and i also believe they want to know about the middle east in iraq and we wanna know what our views are about how we go forward in that dangerous part of the world and lastly we need to never forget our veterans these are the people who have made the freedom that we enjoy here today possible and we should never never lose sight of the sacrifices that they have made so let this campaign began let the conversation with the people of kansas began and it's a pleasure to be here look forward to that senator robert

later much telly and thanks to both of you for being here today really appreciate it or say that on behalf of our panel questions we appreciate that thought let's talk a little bit about illegal immigration a lot of kansans and america's concerned about the situation and the question would be what direction would you like to see us policy go in further up in you know bring about any changes you would like to see along those lines well immigration challenges a tremendous challenge to us lawmakers say first the show back during my opponents are career in congress you voted for the immigration bill voted for amnesty and i think that led to some of the problems that we have today i think it proved without a doubt in the senate when we considered the immigration bill a very flawed immigration bill not only regard amnesty that the whole but all they'll in the way it was handled that the american people want border security first we do have border security first you prove to the american

people you have that then you can move on to the next steps and the next challenge is we're with immigration what if we do we increase the tremendous amount of money to continue building a fence on the southern border than at more border patrol agents also more plants to law enforcement officers with their problems and can't just about every campus community so my answer to serve first let's prove the american people will for security and then let's get a bill that goes to them at the proper committee let's get the hearings was fully vetted before the american people and that we can meet the next town's order border security first it sen roberts first of all it was sort of correct the record you know ok the fact of the matter is the bill that he must be referring to is the simpson mazzoli bill that that's the united states congress a number of years ago and you know what if it was

supported by senator dole it was supported by senator kassebaum it was supported by senator alan simpson and was signed into law by president ronald reagan i i am proud that we worked hard to pass bipartisan legislation to deal with this very difficult problem and i applaud the efforts of senator mccain and senator brownback to address this issue it's going to take a tough bipartisan compromise but i am proud of the vote that i cast in your walk the problem has been since then the united states federal government has utterly failed to enforce existing wells that's been the problem at that long been enforced we wouldn't have the problems we have here today in this country with immigration and i don't think we should ever lose sight of the fact that the immigration service just hasn't gotten the job done monitoring our borders so it's a time for us to be straight with each other and there's a revival

i know that was an impressive list but the fact is jim i would tell my opponent that she voted for amnesty i did not when that bill came up and i did not vote for an amnesty in the senate immigration bill it was thought it would ask every illegal immigrants pay five thousand dollars razor and leave the country leave their family and then they couldn't get back and there's a terrible bill so to prove to the american people that you do have border security we do have phones now for more border patrol agents it then that's the time to start with the challenge facing the other steps that we that we will work with it and when it was lonely eyes and weary was a writer raised a record rates the jets see is the abdomen oh well thank you morning to go up as it

today our national debt stands at almost nine point seven trillion dollars this debt has almost doubled in the past eight years at some point whoever owns that that if we don't reduce it will demand payment when will that point come walk in our nation due to ever reduce the debt and how will we ever pay back a welcome one of the principle reasons that i decided to run for the united states senate this year is because i believe very strongly that this reckless fiscal policy that has been pursued in washington since two thousand and one is an absolute outrage i call an inner generational robbery the spend and borrow borrow policy passed it and it will not be easy but one of the most important first things that we should do is enact what i called pay as you go rules these pay as you go rules were in place until a few years ago sen roberts has not supported these pay as you go rules and senator mccain does

along the side and senator mccain when it comes to pay as you go rules and getting tough with this deficit and i believe very strongly that we have to get health care costs under control which is a part of dealing with the deficit but all of this debt all of this debt that's senator roberts has voted for since two thousand and one is about three trillion dollars is going to be passed on to the next generation this is morally wrong it is fiscally dangerous and it must stop and i'm committed to doing everything we possibly can to get that job done i think the question was one is is so you know when does this happen it's happening right now setting right now to work on inmates happening right now they each individual families economic circumstances and we do have to get the debt under control lawmakers say that i support a

balanced budget man sits down and a vote against a three on the national taxpayers union score card which is an organization in washington that i think my opponent but one of his campaign ads in a gay my opponent it be on spending i don't think you do it by raising taxes and that's precisely what he did during his career by raising taxes on social security support of the biggest tax hike in history and then raise the gas tax that basically are during all that time he was in washington post answers a half billion dollars so i don't think this tax and spend that this is not a word but actually that was back in two thousand one of two thousand three reduce the deficit by two hundred and fifty one million was a hundred and sixty two billion when we left two thousand seven and so now we have a democrat controlled congress and that that episode has doubled since that time well one of the things one of the things that i want to set the

record straight on is that that when senator robert says i voted for the biggest tax increase in history that is a stretch of the facts and the fact of the matter is is that that middle income kansans got tax relief in that package that was passed and it was a huge deficit reduction plan passed in nineteen ninety three that set the stage for tremendous economic growth in the nineteen nineties i am robert says that i voted for a thirty percent increase in that in the fuel tax that was a three cent tax increase at a time when gasoline was sold for a dollar a gallon on senator robert and the senator roberts will be the first responder next question comes from around wipp of atv for the job and we appreciate your time today here is well after the election is over the president the new president calls you and says senator i'm going to have a

bill signing at the white house you have to be there the bill contains the top two priorities that you ask for for chances and those are both in their ominous sign the bill or the white house and had to appear specifically speaking with legislation what two top priorities are in the bill that the president's been assigned you push through the senate there too the one is energy and one is health care affordable health care for all kansans but as jason joyce but also as is being run with market conditions as opposed to government control and also motivation matters and that would be a wonderful thing if we could get that done the second one is energy the biggest challenge that we have right before i would hope it would be the gas price reduction act which we have an ad have waiting in the wings will we can get a vote we've been pleading im pleading with

the democrat leadership of the congress for a vote it would simply lift the moratorium on deep sea exploration to lift the moratorium on on on oil sale you add tax incentives for plug in electric car if we could just pass that i'd rather have a comprehensive energy bill that this would be a great first step whether be president obama or present day well one of the first bills that i would like to see at the president's desk is a bill that does senator mccain hasn't endorsed and does senator roberts as oppose and that is a bill that would give medicare the authority to buy drugs from the drug makers in this country at discounted prices and i think this legislation should last several years ago senator roberts has opposed it and i believe it's important for kansans you know the senator roberts is also accepted more than a hundred and fifty thousand dollars from the drug and pharmaceutical industry in this country and i think that's

important for us to be aware of as we deal with this problem the second major i would like to see pass is comprehensive energy reform that would permit drilling it would encourage all kinds of alternative energies especially when right here in camp my opponent was on soul is not a long time ago and then the questioners said girl you for growing unease and absolutely listener you are dealing in an ornate said know what one is that i think we have to drill and explore every possible circumstance we have to do it on the va and that's the model that is using that the day so that you can write a medicare like the va goes by mail order and by bulk order that is government control as opposed to canada citizens making a

decision on the medications they need they would be denied seventy percent of the medications that they absolutely need cancer therapies arthritis their seal that's the wrong way to go next question and john slattery will be forced to respond and patronage kelly talked about the economy let's let's talk a little more specific about unemployment the years it estimates over six percent nationwide not quite that bad here in kansas but what's your known that it a turnaround and keeping in mind the global economy as well the first thing that we have to do is protect the jobs that are here in kansas and i believe very strongly for example in the buy america provisions that were in the yard defense authorization bill that fell out in the senate at those buy america provisions been contained

in the defense authorization bill boeing wouldn't be in the problem they're in today and i am strongly of the opinion that when my tax dollars and your tax dollars are used to buy military equipment to defend this great nation those tax dollars must be spent here in the united states unless it is absolutely necessary to spend them someplace else now in addition to that i happen to be very optimistic about the future of kansas especially rural kansas why because we have an opportunity to develop a lot of jobs around the wind energy a lot of jobs around bio refineries in the future things that people haven't even started to focus on but we have to also get our fiscal house in order in washington it is jeopardizing our own economic and financial security i just finished our

annual tour of a hundred and five counties yesterday we were in harney county they don't have a problem in regards to unemployment minority county they have a problem of trying to get a trained workforce and housing they're seems to me that in kansas with our situation with agriculture we are making progress except the farmer and rancher don't think that their prize in regards to reporters do i because of all the all the energy costs i was a soldier kansas talking is on rally just last year his entire home through a tornado he was lucky to be alive and i asked deon and i said what what can i do for you johnny said you can do some but gas prices this is i can make it back you know i can make it back with two hundred people help me here so we do need an energy plan ever gonna so let's tell the democrat leadership because of oil yes that's

what the senate is the basic thing that we have to do in return to washington as of this next week well i don't disagree with what senator roberts said in terms of getting a vote on on drilling in getting a vote on a comprehensive energy policy i support wind i support solar i support drilling here in united states and off the continental shelf i also support doing everything we can to develop biofuels and that these are some of the things that we can be doing it in rural america we have to also be committed to taking care of our manufacturing jobs and yes job training in many parts of the state is a big problem for many communities and we have to stay focused on that and i also believe that we're going to have to develop a lot of jobs around health care next question i think it is worth noting of all the senator roberts is larry that i was not aware

that they have installed air conditioning in the eighteenth the region and i'm seeing the wrap up to the next question will iraq as future these are gentlemen since two thousand and three we've spent over five hundred billion dollars in lost over four thousand us servicemen and women act tens of thousands of other servicemen and women injured children injured untold number of iraqis all for a war that we still can't agree on why we started the war is unpopular with the american people the iraqi government has asked the us to withdraw our troops what will you do to facilitate that move and when the roberts court but let me say that the supposed to go first on the question that the

thirty second season when senator rob portman i think at university i want him to be happy you know mitt romney have to do well i think we both agree that we're at least on the cameras are and the person that we believe it all of our troops back just as soon as possible or nobody in the congress a body that i know of is running for public office that doesn't want our men and women in uniform to come home as soon as possible but the key is to get enough stability so that you don't have to send them back into worse than the situation and that involves an awful lot of problems about a growing civil war danger to throw obviously the mideast is in turmoil and a danger to the free world oil supplies so there's a lot on national security issues that that certainly are pertinent here but i think we're very close i think we're very close to having a

situation where both the government maliki government and the thousand general petraeus is doing an outstanding job and i agree with a certain i think we're in a much better place now that we can achieve stability interact we do that it will be a very historical moment had general powell said it so well he said that if you break it you own it and we broke that we have responsibilities tour and those responsibilities have to be discharged properly but there's another bigger issue here and that is accountability the fact of the matter is that the politicians in washington let us into this warrant based on faulty and accurate intelligence data and also having failed to tell us that saddam hussein had nothing to do with nine eleven and i believe very strongly that senator roberts who is chairman of the senate intelligence

committee at that time he and his committee got it all wrong on the intel data and there has to be that we have to strengthen our run we have weakened israel we have stretched our army to a dangerous point of exhaustion we have failed to get osama bin laden and al qaeda and that life france is a huge problem for the next administration we should have never taken our eyes off of saddam hussein an amino of hokkaido and the enemy's nine eleven and we should just a tap of them it's a very serious or madam thirty seconds thirty seconds ok well jim another nurse the more kind of interest the truth of those much distraction that mutation about a breaking point on that one i think

the committee that i lead an investigation into the intelligence failure which was not only us they are but ali also a worldwide figure was a wine that released the information that we had the intelligence failure and latitude the intelligence reforms that we have in episode seventeen if that i can order salute when there's a seventeen to nothing vote both democrats and republicans in regards to releasing information genuine even know about this information unless the fact that i released it why do eventually i understand your eye motions years than a lot of people i knew blogger or express their disapproval week you asked again that you have tried a refrain for the most part the weekend that war

you will force the moderator get that end of the pipe you interfere with their response that i was actually giving an expert on what they want our next question first response will be john slattery it comes from robitussin why he rides again kelly our crews in topeka have come across some people who are very concerned about the national bio agro defense lab been placed on the campus of cased eight in manhattan as they i envision the experimentation the evaluation of some possible solutions to foreign animal diseases that may be discovered work on their own could be unleashed in the heartland my question is what would your role what sugar role be as a kansas senator and leading the cheers for the bilateral defense lab and to what extent should do help educate kansans about our biosciences revolution know whether it's bioscience like a state is doing in a way that or the ambac lab on the case de cannes well the

first thing about a disease a few seconds to in the further does the earlier discussion the bottom line again is on this matter of a rock sen roberts was chairman of the committee whose responsibility it was to get this war until they write it was wrong and that is a very important matter and there has to be accountability when our political leaders make these kind of terrible mistakes now on the question of the bio defense lab i believe very strongly that we should answer the questions of all people interested in this matter and if i'm elected to the united states senate i'll be working with officials in washington working with the state governments in kansas doing everything we can to make sure that everybody's questions are answered we don't want to get into a situation where if kansas is selected and i hope they will be that we don't have the answers that the people in manhattan have a right to get answered the questions that is so i think very strongly that we have to answer the questions of people on all sides i believe that the us will be

done and i'll be working with the governments in topeka manhattan a washington obama like the united states senate to make sure that it's done oh i'm in honorary chairman them back and it is being let it now that my opponent is just mention amari doing that and it is led by the governor and the state legislature is led by kansas state university is part of the effort to provide world class research centers in kansas that would lead not only to jobs but i keeping our best and brightest here but more critically to protect our country and our food security i know that there was a question about something that my opponent said that the building their mating set out today what makes me sick or what worries me is people that we get salmonella people that would get people live people that would get up and mouth disease and reverse the

livestock industry where well situated to put this lab but actually stay we're in the final running right now now is no time to be criticizing something that has been proven to be absolutely say absolutely say so let's keep working for in that and let's get the job done it will really big a difference in kansas and make a difference for the welfare of our nation well a crime allegedly iowa state senate well i'll pick up the work and continue it but it is important for us to answer the questions of all the people on both sides of this i would like to use the remaining time i haven't this rebuttal to also speak to the issue of the dissenter roberts raised earlier about social security in my voting to tax social security i just want it understood very clearly that that legislation effect that only about five were very small percentage of the upper income people in kansas i never voted to raise the social

security taxes on low income kansans i want that set straight for the record virginia senator roberts would be forced to respond and thank you again kelly sen reid that we're going to form together and started informally visiting friends and neighbors and that they've been one of the big things are when everybody was i'm having to do a lot more with less and i think maybe the us government should be requiring be accountable to do that it makes smaller government better government what what can you offer them well basically i vote for a balanced budget amendment six times he voted against a three year to really control spending the national taxpayers union they my opponent he basically as we go over the tax increases that is now trying to refute the social security tax increase the gas tax increase as a half a billion but since he left washington to

become a washington lobbyist and yes the highest tax increase in history in nineteen ninety three with a crime a tax increase i forgot about the bta texas who supported which farmers and ranchers didn't want it and as we know well so i don't think that you can tax and regulate i don't think you can tax and regulate pursue your way out of this in regards to family to the family budgets and congress has to live within its means i understand that if you could vote for a balanced budget amendment and that would certainly help and in addition again you have to get at this energy challenge the energy situation is harming every family in kansas and also poses as my opponent has indicated as well a national security threat please give us a bowl on the energy bill we come back into session in the next session now this is amazing to me

when i look when i listen to my opponent talk about a balanced budget amendment let's just check the record in two thousand and one there were two hundred and fifty billion dollars surpluses this year there's no be a five hundred billion dollar deficit or close to that we've added three trillion dollars to our national debt in the last two years one third of all that that accumulated since the revolutionary war has been accumulated in the last few years and kansans will be stunned to know that's senator roberts has voted for all of this and then he talks about a balanced budget amendment now you know senator i was born at night the night last night for goodness sakes i mean you don't expect us to believe that you're serious about a balanced budget amendment when you voted for all this ridiculous spending and yes you vote for a lot of very popular tax cuts but those tax cuts senator roberts that you vote for and asked our kids to pay for our tax increase on the next generation this is immoral is intergenerational robbery and it has to

stop and that's one of the principal reasons i'm running for the nineties seeds i know you have every parent and deserts we were born that's actually was passed in two thousand three and it went up to two thousand seven and in two thousand three the deficit was four hundred and thirteen billion it went down to one hundred and sixty two billion in two thousand seven that is tax relief at two hundred and fifty one billion or a reduction in the deficit of two hundred and fifty one billion and money that you get in your pocketbooks and then france because the outlook over and so that has increased now from modern sixty two to four hundred billion they

doubled the budget only two years let her close question does anyone else notice that the democrat on the podiums were you reply and this will come from the african well reviews daily beast in the gym slide rule the first response we fared much tax relief many tax credits given our spending on domestic programs education military you name it are at record highs and yet the disparity

between rich and poor in this country is reaching all time haskins fact is measured by the jenny and that's third world countries really are the only ones that have larger disparities how he explained the integrity of the situation and what will you do well that is an excellent question and it gets right to the heart of the problems that we should be addressing here in kansas what we just area i can't explain it to tell you the truth i believe that the fiscal policies the tax policies that had been pursued over the last few years an added to this disparity the fact of the matter is we gave a huge tax cuts to the top one percent of the wage earners and income earners in this country over the last few years that tax relief should have been given to lower income people to middle income americans and there is the area where i think senator roberts and i have a sharp difference of opinion he'd been very versatile repeal of the estate tax

which again it's going to cost the federal government twenty or thirty billion dollars in over a period of time as going to benefit just a snap number of people maybe one half of one percent of the people in kansas i favor improving that an increasing the exemption but not tell repeal we have got to be mindful of the terrible disparity going on in this country between the very rich and the lower income people in this country in the way things we have to deal with our health care and educational opportunities and job creation these are the kind of things we have to focus on to improve the quality of life for kansans well we just heard a class standard class warfare speech either circle a robin hood near brinkley who actually was across the board and the reason that people who earn more than more tax relief is that they are

more as it and it is pretty simple as that and in terms of repeal of the estate tax it is not endorsed by the kansas farmer and we have had repeal of the estate tax as long as i can remember and timothy say there's just a few people out there that would benefit from repeal of the estate tax just look at what is it the poorest of the poor right now is in regards to the lack of health insurance and is also in regards to this energy problem that i've been going over again and again and again on health insurance i supported the s chip program without health wave in kansas and it targets low income people are too onerous out of poverty to give children health insurance that's one big answer that we can do and we can also reforms treat them and preserve our health care i

just supported a medicare reform bill overrode the president's veto that leila they gave the reimbursement rates that our providers to provide enough to win the living i certainly support the s chip program while i was in the congress i have worked to expand health care for low income children in kansas and will continue to do that i also believe that as we go forward we have to deal with its deficit and who's going to help deal with that i think we're all going to have to deal with that but the problem is when you add three trillion dollars to our national debt and borrow the money from our kids to cut our taxes and just saying my fellow kansans is that right i don't believe it is our next question will

the view widely believed tv interview this is the last question once again thank you so much for this hour we've learned a lot about and of the chant to john mccain at the convention this week on all those drill baby drill what's your message going in and water or anywhere and when everybody gets back together for a new energy policy you want corn based ethanol production to stay where it is scaling back or get rid of it altogether reporter candidates respond route that was the last question the exercise a little thing i can do is moderator instead of having to respond that this played into each will have the minutemen and there will be thirty second rebuttal time senator robert hurt well basically i think the question again was about energy policy and i think your question was worried real i think everybody understands that we can't drill our way out of this but we also understand you can't win while

mattress or a way out of this year and asked why everything has to be on the table i think our nominee senator mccain made that very clear and i think both of us agree on that with exception of mr that everything should be on the table we have reached the energy crossroads we must do it for economic survival we must do it for national security we are paying too much for adversaries so i would say to that yes drill baby drill if that's the we're that's a saying oh that's the and that's el that were going but we also have to have a tax credits and the attacks its vendors that we are going to have in regards to renewable energy we're moving from a fossil fuel energy program to a renewable energy program is going to take a while but we have to put everything on the table to build an on ethanol that was your car all on the upper nile that were taken out of the finance committee chuck grassley is

the ranking member he and i have a glass of ethanol every morning who is ben what i say is drill baby drill right here in kansas i believe in domestic drilling i did believe and drilling off the continental shelf and i would like to see there be a vote on it on a comprehensive energy policy the fact that we're importing today seven hundred billion dollars worth of oil from all over the world every year as a national security crisis and it is a political shame and embarrassment and i believe also that we should dramatically improve the fuel efficiency standards in our vehicles as part of the comprehensive solution and this is an area where senator roberts and i have sharply disagreed until this election year we changed his position but the historically voted against improving fuel efficiency

in our vehicles in addition to that i wish the senator roberts would vote for the production tax credits well investing in wind energy in kansas would know what the tax laws are going to be and move forward with creating baby with the energy alternative and creating the thousands of jobs that i believe can be creative around that yes i have supported ethanol and i will continue to support ethanol in spite of senator mccain's opposition to that and in spite of what appears the republican party withdrawing their support for ethanol in their party platform so i do support ethanol i support also the development of hybrid electric vehicles i happen to own one these vehicles can make forty five to fifty mpg and as senator roberts voted right on some of these provisions in the past those kind of vehicles would be available all over the country today and we wouldn't be depending upon this import of oil from the middle east which is a absolute national crisis for us to do it

genuine a restraint of a couple of smaller they standards that you had it you or that you mention that i voted against were across the board detroit didn't want it was across the board it was the same thing for the silverado or a chevy bow bow the standard we worked with detroit and we have a different standard in a different timetable for cafe standards and i supported in regards to the main point that i wanted to make democratic than anyone that i have a thirty seconds what's most of thirty seconds to go as well this post the phrase for that be a writer closing statements has agreed to before the debate

began sen roberts would get his first and james lottery last verse that senator rob where even john i said at the beginning of this debate that you would see a clear difference between me and my opponent as i've indicated my opponent voted for the largest tax increase in history and i voted against my opponent voted to increase taxes on social security and i voted against my opponent opposes domestic drilling in anwar i support drilling here and drilling now to lower your gas prices and reduce our dependence on foreign oil my opponent voted to grant and to see to millions of illegal immigrants leading to the prices we have today i voted no every time my opponent had a chance to vote for a constitutional amendment to balance the budget he opposed i voted for it every time my opponent voted to raise your

gas tax by thirty percent since the left hand has to become a washington lobbyist he left you at a half a billion dollar yes bill i've voted against it remember that every time you pull up at the pump i am proud of my record for this date i have never stopped working for you on the other hand in nineteen ninety four my opponent missed nearly half of the votes in the house of representatives he was ranked four hundred and thirty three out of four hundred and thirty five in attendance one member died and one member went oh he didn't even activity he didn't even bother to show up in the marine corps we call at a well kansas fourteen years ago to become a millionaire washington lobbyist is out of state is out of step is out of touch with kansas i have never stopped working for kansas and together we will continue to build a better future not as

you know i'm a marine mr motto is separate from dallas i always faithful and i promise i will always be faithful to you and i will always be faithful to kansas it very much has happened since they wanna say it's been fun the bearded dame and senator roberts on the absentees you you are really really stretching that you know senator roberts and i had one of the best attendance records in the united states as a representative in that time i was there until last year when i

was running for governor and senator brownback and others that have run from iraq business and boats to see it as a complete that just stretches her state has added rachel silverstein well he's really bad or to be here today and let me just say that that's when i decided to run for the united states senate i did so because i care deeply about the future of this country but when i look out on the audience today there are many young people here who clearly you clearly love this country and care about the future of this country too i have a grand baby this going to be born in just a few months and we're very excited about that and i am very worried about the kind of nation that we're handing over to the next generation we have

unfortunately plays such a tremendous debt burden on the next generation my grandbaby when he or she is born is going to assume thirty thousand dollars in debt thanks to the irresponsible fiscal policy and tax and bad policies of the last few years that's senator roberts has supported and let's not lose sight of that i happen to believe very strongly that the best days in this country and the best days in that in the state of kansas are ahead of us that we need desperately to change the leadership in washington to get this country back on track so you're in this data you know what i'd have to sell all this up i would just tell you that senator roberts as ed forty years to figure out washington and i'm just asking for six to try and fix it the pieces

you've been listening to the kansas state fair debate between republican senator pat roberts and democratic challenger jim slattery the debate was recorded live on saturday september sixth two thousand eight empty at empty arena at the kansas state fair grounds in hutchinson it's been used on the station with permission of w y b w television and the cannes is agriculture network we'd like to get our special thanks to wi the w's kelly lens for moderating i'm peter hancock kansas public radio is back to

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