Zoller, Fitzpatrick Polish Skills on Live Debate as Election Looms

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The Ninth District Congressional Race is officially down to the wire, with under a week to go to the July 31st election. In one final push of the primary, two of the three candidates joined FYN and ETC for a televised debate this Tuesday, July 24th in an effort to reach voters before they go to the polls next week.After long months of campaigning, Martha Zoller and Roger Fitzpatrick both showed the fruits of their labor during the event, showing voters their sharpened skills and heightened knowledge of issues. Third contestant in the race, Rep. Doug Collins (Gainesville) was also invited to participate in the event. Initially, Rep. Collins accepted. However, several weeks ago he contacted FYN and cancelled due to a conflict in schedule, choosing to participate in a different event. FYN extended the invitation in early May, acknowledging the hectic pace of the final stretch of the campaign. However, at the time, all candidates committed to the event.

To begin the debate, FYN wanted to know how the new ninth district representative would keep in touch with constituents in the smaller counties, like Gilmer, once he or she arrives in Washington. Answering first, Fitzpatrick said he would set up two offices to cover the 20-county district, stressing he would not go over budget to staff the offices. He added he would hold townhall meetings as often as possible, preferring face-to-face communication rather than electronic. However, while in Washington he said he would utilize all available means of communications, including emails and tweets. Regarding keeping in touch with the smaller counties in the district specifically, Fitzpatrick later asserted,

“There’s not one county that’s more important than any other county.”

For her part, Zoller said she would expand what she has done for the last 16 years as a radio host through out the district, in addition to utilizing virtual means.

“When the decision came down on Obamacare, we let people know immediately about a virtual townhall that we had, where 200 people called into the office and 50 people logged on with just a few hours notice to talk abut how constituents felt about the Obamacare decision. So we’re going to reach out in those ways,”

she explained. She also said she would utilize the radio stations in the Capitol to communicate, adding she would visit counties while in the district. Additionally, Zoller said she liked the Senator Isakson model of a few offices and a lot of field representatives, noting that the senator has retuned money to the taxpayers every single time.

In addition to winning the presidency, pundits and analysts speculate Republicans could also win both houses of Congress in November. The last time Republicans held the presidency and controlled of both houses of Congress, in the early 2000s under President George W. Bush, spending increased significantly, violating the Republican hallmark of fiscal conservatism. As such, FYN wanted to know, if Republicans take it all in November, if the new ninth district representative would break ranks with leadership when it comes time to vote on big spending bills.

“I did not get into this race just to follow party lines or to fall in lock-step with whatever the leadership is in the House of Representatives,”

Fitzpatrick said. The country is headed for a fiscal cliff and we need to reverse our course, he added. Fitzpatrick asserted he would break ranks with leadership in order to reverse the current fiscal course of the nation. Zoller said it would be easy for her to vote no in these instances because she’s not beholden to anybody.

“I want to give back,”

she said,

“I don’t owe anybody anything.”

Further, she explained that during the Bush administration Republicans wouldn’t vote against the presidents because he had been through so much, in the wake of a tenuous election and the 9/11 attacks. Zoller said, despite such circumstances, we need dissent when necessary.

In contrast to some previous performances, Fitzpatrick’s answers Tuesday came across more swiftly and pointed than in earlier events. During a discussion on the elimination of federal agencies Fitzpatrick explained his vision for eliminating the Federal Department of Education (DOE). He suggested phasing it out over a period of, at most, five years, he said. White County, where Fitzpatrick was formally Principal of Mossy Creek Elementary School, receives approximately $1 million annually in federal funding, part of a $30 million budget, he said. As such, he suggested eliminating the DOE all at once would cripple certain districts, like White County. Although phasing out the DOE would also require painful sacrifices, it’s a necessary task, he argued. Noting that the country has almost $16 trillion in debt and is adding a trillion more, he asked when the spending would stop and when sacrifices would be made. He asserted that the country not only has to stop spending, but turn a surplus to start paying down the existing debt, which will mean painful sacrifices.

“You can either do less pain now, or more pain later,”

he said. Weighing all issues with the Constitution in mind, Fitzpatrick reminded voters the DOE is not listed among the responsibilities of the federal government. For Fitzpatrick, though, the other part of the equation to recouping the money lost to school districts from federal funding is scaling down government and putting more money in the pockets of taxpayers.

“Where does the money from the federal government come from in order to send it back to the States?…It comes out of your pocket and my pocket,”

he explained, advocating the Fairtax program. Early in his campaign, Fitzpatrick’s delivery was often languid, yet passionate, and at times over generalized, which made him seem uncertain. Then, voters may have seen a passionate candidate, but would have been doubtful of his ability to aggressively stand-up to Washington leadership when it went astray. Tuesday, though, Fitzpatrick was steadfast, aggressive and certain in his ideas, all while conveying his passion for our Constitution, a key asset to his candidacy.

For her part, Zoller showed her continued in-depth knowledge of legislation. When asked if she would have voted for the George Bush Medicare Prescription Plan, Zoller gave a detailed explanation of why she would have voted no. She said she thought the bill had a few positive pieces, such as the Medicare Advantage Plan, which she explained as a free-market Medicare plan.

“There was also a trigger factor,”

she said, explaining,

“That percentage you pay out of your payroll tax goes into Medicare. Forty-five percent of Medicare cost comes out of the general fund. It’s what you’ve paid plus 45 percent every single year and there was a trigger that was supposed to mean that you were going to go back to the cost analysis on Medicare and take a look at it and do some cutting.”

She went on to say that Congress included attractive aspects to the bill (“carrots”) to get voters to vote for it and then, once passed, virtually ignored its own legislation. The answer was just one example of Zoller’s thorough knowledge of legislation and adept ability to analyze and comprehend its implications.

Later in the evening, though, the candidates seemed to play it safe when it came to foreign affairs. Both candidates were unwavering in their support for Israel. And, both Zoller and Fitzpatrick were concerned with the current civil war in Syria. However, both agreed the United States is not the world’s police. According to recent reports, the Assad regime has threatened to use chemical weapons if pushed too far. An article this week also reported the use of chemical weapons could threaten Israel. Seemingly, a foreign policy supporting Israel would have to address the escalating situation in Syria. Doubtless, the next Congress will have to address if not Syria some aspect of the burning fuse that is the Middle East, most likely Iran.

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