Congressman Dan Benishek holds rematch with Democratic challenger Gary McDowell

From staff reports

According to a poll by the Michigan League of Conservation Voters, Democratic challenger Gary McDowell is leading Republican incumbent Dan Benishek in the race for Michigan’s 1st District Congressional seat — a seat long held by “blue dog” Democrat Bart Stupak until the GOP’s tidal wave election in 2010, when Benishek beat McDowell by a resounding 11 percentage points. How will the rematch play out on Tuesday in the district that represents the Upper Peninsula, and the upper third of the Lower Peninsula, including our neck of the woods?

The Glen Arbor Sun submitted these eight questions to both Benishek’s and McDowell’s campaigns. See their responses below:

Glen Arbor Sun: What are the two biggest issues you’re pushing this election?

Gary McDowell: Many Democrats in Washington aren’t serious about reducing spending and it seems like Republicans don’t care what happens to regular people who work for a living. And no one is looking out for northern Michigan. We need to responsibly reduce the deficit and get our economy back on track. We must protect Medicare and Social Security for this generation and for those that follow. I oppose privatizing Social Security and oppose any effort to force seniors to pay more out of pocket and be made to negotiate with private insurance companies.

Dan Benishek: It’s about jobs and the economy. I know many families in northern Michigan are hurting right now. In this tough economy, a lot of moms and dads in our area are finding it hard to pay their bills and plan for the future. It’s tough to find work. We need to get this economy moving. I spent this summer on my 100 in 100 small business tour and am currently on my 32 in 32 tour. During the tours I visited with job providers in northern Michigan and they told me how the uncertain tax code, the new healthcare law and the overregulation are hurting their ability to hire. And that is why I want to bring some certainty to the tax code, repeal and replace the job-killing healthcare law and reduce the over burdensome regulations so our children can find work here in northern Michigan. Look, there is a clear difference between Gary McDowell and me. He supports the new healthcare law, which guts $716 billion from Medicare and is a massive tax increase to all Americans.

Sun: How will you create more jobs for Michigan?

Benishek: During my “100 in 100’ tour and my “32 in 32 ”tour I have heard from over a hundred job creators and they say that the problem is not with finding customers it’s dealing with the government. Small businesses around the district are being held back by the overly burdensome regulations, the uncertain tax code and the job-killing healthcare law. What Washington needs to understand is that government does not create jobs, the private sector does. Northern Michigan needs Washington to promote pro-growth policies that allow businesses to plan, prosper and hire. That is why I will continue to fight for a stable tax code that allows our job creators to plan, limited regulations so our businesses are not hindered by bureaucrats in Washington and repealing and replacing job-killing the healthcare law, which raises cost for employers. Once Washington stops unnecessarily holding our job creators back I know that northern Michigan will flourish and our children will be able to find work once again.

McDowell: Northern Michigan is home to the hardest working people in the country. We have the best work ethic and we want to get back to work. We need to promote northern Michigan as a place to locate a business by ensuring that our children have access to a quality education. I want to see new jobs here that our children can earn a good living at rather than being forced to leave the area to find a job. The Great Lakes provide over 500,000 jobs right here in northern Michigan. We need to make sure that we preserve and protect our lakes for tourism, shipping, manufacturing and for clean drinking water. We also need to fix these so-called free trade deals that send our jobs overseas. We must reduce the federal deficit and make sure taxes remain low on working people and small businesses so they can grow here at home.

What we shouldn’t be doing is what Congressman Benishek has done. He voted to eliminate commercial air service to seven airports in northern Michigan. We need air service to move tourists, students, business people, doctors and more to make sure we have a vibrant economy. Congressman Benishek also voted for new trade deals with Korea. When all those deals have done is send our jobs overseas. And recently, Congressman Benishek said the reason there is high unemployment in northern Michigan is because people here don’t want to work. What kind of message is that to send to a potential employer? We need a Congressman who will recruit new business to Northern Michigan. Not call our workers lazy.

Sun: How will you support northern Michigan’s tourism industry?

McDowell: Northern Michigan’s tourism industry is a vital component of our local and state economy. While I had the honor of serving in the State House I worked with both Democrats and Republicans to fund the nationally acclaimed Pure Michigan campaign. The campaign has been a success and drew in more than $1 billion in tourism-based revenue from a record-setting 3.2 million visitors. As this program has developed we have been able to leverage Michigan’s investment with private dollars to increase the reach of the program. I feel this partnership is critical and will seek to continue to foster private investment in northern Michigan’s tourism industry.

Benishek: Northern Michigan is blessed with amazing natural resources; people come from the world over to enjoy our world-class sport fishing, hunting and scenery. We need to ensure that our resources are protected. Over the last two years I have supported numerous bills that will protect the Great Lakes from invasive species like Asian Carp and sea lamprey. Rather than just talking about protecting the Great Lakes like my opponent does, I’ve actually been out there fighting for measures that will preserve our lakes for future generations. I’m also a proud member of the Great Lakes Task Force, a bipartisan group in Congress that is committed to protecting the Great Lakes and keeping the environment clean. Preserving our environment is the best thing we can do for northern Michigan’s tourism industry.

Do you support President Obama’s bailout of the auto industry? Why or why not?

Benishek: I am proud that Michigan is still making great cars and that families can find good paying jobs. But we need to stop promoting the kinds of policies that lead to the crisis in the first place. Gary McDowell has a long record of supporting job-killing policies like the Granholm Stimulus, which wasted $2 billion of the taxpayers’ money, drove businesses out of the state and hurt Michigan families.

McDowell: The financial crisis created on Wall Street hit Michigan hard. Our auto industry was on the ropes and there weren’t any easy options. The administration elected to invest in the American auto industry and that investment paid off. The loans have been repaid, General Motors is reporting profits and some estimate it saved one million American jobs.

Sun: How should we respond to the changing energy landscape and to what extent do you prioritize climate change? And do you support the 25 percent in 2025 mandate?

McDowell: Northern Michigan and the United States must be open to new energy alternatives, such as solar and wind, while expanding our use of traditional energy sources. Our dependence on energy sources imported from countries that don’t like us is a serious national security issue and along with maintaining domestic production of traditional fuels, investment in new energy technology will not only keep us safe, but will keep us first in line for the next generation of manufacturing jobs. Part of protecting our way of life means conserving our lakes, rivers and forests for future generations to enjoy. Much of our economy relies on our natural resources and protecting them is of vital interest to our tourism and fishing industries.

Benishek: I’m a doctor, not a career politician. I don’t believe in subsidies for anyone. The government shouldn’t be picking winners and losers in the economy. But I also know that Michigan families are struggling due to high gas prices. We need to lower gas prices. Unfortunately Gary McDowell and other Washington Democrats only pay lip service to the problem by saying they are for an, “all of the above” energy plan, but they blocked the Keystone Pipeline and drilling off our coasts and on federal lands. That’s not “all of the above,” that’s just a slogan. And slogans don’t bring down gas prices. In order to do a real “all of the above” energy plan that reduces our dependence on foreign oil … we need to responsibly use the natural resources we have here — like natural gas, coal and oil in addition to green energy options.

Sun: Name one valuable and one humbling lesson you’ve learned during your political career.

Benishek: I am a doctor not a politician, so when I went to Washington I thought that being a Congressman would be a lot like being a doctor, you are presented with a problem, you confer with other experts then you attack the problem. In Washington it does not quite work that way though. Often we are presented with a problem and instead of fixing the cause, career politicians talk a lot and take little action for fear of upsetting someone. In Washington action does not happen fast enough. I came to Washington believing that change here could be enacted immediately, though I quickly learned that is not the way Washington works.

McDowell: I’ve learned that one party doesn’t have a monopoly on the right answers and it’s vital that we learn to work together and take the best views from anyone willing to talk solutions. I intend to take that approach in Congress. I’m willing to work with anyone who’s offering solutions. I’m also mindful that in the difficult economic environment we’ve been in for years now, the decisions we make have a real impact on the quality of people’s lives — especially our seniors, which is why I during this campaign I have constantly sought to travel the 1st, keeping up an ongoing dialogue with my neighbors in northern Michigan. I pledge to continue that commitment to outreach in our district as Congressman.

Sun: Why you have you chosen your party affiliation? And how do you see your party changing in the years to come?

McDowell: When you take a look at Washington and see the Democrats who don’t want to cut the spending and the Republicans who don’t care what happens to people that have to work for a living it seems that they’re all wrong. I believe both parties will need to change in future years, because they aren’t working together today and the American people expect more from them. As a Democrat, I hope to join with other moderate Democrats and Republicans and start addressing the problems that this congress can’t seem solve, such as my plan to protect Medicare by allowing it to negotiate cheaper prices with drug companies and to freeze Congressional pay until they come up with a balanced budget.

Benishek: I am a Republican because I believe in a limited government that does not punish our children for our mistakes. Right now the federal government is borrowing 40 cents of every dollar it spends. Career politicians in Washington have spent recklessly and now our federal debt is over $16 trillion. That is all money that will have to be paid back by our children and grandchildren. Plain and simple we need to stop spending more money than we take in. I can’t spend 40% more than I make each year and neither can families in northern Michigan. That’s just common sense. We need to start reducing federal spending now. I believe that in the coming years we will see Republicans stop their big spending ways and return to their roots in limited government spending.

Sun: What should be done to re-open the shuttered Sugar Loaf ski resort in Leelanau County? Should local government play a larger role in that endeavor?

Benishek: Times are tough in northern Michigan right now and jobs are at a premium. The Sugar Loaf ski resort was one of the largest employers in Leelanau County — its closure had a tremendous affect on the local economy. Washington needs to do everything it can do to create a pro-growth climate that will spur job creators to hire more by stabilizing the tax code, limiting regulations and repealing and replacing the job-killing healthcare law. Families in northern Michigan deserve to find good jobs that allow them to put food on the table and a roof over their heads.

McDowell: The land that the Sugar Loaf Ski resort sits on is absolutely beautiful. Unfortunately, the resort is arguably blighted and is contributing nothing to Leelanau County’s economy. But I believe we can and should work to reopen the resort to generate visitors and bring more dollars to the area. The biggest hurdle right now is the fragmentation of ownership of the resort’s assets. The local government and economic development board should be encouraged to work with private investors to consolidate ownership of the resort with an investor that plans to renovate and reopen the resort, the ski hill, the golf course and other amenities there. In Congress, I will vigorously fight for northern Michigan and work with local officials to bring new investment to Leelanau County.