(Candidates are listed alphabetically by last name)
Ron Barber (D)
Age: 66
Employer: Recently resigned as district director for Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.
Education: Bachelor of arts in political science, University of Arizona.
Political experience: None.
Jesse Kelly (R)
Age: 30
Employer: Project manager in family construction business, Don Kelly Construction.
Education: Some college at Montana State.
Political experience: Lost in 2010 to Rep. Giffords.
Charlie Manolakis (G)
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• Age: 72
• Employer and position: Retired substitute teacher and counselor.
• Education: Bachelor's in psychology, University of Massachusetts.
• Political experience: None.
On jobs and the economy: Outline the steps you will take to improve the economy and get more people back to work?
Barber: We need to keep middle-class taxes low, help small businesses grow and create job opportunities here in Arizona. I will push to promote solar, bioscience and high-tech industries. I will continue to strengthen and expand missions at our military installations and research at the UA - both core economic drivers in Southern Arizona. We must eliminate unneeded regulations on energy, transportation and small businesses, and streamline permit approvals so economic growth isn't held back.
Kelly: We can create millions of new jobs by responsibly developing our abundant energy resources. We should also get Washington out of the way and invite businesses back to America by reducing taxes on employers and job creators. For too long, politicians in Washington implemented big-government policies that pushed businesses overseas. It's time we bring them back home.
Manolakis: In this debate my opponents showed that they were completely out of touch with 70 million of our fellow Americans on Medicaid. These are often the poorest of the poor; and the sickest of the sick! 50 percent of whom are children! 20 percent of whom are seniors; many of all whom are disabled! The greatest work project of America should be not to vote people like this into office and move to get those like this out!
On Medicare: How do you plan to curb the rising costs of Medicare while preserving the program for future generations?
Barber: I will not support efforts to phase out Medicare and replace it with a privatized system that won't guarantee reliable healthcare to future retirees. We must immediately bring down costs by allowing Medicare to use its purchasing power to negotiate lower costs for prescription drugs. We could save more than a billion dollars a year by more aggressively prosecuting fraud and abuse. Finally, we must promote prevention services to curb future costs of Medicare.
Kelly: I support preserving, protecting and strengthening Social Security and Medicare. The first thing we can do to protect Medicare is repeal ObamaCare, which cuts $500 billion from Medicare and empowers a board of unelected bureaucrats to make decisions that could deny care and increase costs. Unfortunately, the plan endorsed by President Obama and Ron Barber in this congressional race is to let Medicare go bankrupt, and that is simply unacceptable.
Manolakis: The way that the Medicare system exists and functions at this time is substantial and adequate. The interjections of permanent trust funds make for a successful process that has preserved the program in a solvent state for many decades and will continue to do so for many more decades to come.
On the budget: Name three federal agencies that should be targeted for budget cuts to reduce our nation's deficit?
Barber: We shouldn't arbitrarily target agencies for cuts-we should be targeting waste, duplication and failed programs. We should consolidate offices that perform the same function and require discretionary programs to prove their effectiveness. We should take steps to eliminate subsidies for Big Oil companies who are making record profits, but not paying their fair share. And, we should crack down on agencies to prevent lavish events like those recently exposed at the General Services Administration.
Kelly: The best way to handle the budget is to fund constitutionally mandated priorities and obligations to seniors and veterans, like Medicare, Social Security and TRICARE. We also need to pay interest on the debt. We must ask ourselves if it's worth borrowing money from China when looking at the rest of the budget.
Manolakis: After a preliminary investigation of large scale federal programs, e.g., Education and Environment no pressing substantial need for cuts to these type of programs were found needed. But at this immediate time the necessity is to develop work task forces to cut the fraud out of Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.
On illegal immigration: How do you propose dealing with the estimated 11.5 million illegal immigrants already living in the United States, 360,000 of whom reside in Arizona?
Barber: First, we must secure the border. Our immigration system is broken; we need tough, fair and practical reform, like the kind of bipartisan solution that Senators McCain and Kyl have proposed. I don't support amnesty, but support a guest-worker program helping local industry and ensuring legal entrance and return. I support the DREAM Act - children brought to America by their parents should be allowed to earn citizenship by serving in the military or attending college.
Kelly: First, we must secure the border. Our region contains three border counties. The trafficking and violence in these areas are having a very negative impact on the district. It is premature to discuss any kind of guest worker program until the border is fully secured, but I can clearly state that I will never support amnesty for those who have illegally entered the United States.
Manolakis: Illegal immigration plan: Contain criminal elements. Send the rest back to where they came from. Enroll those qualified into the Dream Act program. Infuse the rest into community work programs in the fields of education, the environment and health care.
