Republican special election candidate John Lervold said Monday that no federal program should be above scrutiny when it comes to budget cuts - not even defense spending.
Voters had a chance to find out where Lervold stands on several issues during a 1 1/2-hour online chat Monday on the Arizona Daily Star's website, www.azstarnet.com. It was the first of five scheduled chats with candidates in the Congressional District 8 special election to fill former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords' seat.
"The defense budget is not sacred or above being looked at," Lervold said. "However, there are vast numbers of absolutely irresponsible, unconstitutional places your money is being spent, and I think we should start there before we go to something which is an enumerated power of the federal government, such as defense."
Lervold is a U.S. Army veteran who works as an interrogation instructor at Fort Huachuca in Sierra Vista. This is his first run for public office.
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Pressed for more details on where to cut the budget, Lervold advocated for removing stimulus funding, which he called "spending which subsidizes failure and puts the government in the business of picking winners. Remember - when the government picks winners, everyone loses."
Lervold said that he is pro-life, anti-affirmative-action and believes the health-care overhaul should be reversed. He also said he is a staunch supporter of the Second Amendment, which he said gives people the right to keep and bear arms, period. "We need to look at punishing people for committing actual crimes with guns, not punishing people for having guns," Lervold said.
Lervold is one of five Republicans running in the GOP primary, along with state Sen. Frank Antenori; sports broadcaster and businessman Dave Sitton; Jesse Kelly, who narrowly lost to Giffords in 2010; and former Air Force fighter pilot Martha McSally.
On StarNet: To read the entire chat transcript, go to http://live.azstarnet.com/
New date for McSally chat
Republican Congressional District 8 candidate Martha McSally's online chat has been changed to noon Tuesday, Feb. 28. McSally was originally scheduled to participate in a StarNet chat on Thursday, but the date was changed to avoid possible traffic and access conflicts with the Rodeo Parade, which will pass the Arizona Daily Star offices that morning.
Contact reporter Brady McCombs at 573-4213 or bmccombs@azstarnet.com
