House candidates denounce negative campaigning during debate

JASPER, Ind. -- Candidates in the 9th District Congressional race used the second and final debate before Tuesday's election as a platform to deride the negative campaigning that has come to dominate the race.\nRep. Mike Sodrel, R-9th, came out swinging in his opening remarks, embracing the nickname "Millionaire Mike," which he has been dubbed in ads run by Democratic challenger Baron Hill. \n"Oddly enough, that's one of the few things my opponent has said about me that's true," Sodrel said.\n"If you play Hoosier Millionaire everyone cheers for you ... If you work 60 to 80 hours a week for 30 years and make thousands of people middle class, you're a dirty guy." \nSodrel made his fortune as head of a trucking company. \nDespite Sodrel and Hill signing a clean campaign pledge in August, both candidates and the parties representing them have run television ads and mailed fliers portraying each other in a negative light.\nHill said he only started running attack ads when Sodrel ran his first ad, which Hill claimed attacked him.\n"I tried to stay positive as long as I could," Hill said.\nHe also offered to take down his ads for the remainder of the campaign if Sodrel did so as well. Sodrel did not respond to his request.\nLibertarian candidate and IU-Southeast economics professor Eric Schansberg criticized both of his opponents' tactics, accusing them of being more concerned with gaining power than issues.\n"A vote for Sodrel and Hill is an endorsement of their campaign tactics," he said. "Why should you reward either of them for acting like 4-year-olds?"\nWrite-in candidate Don Mantooth, a private detective and Indianapolis police officer who also participated in the debate, also expressed dislike for attack ads.\n"Maybe neither of them are right," he said. "Maybe they're both right. That's scary."\nThis is the third time Hill and Sodrel have faced off for the 9th District seat. Hill served as representative from 1998 to 2004 when Sodrel defeated him by fewer than 1,500 votes.\nDuring the debate, Hill made several references to corruption in Congress, promising changes in Congress if re-elected. He has said that he will work to establish a new House Ethics Committee made up of former members of Congress, but both Sodrel and Schansberg took aim at that stance.\n"I think what Baron's offering is spare change, pocket change," Schansberg said. \nSodrel agreed.\n"In all these issues you hear my opponent talk about how Washington is a mess. One of the reasons for that is I haven't been there long enough to clean things up," Sodrel said.\nTopics covered in the debate included Social Security, tax reform, energy independence, the Iraq War and immigration.\nHill said time tables need to be set for when the Iraqi government can take control and troops can be withdrawn in an "honorable way," while Sodrel said a firm time table will provide insurgents with too much information. \nSchansberg promised to work for an immediate troop withdrawal, and Mantooth said the problem is that no clear conditions have yet been set.\nOn immigration, Sodrel said more needs to be done on imposing border security rather than imposing penalties on small businesses that employ illegal immigrants.\nHill advocated the opposite, saying that going after employers will give people less incentive to cross the borders. He said he believed fences are not going to keep everyone out.\n"I've seen the videos," he said. "They're very agile. It's unbelievable the way they can get under or over fences"