Indiana’s U.S. Senate candidates debate in Indianapolis

Indiana U.S. Senate Candidates Republican Dan Coats, Democrat Brad Ellsworth and Libertarian Rebecca Sink-Burris squared off at a debate on the IU-Purdue University Indianapolis campus Monday night.

The candidates answered questions from the audience as well as from the moderator Mizell Stewart II, the editor of the Evansville Courier & Press, on a range of issues including campaign contributions, abortion and sex education and partisan politics.

CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS

Paulette Vandegriff from Greenfield, Ind., asked the candidates to address the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in the Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission case, and the U.S. Senate’s inability to reach a vote on a bill that would require disclosure on campaign contributions.  

Coats said people need to know who is running political races and he regrets that the First Amendment allows outside groups to put up advertisements about the candidates.

With the time left, Coats took the opportunity to argue that Ellsworth has received more special interest money percentage wise than any other candidate running for U.S. Senate.

In response, Ellsworth argued that Coats actually raised three times the money he raised in the last financial report and more importantly, Coats has more than 100 special interest groups he dealt with personally while working as a lobbyist in Washington, D.C.

“I don’t think he is going cast a vote in Senate without a conflict of interests,” Ellsworth said.

Sink-Burris followed by saying she has taken no money from special interests and she is running her campaign with small contributions.

PARTISAN POLITICS

On the issue of partisan politics, all three candidates had separate stances.

Ellsworth said his career in law enforcement gave him experience in resolving disputes and he supported bringing civility back to Washington.

“It wasn’t about Republicans and Democrats, it wasn’t about black and white, we just went and tried to solve a problem,” Ellsworth said. “These problems that face our economy are not just Republican and Democrat problems. No one has a corner on the market on good ideas. We should be working together.”

Coats argued that the issue isn’t bringing back civility, but rather keeping the Democratic Party responsible.

“We don’t go there and sing Kumbayah across the aisles, we have to hold this party responsible. That’s absolutely in the wrong direction, plunging us into debt,” Coats said.

On the other hand Sink-Burris said the only way to change the atmosphere in Congress and the Senate is to send a Libertarian candidate to Washington.

“The Republicans are running us off a cliff of death in government spending at 60 miles-an-hour and then the Democrats came in and blew right past all of Bush’s records and are driving off that same cliff at 90 miles-an-hour,” Sink-Burris said. “You can’t count on old parties to change, it just isn’t going to happen.”

ABORTION

Amy Olson Clifford the development manager at Hoosier Oncology of Indianapolis asked the candidates to state their position on sex education and abortion.

Sink-Burris said abortions should be rare and safe, but never paid for by tax dollars.

On the issue of sex education, Sink-Burris said she supports giving parents the right to send their children to a school of their choice, whether it includes sex education or not.  

“Personally as a parent, I found the earlier the better you should talk to your children about these issues,” Sink-Burris said.

Dan Coats said sex education and birth control is not the responsibility of the government or the state government.  

“It is a decision that ought to be decided between parents and their children,” Coats said.  

Brad Ellsworth was in agreement with both candidates. He said he is a pro-life democrat and all life needs to be respected.

This was the first of the three Indiana U.S. Senate debates for the 2010 election. The next will take place Oct. 22 in Fort Wayne, Ind., and the last one will take place Oct. 25 in Vincennes, Ind.