Summary of Angle/Reid Senate Debate

After watching last Thursday’s (10/14/10) only televised debate between Sharron Angle and Harry Reid, two observations can be made: they agree on next to nothing and Nevada may be better off without either of them. Here’s a quick breakdown on their positions covered in the debate:

Government Healthcare Mandates:

Reid – Preferred both the state and federal government to use its powers to mandate coverage on insurance companies for certain procedures and tests. Reid attacked Angle for not wanting to mandate coverage for autistic people in Nevada.

Angle – Preferred to let the free-market weed out insurance companies that failed to provide adequate coverage; therefore, government involvement is not needed. Angle defended herself well against the autism attack, citing her many years dealing with autistic children as a teacher.

Foreclosures:

Reid – Completely blames the American banking industry for the home foreclosure issue and stated that the Bush administration, not the Obama administration, holds an equal share of the problem. Reid wants to audit the Federal Reserve as well.

Angle – Stated that Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae were mismanaged and noted that the foreclosure crisis developed and exploded all under Reid’s tenure in the Senate. She agreed that the Fed ought to be audited.

English as U.S. Official Language:

Angle – Supports a constitutional amendment making English the official language of the United States.

Reid – He argued that English is already the official language. This is false, however, as the U.S. Constitution does not provide de jure recognition as English as the official language.

Illegal Immigration:

Angle: Advocated typical conservative arguments for border control and voiced her support for Arizona’s immigration bill. She completely failed to defend her ad attacking Harry Reid’s immigration policies.

Reid: Also waffled on the immigration issue and could not adequately defend his Senate record on illegal immigration.

Role of Politicians in Job Creation:

Angle: This question was particularly geared toward Angle, as Reid had attacked her in an ad about her statement that it was not her job as a Senator to create jobs. In the debate, she rebutted this, stating that her role as Senator was to create a favorable environment for job growth, but to not create jobs directly. She also corrected a previous statement where she called the unemployed spoiled.

Reid: Reid stated that it is his job as Senator to directly create jobs and that his tax policies have yielded many jobs for Nevadans.

Social Security:

Reid: Touted his opposition to President Bush’s plan to partially privatize the system. He attacked Angle, calling her “too extreme” on the issue of Social Security. Reid also assured Nevadans that Social Security is secure for at least the next 35 years and that people shouldn’t be scared of it dissipating.

Angle: She started her argument with, “Man up, Harry Reid,” then began her argument that Social Security is in dire straits. Angle attacked Reid, claiming that under his tenure, he put Social Security funds in a general fund which were then spent on anything. She wants to keep money designated for Social Security protected.

Nuclear Power:

Reid: Opposes Yucca Mountain. He claims that there is not enough water in Nevada to build a nuclear plant in Nevada. He prefers renewable energy, particularly solar.

Angle: Also opposes Yucca Mountain. She wants to abandon the extreme environmental outlook that she perceives to be taking hold in the United States. She refuted Reid’s “not-enough-water” argument, claiming that nuclear power plants can also cool via liquid metal. Angle also advocated using more coal power if necessary.

Department of Education:

Angle: Stated that the Department of Education makes “one size fit all policies that fit no one.” She claims that taxpayers waste $69 billion to pay for the Department of Education just so that the DoE can pass off more unfunded mandates to the states. She also noted that since the DoE began, the quality of education has decreased in the U.S. every subsequent year. Consequently, Angle wants to dismiss the Department of Education.

Reid: Supports the Department of Education and finds their funding of education in the U.S. to be beneficial.

According to Real Clear Politics as of October 18, 2010, Angle has a 0.4 point lead over Harry Reid—a statistical tie.