Ed Leather and Jon Scott on the Issues, Part 2

For those First District residents who haven’t made a decision on who to vote for in tomorrow’s Congressional primary, here’s a quick summary of eight of the ten questions asked to Republican candidates Jon Scott and Ed Leather (via WJAR-TV Channel 10) in a program called “Primary Candidates Speak Out" put together by the Rhode Island Broadcasters association. Both gentleman gave articulate and detailed answers to each question that was asked. If you have the time, the original video is worth watching…

What should the US do about illegal immigrants?
Jon Scott believes a compromise between the current House and Senate proposals is needed. He favors the Pence plan – a guest worker program, without amnesty and requiring illegal immigrants to leave the country before becomming guest workers.
Ed Leather says the “illegal alien” problem is a serious one. They cost a lot of money, $300 million-per-year just in RI alone. They bring medical problems like leprosy and tuberculosis. They are a security threat. Many are in our jails. They have broken our laws to get here. Leather opposes amnesty and believes in enforcing laws against employers. The likely result will be most illegal immigrants returning to their home countries. After this step, he would consider a guest worker program.

What should America’s strategy be in the Middle East?
Jon Scott: (Without prompting, Mr. Scott focuses his answer on Israel and Hezbollah). A peace where both sides claim victory is not peace at all. The UN was chartered to deal with situations like this, they need to step up and put together a multinational force that includes Muslim countries. And since Hezbollah has the stated goal of destroying Israel, the stated goal of this force must be protecting Israel from Hezbollah.
Ed Leather: (Without prompting, Mr. Leather focuses his answer on Iraq). As a former foreign service officer and diplomat, I know there is information that neither I nor the general public is privy to that is needed to make the best decision. With that caveat, I believe that Iraq must be stable before we leave there. Leaving Iraq unstable asks for more 9/11s.

What should be done about rising fuel prices in the short and long terms?
Jon Scott is not sure that there are really any short term fixes, but would consider a gas tax amnesty. In the long term, he believes that conservation should be an option but, ultimately, the problem will not be solved until regular people, people with no ties to the oil industry, go to Washington and work on finding alternative sources of energy.
In the short term, Ed Leather would eliminate gas and fuel taxes. In the long term, he believes in funding more research into clean energy. The US has a 400 year supply of coal available at home, so we should develop clean-coal technologies and increase our usage of coal.

What should be done about healthcare?
Jon Scott begins by noting that the problem is with health insurance, not healthcare. The first step is allowing people to purchase insurance across state-lines, so they can escape local mandates that unnecessarily drive up prices. Also, the government is wasting money by trying to make health information technology integration into a government-controlled project.
Ed Leather begins by saying that the US has the best healthcare in the world, with great training and tremendous professionals. The problem is deciding how much we are willing to spend to extend the system. Also, eliminating healthcare for illegal aliens would free up monies that could be used elsewhere.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

The first four questions are available here.

Mr. Scott and Mr. Leather both talk issues on their campaign websites. Anchor Rising conducted interviews with both gentlemen earlier in the election season, which are available here and here. Both candidates have made it clear that they believe that America's goal with respect to terrorists should be defeating them, not learning to live with them.