Richard Burr and Erskine Bowles, North Carolina candidates for U.S. Senate, accused each other of going against past votes and actions as much as they debated policy points at a Monday night debate at the University of North Carolina television studios in Research Triangle Park.
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. — Richard Burr and Erskine Bowles, North Carolina candidates for U.S. Senate, debated trade policy, health care, national security and other pressing issues Monday night at the University of North Carolina television studios in Research Triangle Park. The candidates accused each other of going against past votes and actions as much as they debated policy points, as arguments converged at moderate positions in attempts to court the swing vote.
Burr, a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives, and Democratic rival Bowles have each spent millions in campaign advertisements touting their differences, but the candidates found themselves in agreement on a number of issues Monday night. When moderator Carl Kasell, a National Public Radio anchor and North Carolina native, questioned the candidates on the topics of gay marriage, the Patriot Act and gun rights, the candidates’ responses were remarkably similar.
Both Burr and Bowles said they opposed same-sex marriage, and both said they would support a constitutional amendment recognizing marriage as a male-female institution.
“None of us ever want to change the Constitution,” Burr said. “But I can’t think of any institution more important in this country than marriage being between a man and a woman.”
Bowles echoed Burr, saying, “I believe marriage is a sacred covenant between a man and a woman... and I’m thankful that in our state we don’t have to recognize marriage in other states.”
Much of the debate between Burr and Bowles centered on the impact of globalization. More than 80,000 North Carolinians in import-heavy industries, particularly textiles and furniture, have lost their jobs in recent years. The candidates charged one another with favoring free trade policies that harm North Carolina laborers. Bowles said he would not support any new free trade treaties until the existing ones are better enforced and accused Burr of opportunistically opposing free trade when he had voted for free trade proposals in the past.
“Richard and I both have a history with trade, and times have changed—I have figured this out, but I don’t think Richard has,” said Bowles, a Greensboro native who served as former President Bill Clinton’s chief of staff but lost a Senate bid two years ago to Republican Elizabeth Dole. “Richard continues to vote for most of the free trade agreements that come down the pipe. Richard, you were for NAFTA; now you say you are against it. You said you were against the Vietnam trade agreements, yet you voted for them four times.”
Burr, a five-term House of Representatives veteran from Winston-Salem, fired back, claiming that Bowles had been instrumental in the Clinton Administration in brokering free trade negotiations, notably deals with China, where he claimed many of North Carolina’s displaced manufacturing jobs have relocated.
“Today, you run from your record,” said Burr, who entered the debates trailing Bowles by 9 percent in most polls. “I stand up for my record. I admit that 10 years ago, I was for NAFTA. Today I look back on it and realize that while it may have been beneficial to the whole country, it may not have been so beneficial to North Carolina. But you know that I voted eight times against China. That’s in the congressional record; you can’t change that. And the fact is, you can’t change your involvement in negotiating that [China] trade agreement.”
The candidates also squared off on health care. With 1.4 million North Carolinians lacking health insurance, both Burr and Bowles emphasized the need for action but focused on different solutions for reform. They battled yet again over past voting records.
“We need to reverse the trends of the balanced budget act of 1997, which was projected to cut health care expenditures by $800 billion,” Burr said. “It closed down nursing homes, and it shut down health care centers.”
Bowles then retorted, “Richard, sometimes you amaze me. You voted for the biggest cut in Medicare history—$270 billion.... We need to bring down the costs of prescription drugs. People are really hurting.”
Doug Keye, Burr’s campaign spokesperson, called the debate a success for Burr and pointed to instances when Bowles’ statements contradicted his past actions. “We were certainly pleased with the debates,” Keye said. “Erskine Bowles is saying that job displacement from free trade is the number one problem. But it’s a problem Erskine helped to create.”
Bowles spokesperson Carlos Monje was also quick to declare his boss the winner. “I think Erskine really conveyed his message,” Monje said. “He really put North Carolina first. Erskine has understood that times have changed, and Richard Burr has not.”
The debate was sponsored by the North Carolina Association of Broadcasters Educational Foundation.
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