Hare, Zinga debate jobs, health care

By Anthony Watt

MILAN -- The candidates for Illinois' 17th Congressional District seat covered a lot of ground in a Monday forum in Milan.

Andrea Zinga, the GOP contender, and her Democrat opponent Phil Hare, spoke on topics ranging from jobs to health care to the Iraq war before scores of people at the Milan Community Center.

Mr. Hare and Ms. Zinga are vying to replace U.S. Rep. Lane Evans, D-Rock Island, who is retiring because of his battle with Parkinson's disease.

Here are some of their stances:

On jobs, both pointed out that the area has lost manufacturing jobs in recent decades.

"We have a shortage of jobs with respectable wages," Ms. Zinga told the audience.

She said alternative energy sources, agricultural research and agribusiness are all areas that could be used to generate jobs in the district.

Infrastructure -- roads, bridges and rail -- needs to be improved to encourage commerce, she added.

"A business isn't going to come in if it can't get goods and people back and forth," she said.

Mr. Hare said he does not support trade agreements like NAFTA, which he said can cost U.S. citizens jobs. He cited the job losses that occurred when Maytag moved to Mexico.

He touted the Patriot Corporations bill, -- introduced this summer by U.S. Rep. Jan Shakowsky, D-Ill. -- which would reward businesses with tax cuts for retaining and expanding jobs in America instead of outsourcing them to other countries.

He also said he fight to keep jobs at the Rock Island Arsenal, and accused the government of doing a lousy job of protecting small business.

On President George W. Bush's tax cuts becoming permanent, Ms. Zinga said the cuts need to become permanent and that the middles class is "being squeezed."

"I am not a tax person," she said, adding that there are too many taxes and too many regulations.

Mr. Hare said he is against the tax cuts, which he said benefit the richest 1 percent of Americans.

"They've had enough," he said.

On veteran's affairs, Ms. Zinga said the state of passing up veterans for job, saying they need to be first in line.

Mr. Hare said veterans need full and complete health care "the way we promised it."

On health care, Ms. Zinga accused Congress of ignoring health care and that problems in that area need to be addressed.

Mr. Hare said he would scrap the Medicare prescription drug benefit plan and create a new one that is easier to understand, and that allows Medicare to negotiate for lower drug prices.

On energy, both candidates said they support researching alternative energy sources.

On abortion, Mr. Hare said having an abortion is a decision that needs to be made between women and their physicians.

Ms. Zinga said she is against abortion.

On the fight in Iraq, Ms. Zinga said how the job will be finished will be a debate for the 110th Congress, but she has been told by soldiers that the Iraqi armed forces are improving. She said the battle either can be kept away from America or waged within its borders.

Mr. Hare said the troops fighting in Iraq need to be properly equipped and the United States needs a better answer as to when Iraq will be able to defend itself.

The forum was sponsored by the Milan Chamber of Commerce.

Copley News Service contributed to this report.

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