Daily Nebraskan Voters' Guide
THE CONGRESS
Government’s role divides candidates
zna congressional
District candidates
Christensen and Davis
say they hold the
majority of public views.
By Brian Carlson
StaffReporter
Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional Dis
trict race has unfolded as a clash be
tween opponents who find little com
mon ground in political matters and
disagree about the government’s role
in the United States’ future.
Incumbent Republican Congress
man Jon Christensen and Democratic
challenger James Martin Davis dis
agree on most political issues, but each
claims to represent the majority views
of the people of the 2nd District.
Christensen, 33, is seeking his sec
ond term in Congress following an
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Hoagland in 1994. The former insur
ance salesman said his campaign phi
losophy is built around support for a
balanced budget amendment, tax relief,
and stronger sentencing for criminals.
Christensen praised the Republi
can-controlled 104th Congress for
eliminating $53 billion in annual dis
cretionary spending from the federal
budget, thus helping to trim the fed
eral budget deficit.
“We’ve tried to do exactly what we
said we would do,” he said. “That’s my
campaign motto.
“Given a chance at a second ses
sion in control of Congress, we can
complete some of the things we’ve
started to do.”
Christensen said he has tried to
keep his campaign message simple and
is “confident that my views fall in line
with the majority of ray constituents.”
Christensen voted for the proposed
balanced budget amendment to the
U.S. Constitution, which passed the
House of Representatives but was de
feated by one vote in the Senate last
year. He favors Republican presiden
tt
Jon Christensen’s policies support only
the top 20 percent of our economy. My
vision for America is a positive and all
inclusive one, of opportunity, hope, and
promise.”
James Martin Davis
tial nominee Bob Dole’s plan for an
across-the-board tax cut of 15 percent,
saying citizens have a right to keep
more of their money.
Despite voting to repeal the federal
ban on possession of assault weapons,
Christensen said stronger sentencing
for criminals is essential for control
ling crime rates in the United States.
He criticized Davis for character
izing tougher criminal sentencing as
“asinine.”
But Davis, a 50-year-old Omaha
attorney, said fighting crime is (me of
his top priorities and questioned
Christensen's credentials fa- leading
that fight.
During his law career, Davis has
prosecuted and defended alleged crimi
nals and has participated in actual ar
rests and raids.
Davis said Christensen’s plan for
fighting crime reactively ignores the
fact that criminals rarely know or even
consider their punishment before com
mitting a crime.
He praised President Clinton’s
1994 Crime Bill, which provided for
100,000 additional police officers and
various inner-city crime prevention
programs.
Davis also said education will be a
M
My campaign message boils down to
three very simple things. One, we support
a balanced budget amendment. My oppo
nent opposes it. We support tax relief. And
I am the only candidate in this campaign
who supports stronger sentencing for
criminals.”
Jon Christensen
Military Service: U.S. Army, 1968-70. Served in Vietnam,
1969-70.
Political: Party affiliation is Democrat Has not sought political office until now.
vital issue in the future and criticized
Christensen for favoring the elimina
tion of the Department of Education
and decreased funding for student
loans.
Christensen said education is a lo
cal issue and should not be subject to
federal intervention.
Davis criticized the 104th Congress
for being full of “ideologues who are
unwilling to compromise,” and said it
is the most anti-educational, anti-en
vironmental Congress in history.
He said Republican leaders showed
their lack of leadership by shutting
down the government and bringing it
to the verge of defaulting on the na
tional debt.
“The hallmark of leadership is the
ability to appear in front of a group of
people, bring them together and move
them forward—not divide them,” he
said.
Davis said Christensen’s policies
reflect a commitment to just the top 20
percent of the economy. Davis said he
would fight for the concerns ofa wider
base of die population.
“Jon Christensen believes the bot
tom line of government is the dollar,”
he said. “But in my view, the bottom
line of government is the people.”
Barrett, Webster agree on little in 3rd District
111 1 ' ■■ 1 1 - 1 . —— ' -■ — ■ ■ ' — ——— I . mumum - ■ "" ' i
By Kasey Kerber
Senior Reporter
It started with a disagreement on
who would be permitted to run in
Nebraska’s 3rd District congressional
race.
Now, Republican incumbent Bill
Barrett and Democratic challenger
John Webster agree on very little.
Barrett, who was unopposed at the
time of the May primary, won the GOP
nomination and received enough write
in votes to claim the Democratic and
Libertarian nominations, as well.
“I then had to make a decision of
whether to run for all three,” Barrett
said. “But I’m a Republican, and I
chose to run on the Rebulican ticket.”
The result was Democrat John
Webster’s late entrance into the race,
which the Republican party challenged.
A district judge ruled that Webster
could run.
Barrett said the law cited that al
Education
College in
Waf Military Experience: served in u.s. Army
—campaigned for Democratic presidential candidates Hubert Humphrey in1972 and Gary
l"^tertW campa,Sn8- Hart hi 1984. Became the Democratic nominee hi western and central Nebraska's 3rd
Elected to the U.S. House hi 1990; reelected hi 1992 and 1994. District late in the election year when he filed on July 11.
.. ■ ’ ' - - - 1 .— ' -* ■-—-!-1 '
lowed Webster to enter the race was
probably intended to be used in the
case of a candiate’s death.
“I hope the law will be eventually
changed,” Barrett said. “If it’s not, then
what is the need for a primary elec
tion?”
Outside the election controversy,
Barrett and Webster agree cm little.
Barrett, a three-term representative
from Lexington, said he is proud of the
farm bill he helped introduce last year.1
1
Barrett also says action must be i
taken to reform Social Security now. i
Webster said/there is ample ftmd
ng for Social/Security, but that “we
leed to be careful that we’re not spend
ng those funds for anything else. We
teed to just leave them alone.”