Results 1 to 2 of 2
Like Tree2Likes

Thread: Ernst, Braley spar over immigration in first Iowa Senate debate

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

  1. #1
    Administrator Jean's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2006
    Location
    California
    Posts
    65,443

    Ernst, Braley spar over immigration in first Iowa Senate debate

    By Seth McLaughlin - The Washington Times - Sunday, September 28, 2014



    INDIANOLA, Iowa — In the first debate showdown in the pivotal Iowa U.S. Senate race, Rep. Bruce Braley and state Sen. Joni Ernst butted heads over the thorny issue of immigration — and the definition of “amnesty.”

    Mr. Braley, a Democrat, said that Congress has missed an opportunity to fix what he called the nation’s broken immigration system, because House Speaker John A. Boehner, Ohio Republican, has refused to take up a bill that passed the Senate with the support of Republican Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Marco Rubio of Florida.

    “Will you join John McCain and Marco Rubio in calling on Speaker Boehner to bring this immigration bill to the floor of the House so we can pass it?” Mr. Braley asked Mrs. Ernst.

    Mrs. Ernst, a Republican, said that Congress should “secure the border,” “enforce the laws on the books” and then move to “modernize” the legal immigration system.

    She said, “I don’t support amnesty” and said she is opposed to President Obama taking executive action to “grant amnesty” — which some conservatives fear he will do after the 2014 mid-term elections.

    “I do support bringing a lot of these illegal immigrants forward, but not granting them amnesty,” she said. “We have 5 million people waiting in line right now to receive U.S. citizenship and we need to honor that commitment to those people.”

    Mr. Braley shot back that “Sen. Rubio and Sen. McCain did not vote for amnesty” by supporting the Senate immigration bill, which would grant quick legal status to most illegal immigrants and create a new specific pathway that would let most illegal immigrants get citizenship in about 13 years.

    “Amnesty is when you break the law and there are no consequences,” Mr. Braley said. “That’s why they voted for this bill. It has real serious tough consequences including an admission that you broke the law.”

    After the debate, the Ernst campaign clarified that the candidate believes the Senate immigration bill amounts to “amnesty.”

    The spat over immigration came during an hourlong debate here at Simpson College, where the candidates attacked each other’s records and sparred over raising the eligibility age for Social Security, increasing the federal minimum wage and whether Obamacare can be fixed.

    Mr. Braley painted Ms. Ernst as a tea party obstructionist who would have teamed up with likes of Sen. Ted Cruz when he was blamed for shutting down the federal government.

    Mr. Braley called himself a “bridge builder,” not a “bridge burner.”

    Ms. Ernst ridiculed the idea that Mr. Braley was bipartisan, bringing up a feud that erupted with his neighbor earlier this year over chickens.

    “Congressman, you threatened to sue a neighbor over chickens that came onto their property,” she said. “You’re talking about bipartisanship, how do we expect as Iowans to believe that you will work across the aisle when you can’t walk across your yard?”

    She also played up her Iowa roots, saying she is a mother and a soldier, alluding to her military experience as a lieutenant colonel in the Iowa National Guard.

    The debate was sponsored by the Des Moines Register and KCCI-TV. The candidates are scheduled to face off twice next month.

    With 36 days to go before Election Day, Mr. Braley and Mrs. Ernst are locked in one of about ten races that could determine whether Republicans can pick up the six seats net they need to seize control of the Senate during the final two years of the Obama administration.

    The Des Moines Register released a poll over the weekend that showed Mrs. Ernst had opened up a 6-percentage-point lead over Mr. Braley.

    http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...igration-in-f/
    Support our FIGHT AGAINST illegal immigration & Amnesty by joining our E-mail Alerts at https://eepurl.com/cktGTn

  2. #2
    Super Moderator Newmexican's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2005
    Location
    Heart of Dixie
    Posts
    36,012
    Wow: Joni Ernst suddenly opens a 6-point lead in Iowa

    by JOHN HAYWARD 27 Sep 2014


    Teacups are rattling in the hands of Democrat consultants across the land, as another closely-watched neck-and-neck race suddenly turns into a big lead for the Republican candidate... and it's the race to fill the seat left behind by left-wing dinosaur Tom Harkin, no less. The Des Moines Register calls it the latest twist in an "amazing race":
    The ground under Bruce Braley has shifted.

    The Democratic U.S. Senate candidate is 6 points behind his GOP rival, Joni Ernst, according to The Des Moines Register's new Iowa Poll of likely voters.

    Ernst leads 44 percent to 38 percent in a race that has for months been considered deadlocked. She leads nearly 4-1 with rural voters, and is up double digits with independents.

    "Very interesting, and good news not just for Ernst but also for the GOP's chances of taking the U.S. Senate," said national political prognosticator Larry Sabato of "Sabato's Crystal Ball."

    Just seven months ago, political analysts considered Braley almost a shoo-in for a seat held for 30 years by liberal Democrat Tom Harkin.

    And just yesterday, as George Will noted at the Washington Post, the RealClearPolitics average had Ernest ahead by a statistically insignificant 0.2 points. Will found it troubling that Ernst wasn't further in the lead, because she's a likable candidate, while Braley is a train wreck who symbolizes everything voters hate about Washington this cycle, from the V.A. scandal to ObamaCare:

    The Ernst of the primary season talked about the Harley in her driveway, the pistol in her purse and the possibility of impeaching the president. Today her less exotic persona talks about the feeble economy, the perils of Obamacare and Braley’s record, including his pride in having given in the House the culminating argument for Obamacare, which he still thinks is splendid.

    Then there is his interesting path to his current position on the Keystone XL pipeline, which he favored before he opposed it. In 2012 he voted for construction and for removing the requirement that the president approve construction. He now opposes Keystone, which makes his position conveniently congruent with that of Tom Steyer, the billionaire who is dispersing millions of dollars to support candidates who share his opposition to Keystone. Steyer’s NextGen Climate super PAC has spent $2.6 million attacking Ernst. Politics is an inherently transactional business, but Braley’s fretting about money in politics — he is operatically indignant about the Koch brothers — is notably selective. So far, Ernst’s campaign and independent groups advocating on her behalf have spent about $2 million less on ads than Braley’s campaign and supporting groups have spent.

    Braley is also quite the gaffe machine, with the Des Moines Register suggesting that a big one he dumped early in the campaign is still hurting him:

    Some of the vulnerabilities for Braley, a lawyer and eight-year congressman: He isn't winning in his home district, in northeast Iowa. Two-thirds of likely voters think it's a problem that he missed a large percentage of Veterans Affairs Committee meetings in the U.S. House. Fifty-nine percent think his role in crafting the Affordable Care Act, often called Obamacare, is a problem.

    And he's suffering badly with rural voters. Only 15 percent support him compared with 58 percent for Ernst. One potential reason: Two-thirds of likely voters who live in the country are bothered by a remark he made about Republican U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley that's been perceived as besmirching farmers.

    "I think he has an attitude about the voters and life in general which was indicated by what he said about Chuck Grassley," said Democrat Dianna Fuhrmeister, a poll respondent who grows garden vegetables for a living in rural Iowa City. "He thinks he knows better than us."

    Braley's remark, made at a private fundraiser in Texas last winter, seemingly disparaged Iowa's popular 33-year senator for being a farmer, not a lawyer. Braley apologized to Grassley after the caught-on-tape remark was released in March. But that gaffe and others prompted the national political news outlet Politico last week to slot Braley's campaign as No. 1 on its list of "the worst campaigns of 2014."

    He's behind in his home district? Ouch.

    The usual caveats about polling apply here: it's only one poll, and as the Des Moines Register is careful to note, there's still enough time for the tide to turn again in this volatile race. (But not much time, and unless Ernst self-destructs, it's hard to see much happening in the next few weeks that would be a game-changer for Braley, or most other Democrats for that matter, which is why news of a 6-point breakout in Iowa will cover many a forehead with sweat.)

    Let's suppose this is a real breakout that other polls back up, and Ernst suddenly developed a six-point lead over the past couple of weeks. One reason might be heightened concerns about national security and the not-war against the non-Islamic Islamic State; Republicans generally benefit from that issue, and Ernst is a veteran. George Will mentions that Republican governor Terry Branstad is doing extremely well in his re-election bid, so his coattails are probably helping Ernst.

    And maybe this race is further evidence of the theory I mentioned a few days ago: the tidal pull of President Obama's hideous approval numbers created an approval ceiling Democrats can't get beyond, but they were able to beat Republican numbers down with a massive negative ad blitz (you know, the kind they scream to high heaven about when it's directed at them) and temporarily equalize some races in late summer. Now that fall has arrived, however, the effects of the blitz are wearing off, and undecideds are breaking for the Republicans. It will be very interesting to see if Ernst's lead holds up through the next round of polls, and if more undecided movement occurs in some other tight races.


    http://www.breitbart.com/InstaBlog/2...t-lead-in-Iowa

Similar Threads

  1. Senate candidates spar during final debate-Nebraska
    By Mayday in forum illegal immigration News Stories & Reports
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 09-15-2014, 04:53 PM
  2. Iowa’s Ernst has raised fears of Agenda 21 conspiracy
    By JohnDoe2 in forum Other Topics News and Issues
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 08-13-2014, 06:18 PM
  3. Iowa Senate Race: Ernst (R) Leads Braley (D) in Three Separate Polls
    By kathyet2 in forum Other Topics News and Issues
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 06-10-2014, 01:51 PM
  4. Sarah Palin: JONI ERNST FOR U.S. SENATE FROM IOWA
    By AirborneSapper7 in forum Other Topics News and Issues
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 06-07-2014, 07:20 AM

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •