Rather lengthy article so only posting here a portion of the article.

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General Assembly, school candidates spar at election forum

October 6, 2008

Mike Wilder

Candidates for the N.C. House and Senate and the Alamance-Burlington Board of Education answered questions about issues including the economy, immigration and schools at a forum Monday night.

The forum, held at the Paramount Theater in downtown Burlington, was sponsored by the Times-News and radio station WPCM.

Races on the Nov. 4 ballot that were highlighted during the forum include:

N.C. Senate District 24: Democratic Sen. Tony Foriest and Republican challenger Rick Gunn squared off in the race to represent a district that includes Alamance and Caswell counties.

Foriest, elected to the Senate in 2006, said his "one objective is a better Alamance and Caswell counties" and said he is not linked to special interests. He said the legislature has made strides in education, health care, jobs and the environment.

Gunn, of Gunn Realty in Burlington, described himself as a "businessman and not a professional politician," and added, "I think government should be run like a business."

Both candidates were asked about the state's role in dealing with illegal immigration.

Foriest said illegal immigration is a "threat to North Carolina's physical and economic security" and said both the state and local governments are making efforts to limit the negative impact. He mentioned a requirement that people prove legal status before getting driver's licenses, but said that and similar measures won't address the core problem.

"I don't want people to get a false sense of hope," he said, calling illegal immigration primarily a national problem that requires action from the federal government.

He also called for caution so that people who have come to the United States legally aren't targeted and warned against avoiding measures that would create a "Gestapo kind of state."

Gunn said illegal immigration "puts a great burden on our health care (and) puts a huge burden on our schools." He said people in the country illegally have contributed disproportionally to gang activity and drunken driving.

He said he has less confidence than Foriest in the federal government's ability to handle illegal immigration and said the state and local governments need to be heavily involved.

www.thetimesnews.com