Hot buttons hit in District 66 forum

Hot buttons hit in District 66 forum
Candidates offer their prescriptions for area's social ills
By LYNN CAMPBELL
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
October 18, 2006

Forget political correctness.

Radio talk show host J. Michael McKoy on Tuesday steered the four candidates for Iowa House District 66 in Des Moines through a frank discussion of hot-button issues ranging from prostitution to gay marriage to illegal immigration to TouchPlay.

"Everyone knows that District 66 is a pit of drugs, prostitution and homeless people," McKoy said during a three-hour candidate forum on the talk show "Mac's World" on 98.3 KWQW-FM.

Democrat Ako Abdul-Samad, 55; Libertarian Brett Blanchfield, 31; independent Jeff Johannsen, 44, and Republican Jack Whitver, 26, are vying to represent the district in the heart of Des Moines. The seat is open due to Rep. Ed Fallon's unsuccessful bid for the Democratic nomination for governor.

The candidates acknowledged problems in the district and called for more drug treatment, job training, education and neighborhood collaboration to tackle problems. Highlights of Tuesday's forum included:

- Gay marriage: Only Blanchfield said he would support gay marriage. He said government does not have a right to be the one to "split hairs" between same-sex marriages and civil unions, or to tell churches which couples should be recognized. "The state should not get involved with that," he said.

- Cigarette tax: Only Whitver said he would increase the state's cigarette tax. He expressed frustration at House Speaker Christopher Rants blocking the effort earlier this year. "That tax had a wide amount of support," he said. The other three candidates said they do not support raising taxes.

- CIETC: Blanchfield questioned Abdul-Samad's ability to oversee taxpayer spending. Abdul-Samad is a former board member of the Central Iowa Employment and Training Consortium, which is under investigation for using taxpayer money to pay excessive salaries. He's also founder of Creative Visions, which was recently audited but cleared of wrongdoing. "Creative Visions has been exonerated," Abdul-Samad said. "As for CIETC, I am not being accused of mismanaging any money."

- Homeless shelter: Although it's not an issue for the Legislature, none of the candidates favored moving the Churches United homeless shelter to the proposed location south of Interstate Highway 235 and east of Keo Way. Blanchfield called the move "irresponsible," while Abdul-Samad said it was too close to children in the Homes of Oakridge.

- TouchPlay: All candidates voiced opposition to TouchPlay, the Iowa Lottery devices that looked like slot machines and were banned by the Legislature this year. Only Johannsen indicated a willingness to bring them back to some degree, but not in areas such as grocery stores that are frequented by children.

- Illegal immigration: Candidates voiced support for fining businesses that employ illegal immigrants. However, Johannsen, who's president of a catering and vending business and has had immigrants work for him, said government needs to do its job keeping up with the paperwork on the issue.

- Campaign finance: Whitver spoke most vehemently about not accepting money from political action committees, and said he turned down money from U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley's PAC. "It does make it tough, but it's the right thing to do," he said. Blanchfield said limiting PAC money is a slippery slope. "Money is a form of free speech," he said. "It is a limitation of free speech to say you can't send your money to this."

- Experience: Johannsen, a co-founder of the Downtown Neighborhood Association, criticized Whitver for his lack of experience and for moving into the district within the last two months. "Pay your dues," he scolded. Whitver, a businessman and former Iowa State University football player, shot back that he shouldn't be attacked for being one of the youth who chose to stay in Iowa.

- Priorities: If elected, Blanchfield said he would lower taxes and bring power away from government and back to communities. Johannsen would address poverty in the district. Whitver would address the "education crisis" by investing more in the classroom, while Abdul-Samad would remove drugs, address the homeless and put education on a level playing field.

Democrats outnumber Republicans among the district's registered voters, 54 percent to 14 percent. McKoy downplayed the importance of party affiliation in the race. "I'm not sure that the donkey and the elephant are going to matter as much as individual ideas and people who are running," he said.

House District 66 includes downtown Des Moines and areas surrounding it: Sherman Hill, King-Irving Park, River Bend, Capitol Park and some of the south side. District boundaries include 28th Street on the west, East 18th Street on the east, Jefferson Avenue on the north and Park Avenue on the south.