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LaTourette, O'Neill both acknowledge crisis. Education, health care also spark interest
By Bob Downing
Beacon Journal staff writer
Published on Monday, Oct 13, 2008
The struggling American economy is the No. 1 issue in the 14th Congressional District race between incumbent Steven C. LaTourette and Democratic challenger Bill O'Neill.
''The economy overshadows everything right now,'' said Republican LaTourette, who has served 14 years in Congress.
Likewise, O'Neill, a nurse and a retired appeals court judge, said, ''Our economy is in crisis.''
The district covers all of Ashtabula, Geauga and Lake counties and parts of Summit, Portage, Cuyahoga and Trumbull counties.
Lake County has 35 percent of the voters in the district, but eastern Summit County accounts for 22 percent and will play a key role in the vote.
In radio advertisements, O'Neill knocks LaTourette for accepting $1 million in campaign contributions from investment firms and contributing to the financial meltdown. That, O'Neill says, is ''unforgivable.''
LaTourette called the ads ''insulting'' and noted that other members of Congress got far bigger campaign contributions from the financial services industry over the years.
He said he voted against the $700 billion bailout of Wall Street because ''it was a lousy piece of legislation.''
Next year, Congress will be working on a new federal highway bill that could produce $4 billion for Ohio and create new jobs, LaTourette said.
Other key issues are education and the cost of health care, he said.
LaTourette said universal health care is unlikely to ever win approval, but he and U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Toledo, have backed an alternate bill to provide help to uninsured Americans.
Northeast Ohio needs to play to its economic strengths: outstanding hospitals and development of biotech industries, he said.
He has mailed out fliers to voters and will rely heavily on television and radio spots, he said.
One of O'Neill's biggest assets is name recognition. His name has appeared five times on the ballot over 15 years in five of the counties. And he sees himself as a stronger candidate than other Democrats who have challenged LaTourette.
O'Neill is a retired judge of the Ohio 11th District Court of Appeals in Warren who twice ran unsuccessfully for the Ohio Supreme Court. His appeals court district covers two-thirds of the 14th District.
O'Neill says voters in the 14th District are angry at Congress and scared about what's happening, which he said makes LaTourette more vulnerable than ever before.
O'Neill supports an end to American troops in Iraq.
If Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., runs strong in Northeast Ohio, as presidential polls are indicating, that could provide a big boost, O'Neill said.
He said radio ads will be one of his biggest weapons in the district.
Bob Downing can be reached at 330-996-3745 or bdowning@thebeaconjournal.com.
The struggling American economy is the No. 1 issue in the 14th Congressional District race between incumbent Steven C. LaTourette and Democratic challenger Bill O'Neill.
Get the full article here.
Comments
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Posted 01:46 PM, 10/13/2008
These two candidates offer two excellent reasons why we need an independent one and a third party. Too bad the game is rigged and all the voter is offered are two wings of the same bird of prey.
