Davis, Londrigan battle over health care, tax reform

Oct. 16--Meeting face-to-face for the first time, U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis, R-Taylorville, and Democratic challenger Betsy Dirksen Londrigan sparred Monday evening over everything from Davis' support of GOP efforts to gut the Affordable Care Act to the tax reform bill that passed last year.

The race is one of the closest-watched in the country, being one in a handful that could determine which political party controls the U.S. House come January.

The two candidates presented two starkly different visions, with Davis crediting the country's record-low unemployment and economic state to Republican policies, while Londrigan criticized Republican efforts to repeal the ACA and the at-times erratic nature of the Trump administration's trade policy.

Londrigan, of Springfield, has made health care the central issue of her campaign, saying that Davis' vote last year to repeal the Affordable Care Act is what motivated her to run. She said the issue is personal, as her son, Jack, would have died from a rare illness stemming from a tick bite in 2009 if the family did not have quality insurance.

"What I know to be true for our family is that if we had not had access to good care, we would have lost our son," Londrigan said. "And if we had not had good insurance at the time, it would have bankrupted our family. I can tell you that the only thing that makes our family story unique is that it's ours."

Londrigan said that Davis' support of the American Health Care Act of 2017, the Republicans' ACA replacement bill, would have gutted protections for those with pre-existing conditions and made insurance expensive for many people.

Davis countered, however, the bill included protections for pre-existing conditions. Noting that his wife is a survivor of colon cancer, Davis said he would not have supported the bill if the protections were not included.

"I have protected it every single time that I've cast votes," Davis said. "And when I cast that vote for the American Health Care Act, I sat at the table negotiating those protections. I knew they were there and I know they're there."

The AHCA would have created "high-risk" insurance pools to cover people with pre-existing conditions, though estimates from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that, if the bill were signed into law, an additional 24 million people could be left uninsured.

Davis, wherever he could, emphasized the country's current economic performance, saying the boom can be credited to the tax reform bill he voted to pass last year.

"We have historic low unemployment in this country right now because we've been able to work together to actually enact good policies in Washington that gets Washington out of the way ... of job creators and entrepreneurs right here in central Illinois," Davis said.

Londrigan said the economic boom has not reached everyone, however, calling it "a giveaway to corporations and special interests."

"What we need to do is focus on growing our economy from the middle class out," Londrigan said. "We know trickle down doesn't work, so let's quit trying to pretend that it does and let's look at a real change."

Davis said he would like to make the temporary middle class tax cuts in the bill permanent but said the bill as passed measured as a promise made, promise kept.

"The tax cut bill is working," Davis said. "You can't argue with 3.7 percent unemployment."

Both candidates said they were concerned about the impact tariffs could have on local farmers, but differed on their approach, with Londrigan critical of the Trump administration. Davis said the administration is producing results.

"China singlehandedly tried to decimate our domestic steel industry, costing 2,000 steel workers jobs at the Granite City steel facility," Davis said. "Eight hundred of those workers are back to work right now because the Trump administration actually did what he said he was going to do during the campaign, which was to hold China accountable. He also said he wanted to renegotiate trade deals and we're seeing the results."

The candidates agreed that Robert Mueller's investigation into potential Russian interference in the 2016 election should continue until it reaches its natural end. They both voiced support for comprehensive immigration reform, though Londrigan does not support building a border wall as Davis does.

Davis said he is against the administration's policy of separating children from their parents at the border unless human trafficking is suspected.

Each said they were disappointed in the tone of the campaign, with Davis complaining of an outside group's use of images of his children while Londrigan criticized Davis for supposedly lying about her background in an ad.

The diagonally shaped district, which includes cities like Bloomington, Champaign, Decatur and Springfield that add an urban element to the otherwise rural constituency, was drawn by state Democrats, who controlled the last redistricting process, to give the party a better chance to compete.

The effort has not borne fruit, however, as Davis -- after eking out a close win in 2012 -- won by comfortable margins against Democratic challengers in 2014 and 2016, and President Donald Trump carried the district by six points.

But with a favorable political climate nationally, Democrats believe they have their best chance in years to knock out Davis.

Though party leaders have publicly expressed confidence that Davis will hold the seat, even releasing an internal poll showing him leading by double-digits, they appear to be taking nothing for granted.

In September, a super PAC with ties to GOP House leadership announced plans to spend $1.5 million to help re-elect Davis. And on Friday, Vice President Mike Pence headlined a fundraiser for Davis in Springfield.

Democrats, for their part, appear to be more bullish on Londrigan than they were earlier in the cycle. She received the endorsement of former President Barack Obama in early October after being a notable omission from his first slate of endorsements in August. And Londrigan's campaign has announced plans to campaign with civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis in Decatur on Tuesday.

Contact Brenden Moore: 788-1526, [email protected], twitter.com/brendenmoore13.

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