Friendly, issues-oriented debate overshadows 7th District name-calling

May 03--It was a dream setting for the League of Women Voters of the Lehigh Valley.

All but one of the candidates for the 7th Congressional District showed up Wednesday at Northampton Community College.

The Alumni Hall meeting room was packed, with more than 100 attendees who demonstrated respect for the candidates and the league's rules about speaking out.

And the candidates fired off position after position on more than a dozen serious public issues, from abortion rights to the recent GOP tax changes to immigration.

Even as mailboxes in the district were stuffed Wednesday with candidate Susan Wild's flier proclaiming that fellow Democrat John Morganelli "really loves Donald Trump," the candidates refrained from personal attacks and kept the focus on the issues. That included the lone Republican, Dean Browning, whose pro-Trump positions stood out around the primarily liberal positions taken by the others.

There would be some moments that elicited murmurs from the crowd, usually over Browning's positions supporting building a wall along the entire U.S. border with Mexico and removing federal guarantees of student loans.

But Browning also elicited surprise from some in the audience when he said the federal government should decriminalize possession and use of "certain levels" of some drugs.

The candidates largely supported a bill now in Congress, the "End Pensions in Congress Act," or EPIC Act, which would end congressional pensions.

Attendees applauded -- there were a few moments of bending the League's hold-your-applause rule -- when Greg Edwards, a church pastor who receives no pension now, agreed with the bill and said representatives should be paid in line with the median income of their district.

"Let them tie their economic fate to that district," he said.

Morganelli said he "generally" agrees with the bill, saying it would be a "great way to have term limits."

Morganelli after the program acknowledged that he will receive a pension from Northampton County when he leaves his position as district attorney.

The Democrats on the panel bemoaned Citizens United, the Supreme Court case that opened the floodgates to political spending. Lehigh Valley Active Life CEO Rick Daugherty called it a "national security threat" by opening the possibility of foreign influence.

David Clark railed about Republican financiers Charles and David Koch, brothers who have spent heavily on Republicans and conservative causes.

"They own Congress," he said, "and now they own the Supreme Court."

But Browning, the lone conservative, supported the court ruling, saying it's a free speech issue.

Again, Browning said he was proud to tout his membership in the National Rifle Association, while the Democrats said they would not accept NRA funding -- which probably would never come their way, some noted.

Browning also called for defunding Planned Parenthood, putting him at odds with the Democrats, including Daugherty and Morganelli, who oppose abortion with exceptions.

Attorney Susan Wild said adjudicating the exceptions would bring the government back into the woman's decision to give birth or have an abortion.

"I don't support abortion, I support choice," Wild said.

She also drew support from the audience on another women's issue, saying Congress should have a representative percentage of male and female members.

The candidates also largely supported government health care programs such as Medicare and Medicaid.

On Social Security, Lafayette professor Roger Ruggles said he is turning 65 this year, and said it's "paramount" to protect it. Others supported raising the taxable income level to boost Social Security revenues.

Republican Marty Nothstein was the only candidate not in attendance.

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