Hawley, McCaskill face off in first debate
In a forum sponsored by the
Hawley, who became
McCaskill, who described herself as a "moderate," scolded Hawley for name-calling and said compromise is an important trait in the
"You fix the
The debate is one of only two scheduled so far. The second forum is tentatively set for
Hawley and McCaskill focused mainly on their differences on issues ranging from the confirmation process of
On Kavanaugh's confirmation, Hawley said, "I would absolutely vote 'yes.' I've been very disappointed, I have to say, that
McCaskill, who is seeking her third term, said she has voted for two-thirds of Trump's court nominees. But, she said she has not made up her mind on Kavanaugh as she reads through various reports and documents.
McCaskill, who supports abortion rights, made no mention of abortion as an issue in her decision on the conservative Kavanaugh.
Rather, she said, "I am concerned about some of his opinions on dark money."
Hawley, who joined a lawsuit that would end the Affordable Care Act, said he supports keeping requirements for insurers to cover pre-existing medical conditions.
McCaskill said Hawley is doing the "Potomac two-step" on the issue because if the lawsuit is successful, coverage of pre-existing conditions will no longer be mandated by the federal government.
"He wants the whole thing thrown out and he knows there's nothing there to back it up," McCaskill said. She challenged Hawley to file an amendment to the lawsuit excluding pre-existing conditions from the legal action.
The duo also parted ways on the trade war launched by Trump.
McCaskill said farmers will face years of difficulty rebuilding the markets where they sell their products because of Trump's actions.
"The tariffs are a two-by-four, and we need a scalpel," said McCaskill, who called the trade war "disastrous."
Hawley said the trade imbalance needed to be addressed and that farmers should receive assistance if tariffs are having an effect on their income.
"If we're going to be in a war, I'm for winning it," Hawley said.
Although
McCaskill said she weighs decisions based on what's best for
"If you want somebody who always agrees with his party, then you want
___
(c)2018 the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Visit the St. Louis Post-Dispatch at www.stltoday.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
American IRA Releases Due Diligence Checklist for Self-Directed Real Estate IRA Properties
North American Politics Headlines at 4:36 a.m. EDT
Advisor News
Annuity News
Health/Employee Benefits News
Life Insurance News