Taxes, Iraq, abortion: Fawcett, Lamborn duke it out

Dick Foster, Rocky Mountain News

Published October 6, 2006 at midnight

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CANON CITY - The once "safe" Republican congressional seat in Colorado's 5th District officially swung into play Thursday night as Democratic challenger Jay Fawcett and state Sen. Doug Lamborn waged their first one-on-one debate for retiring Rep. Joel Hefley's seat.

For 45 minutes, Fawcett and Lamborn debated their dramatic differences on taxes, Iraq, abortion and immigration before an audience of about 100 in the City Council chambers, sometimes showing the intensity of the election campaign with biting, angry outbursts at one another or the audience.

At one point, Lamborn snapped at a heckling audience member, "Excuse me sir, why don't you just shut up."

At another, one audience member muttered "bulls----" to one of Faw-cett's statements.

The seat held by Hefley for the last 20 years has never gone to a Democrat since its creation in 1972, but a bitter Republican primary has divided the party, and Hefley refused to endorse Lamborn, who he said ran a "dirty" campaign.

Fawcett, a retired Air Force combat veteran and Air Force Academy graduate has exploited his credentials in a district laden with military personnel. He quickly made his experience an issue Thursday night debating Lamborn, who never served in the military.

Lamborn told the audience,"Iraq is the central front in the war on terror. We don't have any choice. We have to fight that war. If we were to cut and run, that would send a horrible message to our enemies. They would know that America doesn't have the resolve to do something that's difficult."

But Fawcett responded, "I've actually been in the western desert of Iraq with a rucksack and a rifle. When we look at the cost of this war, and what we're getting out of it, we need to end it."

He added later, "I'm not willing to fight to the last drop of somebody else's blood."

Fawcett urged withdrawal of U.S. troops to the borders of Iraq to block the incursion of foreign fighters, training Iraqi forces to take over the country's defense, and intense diplomacy with neighboring countries to establish stability in the region.

Iraq dominated the debate, leading to disagreements over energy policy.

Lamborn urged "market solutions" and opening of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling. Fawcett said ANWR was insufficient to replace Middle East oil consumed by the United States.

Fawcett urged development of alternative energies, saying dependence on oil "sends our young men and women in harm's way to secure resources of oil."

Fawcett also chided Lamborn repeatedly over his pledge to "never raise taxes" while proposing continuation of the Iraq war, funding shortfalls in veterans' benefits and health care, controlling illegal immigration, and developing new water storage projects for Colorado.

"That sounds like a pretty big expenditure of public funds," Fawcett replied. "Where are we going to get the money for that if we don't raise taxes?"

Fawcett and Lamborn agreed that marriage should remain defined as an institution between a man and a woman, but Fawcett favored protecting the legal rights of partners in same-sex relationships.

The two candidates are scheduled to debate next week in Colorado Springs and are negotiating two additional debates.

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