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Nov. 3–Candidates for the 2nd District state Senate seat debated jobs, health care and negative campaigning in a forum Thursday at the American Justice School of Law. The debate was sponsored by the school’s Democratic and Republican law caucuses. The candidates are incumbent Bob Leeper, an independent; Carroll Hubbard, a Democrat, and Neil Archer, a Republican. The district is composed of McCracken, Marshall and Ballard counties. Both Hubbard and Archer said a state senator must do more to attract businesses to far western Kentucky. “We are way behind,” Hubbard said. Hubbard said as state senator he would support incentives to bring ethanol and biodiesel processing plants to the area. He would also appoint a committee of 50 people to work closely with the governor to garner more state incentives for far western Kentucky. Archer said the state needs to become more business-friendly and that technical training needs to begin earlier in the education system. He said he had recently spoken to a meeting of 15 plant managers. “Their one request is ‘We want a trainable workforce,’” he said. It’s important to “make a clear path” for businesses, he said. “We need to look at those things that impede a new business or prevent an existing business from growing.” Leeper said he has worked consistently to attract new businesses to the area and that he would continue to do so. “We have to run government by doing what’s right at the right time for the right reasons,” he said. On the issue of health care, the candidates agreed that the federal government has most of the power to create reform, but each thought state government also has a role. Leeper said a constitutional amendment to ensure medical malpractice reform is necessary. “There’s nothing driving costs down,” he said. “It’s something we need to look at.” Archer said it is necessary to “get government out. Let private industry back in.” He predicted that health savings accounts will become ever more popular. “We need to be working on that in state government and understanding it,” he said. Hubbard said a compromise is necessary between Democrats and Republicans to ensure health care coverage for all Kentuckians. He mentioned a measure now under consideration in Massachusetts which would financially penalize all but the smallest companies if they didn’t provide coverage to their employees. All three candidates also spoke out against negative advertising. Archer said it detracts from people’s ability to understand the real issues in a campaign. Hubbard predicted that state GOP ads aimed against him would ultimately backfire. Leeper said he thinks such ads ultimately diminish voter turnout. In closing statements, all the candidates talked about why they were the best man for the job. Hubbard said if elected he will close his downtown Paducah law practice Dec. 31 to be a full-time state senator. He will also have frequent town meetings to hear constituents’ views, he said. “I will try to vote the majority of thinking of the people of western Kentucky.” Archer called debates such as Thursday’s “America in action.” “My campaign is driven primarily by my concern for this community,” he said. “I’ve watched it in good times and in bad, and we need leadership.” Leeper said he went to Frankfort to make a difference, and he thinks he has. Voting for him as an independent sends a strong message to other legislators, he said. Kentucky has great potential, he said, “if we could just get to the point where our elected leaders worked together to make Kentucky the place we want it to be. One of the things that’s stopping us is we spend too much time trying to win the next election and way too little time trying to solve the problems.” Credit: The Paducah Sun, Ky.

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