This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2006, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
In a feisty rapid-fire debate, Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch and Democrat Pete Ashdown tussled over terrorism, the economy and abortion.
In this race for the U.S. Senate, the candidates had the same goal - to paint the other as out of touch and a member of a do-nothing party.
Hatch, the 30-year Senate incumbent, and Ashdown, owner of Internet service provider XMission, met Tuesday evening on Salt Lake City's Main Street for a 30-minute debate sponsored by KUTV Channel 2.
Hatch described the Iraq war as a life-and-death fight for Americans, saying if U.S. troops don't continue to fight, overseas terrorists would attempt to secure "a nuclear device."
"They would like nothing better than to come into this country and blow up New York or Washington, D.C.," he said.
And Hatch said the law enforcement authorities granted under the Patriot Act are a primary reason terrorists have not struck here since Sept. 11, 2001.
Ashdown said he would have voted against the Patriot Act, which he believes unnecessarily intrudes into privacy rights.
"Our Founding Fathers would have been appalled at what is happening with our Bill of Rights," he said.
Ashdown told the vocal crowd of mostly campaign supporters that Republicans have "let the doors open on our economy and given it to big business so they can reap the profits on the backs of the American people.
"Why are we giving tax credits to oil companies when they are making record profits?"
He proposed tax credits for small businesses and cuts for the middle class, but to keep his plan revenue neutral, he would have to raise taxes on the wealthy and curb brakes for big business.
"Lets give America a tax break instead of the upper 10 percent," he said.
Hatch argued the poor are being treated fairly, since the bottom 50 percent of wage earners only contribute 4 percent of all income taxes.
He said tax cuts proposed by President Bush took a few years to kick start the economy, but are the main reason unemployment is low.
Hatch criticized the Roe V. Wade decision that allowed abortions, which he called "vicious."
Ashdown said the government shouldn't determine when life begins, rather it should work to curb unwanted pregnancies.
"I argue that 30 years of Republican talk about abortion has done nothing for the situation," Ashdown said. "I want to know why this is the whipping post of the Republican Party that they continually talk about abortion yet they do nothing to prevent it."
Hatch bristled at the comment.
"That was pretty bad," he said. "That was a bad statement."
Hatch said electing Democrats would harm the country and the economy.
"I can guarantee you right now, once they get back there they vote in mass for more spending, more government, more taxes, less security and, look, anybody who doesn't understand that is really not living in the real world."
Agreement between the candidates was sparse. They both support stem cell research and local decisions on open space.
Hatch also agreed with this Ashdown statement, which defines their Senate race - "Everyone in Utah needs to ask the question: Are you better off today than you were 30 years ago?"
The full debate can be seen on KUTV's Web site, http://www.kutv.com. Their next debate is today at 6 p.m. on KSL Channel 5.
Ashdown, Hatch raise money
The latest financial disclosure forms show Democrat Pete Ashdown's fundraising is starting to speed up, but it's still minuscule compared to the money raised by U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch. Ashdown raised $34,000 from Oct. 1 to Oct. 18, including $5,000 from the National Education Association. He now has $27,200 in available cash after raising more than $189,000 since entering the race. Ashdown, the owner of Internet service provider XMission, has also spent $38,000 of his own money. Hatch, who is seeking his sixth term, raised $124,000 in the same period, bringing his total to $5.6 million. He still has $2.8 million in cash.
- Matt Canham