MOLINE, Illinois – The two candidates for the 17th Congressional District in Illinois could not be more different.
Democrat Cheri Bustos is seeking a third term to represent western Illinois including the cities of Rockford, Galesburg, Peoria, and the Illinois Quad Cities.
Her opponent is Republican Patrick Harlan, a truck driver and insurance salesman who is the president of the Knox County Tea Party.
They both appeared on the WQPT public television station program “The Cities” with News 8 anchor Jim Mertens.
The 30-minute conversation started with the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.
Rep. Bustos wants to “fix” what’s wrong.
“We now have 20 million additional insured Americans,” says Bustos. “So what I would say is let’s fix what is broken, my voting record reflects that I’ve voted to fix what’s broken, but let’s keep what’s working and there’s plenty that’s working.”
But Harlan couldn’t disagree more.
“The government doesn’t have the authority to be able to tell you what kind of health care you’re allowed to have,” he said.
“Health care is not a right.”
The two candidates were also asked about the future of Medicare and whether it should be expanded. Reforms for the troubled Veterans Administration were also debated.
The discussion ended with talk about the budget and the possibility of a hike in the debt ceiling in 2017. This last segment of the program grew more personal as the candidates tried to differentiate their positions.
The program aired on Quad Cities public television station WQPT, public radio station WVIK, television stations in Rockford and Peoria, and on WQAD News 8.