Esch, Terry Square Off in First Debate (Update)

Aug 21, 12:49 PM CST

2nd Congressional District candidate Jim Esch knows that Nebraskans deserve a Congressman that is willing to work for effective energy policy, and he didn’t waste any time in getting to the point in today’s debate:

Democrat Jim Esch has come out swinging against incumbent Republican Lee Terry on energy issues in Nebraska’s 2nd District House race.

Esch blamed Terry on Friday for not doing enough to solve the nation’s energy crisis problems during the Republican’s eight years in Congress.

You can cast your vote on who won the debate here.

This release was sent out by the Esch team after the debate:

JIM ESCH FOR CONGRESS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Joe Sibilia

Terry Drops Ball on Energy Issue
Seven years on House Energy committee and no effective Energy plan

Omaha Neb. – Jim Esch criticized Lee Terry for his ineffectiveness on an issue Terry claims his finger prints are all over today in an Energy debate held by KFAB. Terry has been on the House Energy committee for seven years and he has failed to come up with a comprehensive Energy plan.

“If the people of this district want different results, we cannot keep sending the same people back to Washington,” Esch said.

During the debate, Esch referenced an editorial written by Lee Terry 2000. In the editorial Terry recognizes the country is facing an energy crisis. Terry says his inability at that time to develop an effective energy plan was due to the Clinton Administration. Terry now says his inability to develop an effective energy plan is due to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

“Lee has spent seven years on the House Energy Committee, six of those years he had Republican House, Senate and President, and he hasn’t done anything,” Esch said. “The people of this district deserve better.”

Rather than working on a solution to the energy crisis, Terry recently spent time over in Washington playing ‘make believe Congress’ over the Congressional break.

“A solution on our energy crisis needs to be crafted from the middle, and Lee should have been working on a bipartisan solution rather than participating in a party stunt,” Esch said. “We need to change the partisan behavior in Congress. Leaders on the energy issue are working across party lines to craft a solution. That is exactly what I will do as your Congressman.”

Esch supports Represenatives Neil Abercrombie (D-HI-1) and John Peterson (R-PA-5) in their bipartisan effort for an energy solution, the National Conservation, Environment and Energy Independence Act. Terry has since signed on to the bipartisan bill, but continues to promote the republican energy plan.

“I’m glad to see that Lee signed on with a bipartisan bill, but I question his commitment to the bill when he continues to play partisan games in Washington,” Esch said.

–30–

UPDATE:

You can listen to the debate here.

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  1. Terry was his usual bumbling moronic self in this debate. He mentions manage our economy, he has had plenty of time to do so. Gas prices will go down if we drill off our own shores he claims, tell me how much the OIL COMPANIES are paying him to say that. Give it up Terry, your only interest’s in being our Congressman are your salary and helping those special interest groups.
    — rob daniel    Aug 21, 05:16 PM CST #
  2. Lee Terry works for Lee Terry. He is a “Good Ol’ Boy” politician without the vision needed for public service. In my neighborhood, he supported his elitist friends who wanted special treatment-our community ended up paying $ THOUSANDS for the privilege of “special” mail boxes to satisfy a narcissistic few. Lee Terry is all about Special Interests at the cost of average citizens. Beware-it’s easy to fall out of grace with an amoral politician.
    Furthermore, Lee Terry’s self-proclaimed expertise on the benefits of corn-for-energy went all against the scientific facts of the issue. I would urge his supporters to look into the folly of tapping into artesian wells, the plight of the Ogallala reservoir and to review the history of the Dust Bowl.
    — Dawna Robertson    Aug 24, 09:15 AM CST #

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