[Vision2020] 10-28-04 Daily News: Moscow debate features no debate

[Art Deco aka W. Fox]

Moscow debate features no debate



By Alexis Bacharach Daily News staff writer

A Moscow Civic Association sponsored candidate debate turned into a rally for 
Democrats on Wednesday, when Republican candidates failed to show up.
State Rep. Shirley Ringo was scheduled to debate the issues with her Republican 
opponent, Earl Bennett.

Likewise, Democrat candidate Mark Solomon was scheduled to debate the issues 
with his Republican opponent, Rep. Tom Trail.

All but one of the local Republican candidates in various state and county races 
refused to attend two MCA sponsored debates.

The Republicans claimed the community organization is stacked with Democrats 
and, therefore, incapable of sponsoring an unbiased debate.

"I'm horrified the opposition failed to attend tonight's debate, and their 
reasons for not attending simply don't hold water," Ringo said. "It amuses me 
almost, that they had the time to wander around town and see whose signs you had 
in your yards."

Solomon described the "Republican-created" controversy over the MCA debates as a 
"tempest in a teapot."

"None of the other forums we've attended have allowed the candidates to really 
debate the issues back and forth," he said. "I was looking forward to exploring 
and discussing the issues facing the Legislature one-on-one with my opponent."

Instead of a debate, Ringo and Solomon sat side by side, representing the 
Democratic Party in Idaho.

"The one-party system in Idaho is highly dysfunctional," Ringo said. "The very 
conservative Republicans will pick candidates in the primary elections to 
eliminate the moderates in their own party. They attempted to get rid of Sen. 
Gary Schroeder in the latest primary."

Audience members submitted written questions for the candidates on notecards. 
They seemed particularly interested in taxes, education and the climate in the 
Legislature.

One audience member asked Ringo and Solomon how to curb "the anti-public 
education" sentiment among Idaho lawmakers.

"The only way is to change the make-up of the Legislature," Ringo said. "If the 
Republicans start to feel threatened by the other side, you will start seeing a 
lot of changes, I think."

Ringo said education will never get a fair shake until there is more than one 
party in the Idaho Legislature. Even the State Board of Education is partisan, 
she added.

"We have to do something about the board of education. It is just totally out of 
control," Ringo said. "Last session I introduced legislation that would make the 
board of education bipartisan. In fact, Idaho code states board members should 
be appointed by the governor, and that no consideration shall be made with 
regard to party affiliation. Every appointed member on the board is a 
Republican."

Ringo and Solomon said it will take more Democrats and moderate Republicans to 
pass tax reform legislation necessary to adequately fund education.

"People at the top 20 percent are paying a smaller portion of income tax than 
the working-class families. There is something wrong with that," Solomon said. 
"Fairness is an issue. Corporations in Idaho are currently paying 29 percent 
less taxes than their peers nationally. The Idaho State Tax Commission said we'd 
gain an additional $159 million annually if we level the playing field."

Solomon said that money could be used to increase teacher pay, repair unsafe 
schools and improve the overall quality of education for Idaho students.

Ringo pointed to conservative Republican leaders in charge of revenue and 
taxation legislation and education legislation. In both cases, she said leaders 
have shown they are opposed to creating revenue and they are opposed to public 
education.

"We have a chairman of the House Education Committee who said, 'comparing a kid 
that went to charter school to a kid that went to public school, is like 
comparing a team that went to a Super Bowl to a team that never made it,' " 
Ringo said. "The chairwoman of the Revenue and Taxation says if she has it her 
way nothing will get out of her committee ...I apologize if I've been too 
partisan tonight, but we absolutely don't need to reward (the Republican Party 
in Idaho) by increasing its numbers."


Alexis Bacharach can be reached at (208) 882-5561, ext. 234, or by e-mail at 
abacharach at dnews.com.
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