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Archive (2002-2003)

Third District candidates debate pressing issues

By Whitney Lawless

The 3rd Congressional District candidates went to opposite sides of the ring on the issue of teaching abstinence to teenagers as they faced off in a debate Thursday night Oct. 24.

Republican incumbent candidate Chris Cannon and Democratic candidate Nancy Jane Woodside disagreed on whether contraceptives should be promoted among teens or just abstinence.

'I am in favor of teaching abstinence,' Cannon said. 'There is no such thing as safe sex. Contraception''s don''t protect against the horrible diseases.'

'I support health education,' Woodside said. 'I didn''t raise my girls that they had to be abstinent, but rather that they needed to be responsible.'

Illegal immigrants and privatization were also hot topics for debate.

Cannon said illegal immigrants are criminals while they are here. He said there needs to be a way to get them out of the shadows they live in while they are here.

'Illegal is illegal,' Woodside said. 'The INS needs to be funded properly and they need to enforce the laws equally.'

Cannon said the INS is a failure of process, not funding.

The two candidates did not agree upon the issue of privatization of social security either.

'We must change the nature of the problem,' Cannon said. 'The purpose of being a representative is not to solve today''s or yesterday''s problems but to solve future problems.'

'I''m opposed to privatizing social security,' Woodside said. 'I want to go back to a balanced budget; the government should have to live within their budget.'