Home
> Authors > Senate
Debaters Tackle Education, Budget
Senate Debaters Tackle
Education, Budget
By
Shannon Snow
October 28, 2004
Reforming California's ailing education system was the key issue
for candidates for state Senate District 13 in a Thursday night
debate at Mountain View City Hall.
Democrat Elaine Alquist, a former state Assembly member who
was termed out in 2002, stressed school reform as her top priority
and cited plans to increase access to higher education.
Republican Shane Patrick Connolly and Libertarian Mike Laursen
said that statewide fiscal control of the school system is hurting
education.
“It’s time to admit that experiment has failed,” said
Laursen, a software engineer running his first campaign for public
office.
California's budget deficit was another concern voiced in the
30-minute forum sponsored by the Cupertino-Sunnyvale and Los
Altos-Mountain View chapters of the League of Women Voters.
Connolly, a financial manager at a local technology firm, pointed
out that state spending is 7 percent higher than state income
levels.
"We have a spending problem, not a revenue problem," said
Connolly, who is in favor of cutting programs he considers unnecessary,
such as the Bureau of Automotive Repair, to bridge the financial
gap.
According to Alquist, last-minute budgeting in Sacramento contributes
to overspending.
“We shouldn’t be passing bills in the middle of
the night or at 3 in the morning,” said the Democrat, who
supports a two-year budget cycle and the creation of a rainy-day
fund.
The candidate were asked what they would do if they could pass
any bill regardless of money. Their answers were less about
their visions for local government and than the crushing realities
of California’s fiscal situation.
"We are not in business to spend money," said Laursen,
who along with Connolly had nothing to propose. Alquist
qualified her goal – universal health care – with
a promise not to spend money the state doesn't have.
Health care proved a divisive issue for the three candidates. While
Alquist supports medical care for all citizens, the Republican
and Libertarian candidates do not. Connolly warned that
Proposition 72 – which would require companies with more
than 200 employees to provide health insurance for their workers – would
move California toward a Canadian health care system.
Clearly the front-runner in the heavily Democratic district,
Alquist was the target of some jabs by her opponents. Connolly
insinuated that she had received 42 percent of her campaign contributions
from special interests and criticized her record in the Assembly
as anti-job creation. Laursen also targeted the Democrat
for excluding minority parties in one of her debate responses.
Answers were clipped in the debate, which allowed candidates
only one minute to respond to questions from moderator Roberta
Hollimon, president of the Cupertino-Sunnyvale chapter of the
League of Women Voters. A question about the five most
important issues in Santa Clara County proved too much of a mouthful
for the candidates. Connolly got through the longest list – four – before
being cut off. All candidates placed education reform on
their lists.
Approximately 30 people, including candidates set to debate later
in the evening, were in the audience. A taped version of
the event will air on KMVT Channel 15 on Friday, October 29, at
10 p.m.
Contact Shannon Snow at ssnow@stanford.edu
