In the race for the 2nd District seat in the U.S. House, incumbent and Democrat Joe Donnelly is being challenged by Republican Luke Puckett and Libertarian Mark Vogel. The 2nd District includes slivers of eastern Pine and Jackson townships. Vogel did not provide a photo.

State your age, place of residence, and occupation (for incumbent: terms in office). (25 words)

Donnelly: Age: 53. Residence: Granger. Terms in office: one.

Puckett: Age: 39. Residence: Goshen. Occupation: small business owner.

Vogel: I reside in South Bend. I am a healthcare professional, and I have proudly served 10 years in the American military.

State your qualifications for office (incumbent: achievements in office) and reason for seeking election (for non-incumbent: reason for seeking re-election). (75 words)

Donnelly: I am running for re-election to serve as an independent voice for the people of Indiana’s 2nd District. In my first term, I was rated the eighth most independent Democrat in the House of Representatives. Whether addressing the cost of healthcare or the volatile job market, I will continue to work hard to strengthen the economy and provide every Hoosier with the opportunity to raise a healthy family and retire with dignity.

Puckett: As a former missionary, micro-finance specialist, and small business owner, I have a strong understanding of what it takes to create an environment that will allow jobs to be created and people to be successful. I am running for Congress because I believe that we need common-sense solutions and not more Washington politics. If I am elected, I will go to Washington and fight out-of-touch politicians to get our economy back on track.

Vogel: I have taken an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. Our elected representatives have also taken an oath. Unfortunately, many of these officials have no regard for the principles of the Constitution and cherry-pick the parts they like while disregarding the rest. I am seeking to serve the Americans in Indiana’s 2nd District who want our nation to return to the Constitutional principles in which it was founded.

What, in your view, are the key issues in this race. (100 words)

Donnelly: The struggling economy continues to be a strain on working families and Hoosier businesses. I believe Congress must move quickly to protect the savings and investments of middle-class families, while cracking down on the Wall Street investors who recklessly gambled with our economic futures. Our nation must also get serious about energy independence. Only when Democrats and Republicans work together to take an “all-in” approach will we end our dependence on foreign oil. That is why I support efforts to expand domestic exploration, as well as investments in conservation and renewable energy sources like wind, solar, nuclear, and Indiana biofuels.

Puckett: The economy, energy independence, healthcare, and national security are some of the key issues that our country confronts at this time. We must strengthen our economy so that jobs can be created and people can continue to have the opportunity to fulfill the American dream. We must become energy independent and build a bridge to the future of alternative energy solutions. We must put patients and their doctors at the center of a new healthcare model designed to personalize treatment. Finally, we must maintain a strong national defense that stands as a deterrent against those who would harm us.

Vogel: The key issue in this race involves a return to Constitutional principles. I will work to dismantle the Federal Reserve; overturn the 16th Amendment; eliminate the IRS; return America to sound money principles; get the U.S. out of the UN; stop spending billions and trillions of dollars for foreign aid; prosecute the Wall Street bankers who defrauded the American people out of billions of dollars; work to repeal NAFTA, CAFTA, GATT, the WTO; stop the NAFTA superhighway; stop America’s global adventurism and interventionism; and support and defend the right of the people to keep and bear arms.

State your position on the Iraq War. (50 words)

Donnelly: I believe that our involvement in Iraq should be dictated by our own national security. We must continue to work with the Iraqi people to rebuild their police force, military, and infrastructure so that they can govern themselves and our brave men and women can begin to come home.

Puckett: Our nation needed to go into Iraq to eliminate threats to our national security, to root out those who supported, or could support, radical Islamic terrorists. Unfortunately, after the invasion mismanagement led to an avoidable protracted struggle. Today, however, we are seeing the success of the bold surge implemented in 2007 and must not withdraw before complete victory.

Vogel: I deplore our elected officials’ disregard for the Constitution. The Constitution assigns the power “to declare war” to the Congress, not the President. I condemn the presidential assumption of the authority to use our brave men and women in uniform as global cops for the United Nations.

What kind of health insurance initiative would you support? Speak specifically about the costs of any such initiative and sources of funding. (75 words)

Donnelly: We can cut costs for families and small businesses now by fully funding Community Health Centers, which provide medical services for the underinsured and uninsured. I also support legislation to establish national health insurance pools for small businesses and the self-employed to expand healthcare options and lower costs. I look forward to working with the next president and members of both parties to find solutions that expand affordable and quality healthcare to all Americans.

Puckett: I do not support socialized medicine or nationalized healthcare. We must reform our approach by putting patients and their doctors at the center of the system with third-party entities outside of that relationship. We need to expand individual access to health insurance by allowing people to purchase insurance across state lines.

Vogel: I support a return to free-market healthcare. The government is responsible for the high cost and corporate interference of healthcare today through the passage of the HMO Act of 1973 and the ERISA Act of 1974. This forced businesses to provide HMO coverage for their employees and provided tax credit to the employers but denied the same tax benefit to the employee. Please visit my website at vogel4congress.com to find out more information.

For Donnelly: You voted in favor of the so-called “bailout package.” Respond to critics who call that legislation a bailout for Wall Street and a betrayal of Main Street. (50 words)

Donnelly: The vote was not a bailout of Wall Street. It was a vote to protect the jobs, savings, and investments of people right here in Porter County. I will continue to fight to protect Hoosiers‚ investments and jobs, while cracking down on the Wall Street investors who recklessly gambled with our economic futures.

For Puckett and Vogel: State your position on the so-called “bailout package.”

Puckett: My opponent, Joe Donnelly, voted twice in favor of the $700 billion bailout package that you must now pay for. I am opposed to taxpayer-funded bailouts of over-regulated companies and mismanaged government enterprises. We should not be mortgaging our future and our children’s future for the sake of Washington politicians.

Vogel: The bailout package demonstrates how the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. I condemn our elected officials for the perpetual transfer of wealth from the poor and middle class to the rich. Instead of prosecuting the criminal bankers who defrauded the American people, our elected officials give them billions of dollars of our hard-earned money.

State your position on abortion.

Donnelly: I am pro-life, and I am very proud of my pro-life voting record in Congress. Like many Hoosiers, my pro-life position is rooted in my personal faith. I will continue to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to protect the sanctity of life.

Puckett: I am pro-life and will work to protect the sanctity of human life. I will stand up for those who have no voice because the foundation of our liberty is respect for human life. I am the only candidate in this race who has been endorsed by Right to Life.

Vogel: I am pro-life. I do not believe Roe v. Wade will be overturned. Therefore, I support legislation that will restore authority of the state to protect the life of unborn children, and amending the federal judicial code to remove Supreme Court and district court jurisdiction over this matter.

Posted 10/24/2008