8th District debate highlights

Democratic U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean of Barrington and Republican challenger Joe Walsh of McHenry are the major party candidates who were in a forum Wednesday night at Grayslake Central High School. Some of the evening's highlights follow:

On tax relief:

Bean: “Well, I'm very proud of cutting taxes, but also doing it in a responsible way. Unlike one of my opponents (Walsh) who has supported eliminating the Department of Education, which could affect school funding, certainly, and student loan programs families count on, I think that's an irresponsible approach to fiscal responsibility.”

Walsh: “I will say unequivocally, I will always support tax relief. The more we cuts taxes, the more we're going to grow the economy, which will lead to greater revenues for our government. Education is a state and local issue. There's probably not anybody up on this stage that doesn't see and value the importance of good public schools in this country. But like so many issues we argue and debate about how to get there, we've had a Department of Education for 30 to 40 years and you can't show me one statistical analysis that anything at the federal level at the Department of Education has done any good for our schools.”

On the health care bill:

Walsh: “When my opponent voted for Obamacare at the end of March, our campaign for two full weeks got a hundred e-mails and calls a day from folks and they all said the same thing: ‘I've never been involved in politics until now, but now I've had it. Miss Bean voted against her district and voted for a piece of legislation that she knew this district didn't want.' And this district has made that opinion very clear prior to the vote and for the last eight months.”

Bean: “The health care reforms I supported and my opponent, Joe Walsh, would repeal, were because I heard from so many families across this district since I came to Congress. When I first came to Congress, it was the No. 1 issue that I heard about.”

On gun control:

Walsh: “I am solidly pro-gun. I am a solidly pro-Second Amendment candidate. I think it's an embarrassment that Illinois is not a concealed-carry state. All the evidence, all the statistical analysis in this country shows us that when a state brings in concealed-carry, crime goes down and violent crime goes down.”

Bean: “I fully support Second Amendment rights, but I do wholly disagree with my opponent, Joe Walsh, when he said the ban on assault weapons is ridiculous. I think it's OK to limit cop-killer bullets. I think we should have common-sense protections to keep guns out of the hands of felons, children and the mentally ill.”