LOGAN – The winner of the debate between candidates for Utah’s 1st District seat in the House of Representatives on Oct. 8 was – hands down — Natalie Gochnour, the moderator of the face-off held at the Eccles Conference Center on the campus of Utah State University.
Unlike members of the national media who refereed earlier debates between presidential and vice presidential candidates – and drew bitter criticism for their heavy-handed bias – Gochnour delivered exactly what she promised in her introduction to the event.
“We are looking forward,” she said, “to a lively and civil debate with the goal of giving Utah voters first-hand exposure to the candidates and good information for decision making.”
Then the respected associate dean of the David Eccles School of Business and director of the Ken C. Gardner Policy Institute at the University of Utah bent over backwards to give each of the candidates a fair chance to voice their views.
Without running roughshod over the three candidates — U.S. Rep. Blake Moore (R-UT), Democratic challenger Bill Campbell and Daniel R. Cottam, a Libertarian – Gochnour kept the 60-minute debate on track and on time.
As the incumbent representative of the 1st District, Moore spent much of his time defending his two terms in Congress and explaining his mostly bi-partisan legislative accomplishments.
“Moore and his special interests have enjoyed extensive perks and privileges over the past four years,” Campbell said, speaking directly to the residents of the 1st District. “Good for them.
“My mission is to make the next four years good for you,” he added.
“If Hill Air Force Base is a special interest,” Moore acknowledged, after being given 15-seconds to respond to Campbell’s sniping, “then sign me up!”
For his part, Cottam tried to paint himself as the voice of non-partisan reason.
“People have prioritized their convenience over liberty and spending over restraint on both sides of the (political) aisle,” he observed.
“Libertarians are the only ones with a consistent message of prosperity for all Americans and I can be part of that (if elected).”
As the evening went on, Campbell began to sound like a Republican, espousing Utah values of family, faith and freedom; protecting America’s interests including voting security, health care and financial accountability; and integrity, business experience and passionate commitment to community involvement.
There was remarkable unanimity of the candidates’ opinions on the topics of international relations (the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East) and illegal immigration. As always, however, the devil was in the details as they explained them.
“Immigration isn’t complex.” Cottam said simply. “Don’t let anyone in except people who aren’t going immediately apply for welfare benefits.
“What we need is a big wall with a big door that swings both ways.”
The only time that the debate came close to getting out of control was during a discussion of mandatory spending by Congress, when Campbell bluntly called out a prior statement by Moore as “bulls–t!”
The Democrat quickly apologized for his outburst, attributing it to his frustration with continued excuses from members of Congress over their inability to curtail out-of-control spending.
The 1st Congressional District event was sponsored by the Utah Debate Commission.
All of the UDC debates for the 2024 general election are being held on the campuses of universities across the state in an effort to involve both students and the members of the public, according to Mary Weaver Bennett, the chair of the commission’s University Committee and the Director of the Center for Politics and Public Service at Southern Utah University in Cedar City.
The face-off between candidates in the running for the seat in the U.S. Senate now occupied by Mitt Romney (R-UT) will take place on Thursday, Oct. 10 at Weber State University in Ogden.
That event will feature U.S. Rep. John Curtis (R-UT), Democratic challenger Caroline Gleich and Carlton E. Bowen, an Independent.