Minnick wants to make a difference
By JESSICA KELLER
ARGUS OBSERVER
Friday, October 31, 2008 11:06 AM PDT
FRUITLAND — A business man for almost all his life, having run two successful companies, and a Republican before he became a Democrat, Idaho U.S. House of Representatives candidate Walt Minnick said he believes he has all the necessary components to be an effective and responsible leader in Congress if elected.
Minnick, an Idaho resident of 36 years, is challenging Idaho 1st District U.S. Rep. Bill Sali (R-Idaho), and is wrapping up a busy campaign in northern Idaho, after stopping briefly to tour Weiser’s hospital Wednesday afternoon.
Interested in politics for a number of years now, Minnick said his experience with both parties will help break through the partisanship rampant in Washington D.C.
“I think people are really frustrated with the intense partisanship in Washington,” Minnick said.
Instead of working together to hammer out legislation based on common sense, progress has been delayed by exchanging insults and bickering, he said.
Raised a Republican, Minnick worked in former President Richard Nixon’s administration on drug policy but grew disillusioned with that party after the Republicans “lost control of their fiscal discipline” he said.
He also disagreed with the direction the Republican Party was headed when, he said, social conservatives took over the core party, and social issues became the litmus test for governing, which he said drove out a number of Republicans from the party.
“The government became too intrusive,” he said.
Minnick did not immediately become a Democrat, but instead was an Independent before switching. Minnick said he believes he can effectively operate in the halls of Congress because he is not interested in partisanship, but in working with both parties to come up with responsible legislation that will help get this country back on track in a time of much uncertainty.
Minnick describes himself as a conservative Democrat who favors fiscal responsibility.
“I think you can argue about what you spend, but after that you should (be able to) pay for it,” he said.
He also describes himself as a civil libertarian with moderate social views. He does not think the government should take away people’s guns. He also believes “the government should stay out of the bedroom.”
Minnick said he disagrees with where this country has been headed economically and globally. Getting the economy back on track, continuing to support education and reducing the country’s reliance on foreign oil are three things he believes in strongly and are what he will work toward if elected.
“They’re all issues that have been mired down in partisanship,” he said, adding he is determined to help solve some of those problems by working with both parties to develop effective legislation.
Minnick said the war in the Middle East has gotten out of hand and way too expensive, both in terms of human life and financial cost.
“Our focus should be on terrorism and not policing the world,” he said.
He favors bringing the troops out of Iraq and renewing the focus on capturing bin Laden and dismantling al Qaida.
He also has a number of ideas on how to build up the economy again and said one those ways is to get rid of all pork-barrel spending, most of which does not go toward beneficial programs and projects. For those programs that should be supported, he said they should compete for the funding, like many grant programs, and reviewed and decided upon by committee before included in legislation.
Minnick also said the government should reevaluate how money is spent in tough economic times, and said he disliked the recent $700 billion bailout because it failed to include a number of key components, such as a payback program by those companies that benefited.
“I would have opposed the bill had I been voting on it,” he said.
Minnick admits he will be happy when the election is over and said he feels fairly confident about his chances of being elected. He said, his race with Sali is a fairly close one, and the outcome all depends on how people vote on Tuesday.
For more information on Minnick and his platforms, visit www.waltforcongress.org.
