3rd District Candidates' Debate Sidetracked With Mentions Of Trump, Clinton
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The top contenders in Minnesota's hotly contested 3rd Congressional district squared off for the first time in a debate Wednesday.
Republican Congressman Erik Paulsen and his Democratic challenger, Terri Bonoff, tangled over transportation, taxes, and health care, but most of the debate focused on something else.
The Twin West Chamber of Commerce sponsored the debate. Both candidates highlighted their business experience and willingness to work across the aisle, but the talk kept coming back to Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.
Four-term Republican Congressman Erik Paulsen may be in his toughest campaign yet, and his challenger Terri Bonoff is deploying what Democrats believe is their most effective weapon: Donald Trump.
"I think he's dangerous," she said. "I think the things he says are erratic, reckless and insluting. And the thought of him as our commander in chief frightens me."
Paulsen repeatedly refused to say if he'll vote for Trump, even though he's criticized many of Trump's controversial remarks.
"Donald Trump has not earned my vote," he said. "The candidate that I endorsed this fall is not on the ballot, and that's disappointing."
But voters may have similar feelings about Hillary Clinton. Bonoff says she trusts Clinton to keep America safe, but would not say after the debate if she thought Clinton was honest and trustworthy.
"I support Hillary Clinton for President, and I don't apologize for that," she said. "Would I have done emails the way she did? No. Do I have to defend that? Absolutely not."
Paulsen has won every campaign he's run in the politically moderate 3rd district, even when Barack Obama won the same district, twice. Still, he won't say if, or when, Trump will get his vote.
If you're wondering, the candidate who Paulsen endorsed for President was Florida Senator Marco Rubio, who won the Minnesota Republican caucuses. Rubio now says he is voting for Donald Trump.