OLYMPIA, Wash. — On Tuesday, longtime U.S. Representative Adam Smith and his challenger Doug Basler made their case to voters ahead of the Nov. 8 general election, outlining their priorities if elected.
They're running for the District 9 seat, which covers areas of King and Pierce counties, including portions of Seattle and Bellevue, south to Federal Way and Tacoma.
Representatives are elected to a two-year term and serve people in specific districts. The number of voting representatives for all 50 states in the U.S. House is no more than 435.
In the debate on Tuesday, Basler said his top priority would be to get energy prices and inflation "under control." Smith said the focus needs to be on affordable housing, along with healthcare.
Doug Basler
Basler, a Republican and Kent business owner, said the "out of control spending Adam keeps voting for" in Congress needs to stop. Federal spending, he said, needs to be cut and the government needs to stop printing money.
"Simple economics tells us that if you add more money to the money supply, the money that we have will devalue," he said. "So we're seeing out of control inflation based on these policies."
He also said the "energy situation" and rising gas prices are a factor, with more being spent to move goods and services and consumers paying the price.
Basler added that the government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic was an "overreaction" and that economy should never have been shut down like it was. The supply chain was not drastically disrupted by the pandemic, he said.
Citing the Bible, Basler said, "it's the sick, not healthy that need a doctor." By shutting things down during the pandemic, the country has "devastated an entire generation of children out of two years of school.
"This overreaction to this pandemic is absolutely a national disaster and a national disgrace," he said.
Adam Smith
Rep. Smith, who has served in Congress since 1997, said affordable housing is his top priority, calling it one of the biggest challenges in the Ninth District and Puget Sound region.
Housing prices in the area are putting economic pressure on residents, he said, adding that the cost of healthcare is part of the issue.
Improving affordability, he added, isn't just about energy prices - it's food, housing, and healthcare.
He said the pandemic, along with Russia's invasion of Ukraine, did and still is impacting the supply chain. Things aren't cheaper because a Republican or Democrat is in the White House, he said.
"Neither one of those things is going to change because you happen to elect a few Republicans," Smith said of the pandemic and war in Ukraine, adding that helping Ukraine stop Russia will help with inflation.
As far as the "out of control spending" Basler talks about goes, Smith said the spending during the pandemic is what helped businesses and people survive.