11th congressional district debate: Sparks fly between Smucker and opponent Hollister

Bob Hollister used to be a self-described “life-long Republican.”

After the Jan. 6 insurrection, and after seeing his Republican congressman, U.S. Lloyd Smucker, respond to it, he switched parties and became a Democrat.

And he went further. He is now challenging the three-term incumbent for his seat in the House, running, as he says, as a moderate. During a debate with Smucker on WHTM-TV's “This Week in Pennsylvania,” Hollister, a former school superintendent in Lancaster County, said his stances on issues, and by extension, his campaign, appeals to “moderate Republicans and moderate independents.”

On the other hand, he said, Smucker has endorsed Republican gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano, whom Hollister described as a “fascist,” and Smucker once described former President Donald Trump as “one of the greatest presidents in history,” something he believes is demonstrably false.

Smucker’s response to his opponent’s assertion was to claim that Hollister has chosen “to join the other team” and is supporting “radical leftist policies.”

Smucker on the 2020 election: Why I stood up for voters who questioned the election in Pa. (opinion)

More on Smucker:Smucker fined for 'disregarding' House security screening, bypassing metal detectors

The 10th District:Scott Perry vs. Shamaine Daniels: Some barbs, but little fireworks in 10th District debate

The contrast was amplified during the debate when the candidates were answering the initial questions from WHTM reporter Dennis Owens about Jan. 6 and its causes and fallout.

Hollister changed parties specifically to run against Smucker, unhappy with Smucker’s response to the attack on the Capitol and his vote to reject the results of the election in Pennsylvania - an election, he pointed out, that Smucker won handily. He said Smucker “failed” his constituents in that moment.

Smucker said his opposition to certifying the 2020 presidential election had to do with how the election was conducted, saying that he knows how Lancaster and York counties conduct their elections and election workers in his district “did a great job.”

His position, he said, had “nothing to do with fraud or whether the election was stolen.” His objection, he said, was to “unconstitutional changes” that “disenfranchised voters in my district,” pointing out that voters in some counties were able to correct mistakes made on mail-in ballots while others were not.

He also said that his own electoral results should not be called into question by his position on the 2020 presidential election. Asked whether Trump lost, Smucker said, “Certainly.” But, he added, that “people in my district are very unhappy” with Biden and his policies and that audits of the election should have been conducted despite any credible evidence that the results were in question.

Smucker responded that “Jan. 6 was wrong,” but said that his position was guided by his constituency. “I stand up for people and my district,” he said. “My opponent chose radical leftist policies and the other team.”

Hollister responded, “What radical leftist policies?”

Hollister said the 2020 election was “fair and legal.”

The contrasts between the two candidates were stark.

On abortion, Hollister asserted that federal legislation is necessary to protect “the personal and private decisions of women” and to avoid a situation in which the government’s participation in those decisions vary merely because of geography. He said giving states the right to ban or regulate abortion could lead to banning gay marriage and reducing rights of gays.

And he said it is personal to him. He said he and his wife lost a baby due to complications during her pregnancy and that the procedure that saved his wife’s life is now illegal in 13 states.

Smucker described himself as “100 percent pro-life" and accused Hollister of supporting “radical leftist policies” that would allow physicians “to rip a baby out of a mother’s womb up to the point of birth.” On this issue, he said, Hollister “joined the other team” led by Biden and Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

On energy prices and its influence on inflation, Smucker said that “the team Mr. Hollister wants to join” has “declared war on the fossil fuel industry.”

Hollister said that was not true, that inflation is a worldwide issue caused “a 100-year pandemic” that disrupted the economy and has had lasting effects in the supply chain. He also accused oil companies of gouging. “We have to look at the oil corporations,” he said, noting that the big oil companies reaped $60 billion in profits in the first quarter of this year,

He said that Smucker’s support of $2 trillion in tax cuts to the wealthy “contributed to inflation as well” as higher energy costs. He said that he wasn’t anti-fossil fuels, but that the country should transition to renewable energy as a matter of economic and national security.

On Social Security, both candidates pledged to protect the benefit, but have different approaches. Hollister said he would consider removing the cap on Social Security taxes. Currently, any income earned over $147,000 a year is exempt from Social Security taxes.

Smucker said the government has an obligation to “keep promises” to those who have paid into the system, but he also favors legislation – called “Social Security 2.0 - that would help “people save for retirement.”

On immigration, Smucker said Hollister supports “radical leftist policies” that would result in “open borders” and increased “human trafficking and drug trafficking.” He said the border is controlled by “Mexican drug cartels” and that open borders lead to the illicit import of fentanyl into the United States, leading to 300 overdose deaths every day. He said Hollister’s immigration policies would lead to more drugs entering the country and more deaths.

Hollister responded that he supports “streamlining” the immigration process to make up for the nation’s labor shortage and called the implication that illegal immigrants bring fentanyl into the country “a red herring.” He said that “86 percent” of the offenders who smuggled the drug into the United States were American citizens. (The U.S. Sentencing Commission reports that figure is 86.2 percent.)

Smucker accused Hollister of not caring about the deadly toll from fentanyl, prompting the Democratic candidate to respond, “That’s not what I said.”

Hollister concluded that he is a moderate and that he supports “pragmatic solutions” to the nation’s ills.

Smucker, who had the last word, pointed out the “stark contrast” between him and Hollister, repeating the assertion that his opponent is aligned with Biden and Pelosi.

“Mr. Hollister looked at this team and said, ‘I want to join them.’”

Columnist/reporter Mike Argento has been a York Daily Record staffer since 1982. Reach him at mike@ydr.com.

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Smucker calls his opponent, a former Republican, a 'radical leftist'