Pappas, Leavitt engage in spirited, high-stakes debate
Nov. 4—MANCHESTER — U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H. and Republican nominee Karoline Leavitt of Hampton kept it on the issues but engaged in a heated debate over a wide range of issues from fighting inflation to abortion, immigration, raising the debt ceiling and climate change Thursday night.
Pappas, 42, and Leavitt, 25, did not attack each other's character during the one-hour exchange on WMUR-TV, but each warned if elected their opponent would make this inflationary economy even worse.
"Her agenda is a raw deal for the Granite State. We are taking about privatizing Social Security, repealing the Affordable Care Act and taking health care away from people who need it...and shutting down the government if she doesn't get her way," Pappas said in his closing remarks.
"Karoline Leavitt thinks politics is a performance; I think it is about people."
Leavitt said the two-term Pappas is a fraud, masquerading as a centrist moderate who embraced a reckless spending spree in Washington that will saddle struggling families with even higher costs and energy "blackouts" this winter.
"Throughout this campaign, Congressman Pappas has presented himself as a bipartisan problem solver and the truth of the matter is he has been a partisan problem creator, voting with Joe Biden 100% of the time," Leavitt concluded.
In this race, Pappas faces his toughest challenge yet, trying to hold onto a seat in a swing district that flipped in five of six elections in a streak that ended in 2016.
Leavitt, a former press aide in the Trump White House, seeks to become the youngest person ever elected to Congress in her first try for elective office.
Pappas: Leavitt only offers 'attack lines'
Pappas repeatedly defended his vote for the Inflation Reduction Act, pointing to studies that conclude it could reduce the federal deficit by nearly $2 trillion over the next 20 years.
The plan will lower prescription drug costs for seniors and offer homeowners tax credits for making investments in renewable energy.
"We need more than just the attack lines I get from my opponent on this," Pappas said, a phrase he used many times during the debate.
Leavitt dismissed Pappas as a smooth-talking politician who promises plenty at election time yet rarely delivers for his constituents.
"Everything you said sounds wonderful but the truth is none of it has passed and none of it has worked," Leavitt said.
"He has greenlighted $5.5 trillion in new spending over the past two years."
Leavitt said she'd oppose any federal legislation to further restrict abortion, condemned Pappas for making that claim in his TV ads and charged Pappas was the extremist on the issue.
"As a young woman myself, that is offensive to me and I will continue to stand strong for women and children. I support our current state law that gives women choice and bans abortion in months six, seven and eight," Leavitt said.
"My opponent does not support any restrictions on abortion at all and that is a radical position outside of the mainstream in New Hampshire."
Pappas said he voted for federal legislation to reinstate the Roe vs. Wade decision which for 50 years made all abortions legal up to viability of the fetus until the Supreme Court overturned it last June.
"She believes state legislative politicians should be making this decision for women," Pappas said, calling that concept "chilling."
On fighting illegal immigration, Pappas said he backed legislation for more resources, but admitted the White House and Congress must do more to block the flow of illegal drugs from Mexico.
"We do have a crisis at the border and I have stood up to the Biden administration to tell them they have to have a plan," Pappas said.
Leavitt responded, "I am shocked to hear you refer to this as a crisis. I think that is the first time I have heard you say that, congressman."
She noted police unions in Pappas' hometown are "supporting me" as they did his GOP opponent in 2020, Matt Mowers of Gilford.
"100,000 people lost their lives in this country last year due to fentanyl overdoses under your leadership," Leavitt said.
If elected, Leavitt vowed to oppose raising the federal debt ceiling until Congress passed a plan for a balanced federal budget.
"You can say you want to bring fiscally responsible policies to D.C., but you have done anything but that," Leavitt said to Pappas.
In response, Pappas predicted if Republicans get total control on Capitol Hill they would hold the Biden White House "hostage" to force changes to Social Security and make permanent tax cuts for the wealthy.
"I think what we just heard is a totally, reckless position. Not only would it lead to a financial collapse in this country, it could lead to a global depression; that's what economists have told us," Pappas said.
Leavitt: Pappas saddled taxpayers with climate 'pet projects'
Leavitt said she would vote to alter Social Security to offer options only for young people who are not old enough to be in the work force yet.
"I want to save Social Security for future generations, elementary school pupils, like my nieces, eight and two years old," Leavitt said.
"The truth is this program is not going to exist for them and I want to look for sustainable, viable solutions and all options are on the table."
On climate change, Pappas said Congress adopted the most sweeping incentives for renewable energy in U.S. history and New Hampshire small business owners and individuals were clamoring to take advantage of them.
"She has called it BS. I trust the science on this," Pappas said.
Leavitt said Pappas wants Washington politicians to pick winners and losers at the taxpayer's expense.
"What I think is B.S. is Democrats using the climate to pass their billion-dollar pet projects in D.C. like the Inflation Reduction Act," Leavitt added.
The debate was on the campus of Saint Anselm College at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics.
