Western NC GOP House debate candidates: pull Ukraine aid but fight Russia for NATO

Republican Congressman Chuck Edwards said Ukraine aid requested by President Joe Biden should be blocked without Southern border security funding sought by GOP legislators, while Edwards' opponent in the primary, Christian Reagan, said even with the border money, Ukrainian aid amounted to a "slush fund" and should be stopped.

Both candidates in the 11th District March 5 U.S. House primary acknowledged the possibility the country could be facing an armed conflict with Russia if Putin's forces defeat Ukraine, and then proceed to invade a North Atlantic Treaty Organization member country. As a member, America is obligated to treat an attack on a NATO country as an attack on itself.

"Dictator Putin, murderer Putin (was) rolling through Ukraine with intentions of going through Europe," said Edwards during a Jan. 13 Clay County debate with Reagan.

But Edwards also said he was willing to sacrifice Ukraine aid for border money, noting, "we're at a leverage point right now, with the White House coming to us asking for Ukraine funding."

The United States has dedicated $100 billion to arming and supporting Ukraine since the February 2022 Russian invasion. Biden has asked Congress for another $60 billion. That has morphed into a $110 billion package now being negotiated that includes $14 billion for border security as well as funding for Ukraine and Israel.

"I'm against any money going to Ukraine," Reagan said, citing what he said were failed U.S. military ventures in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The moderator, Clay GOP Vice Chair Larry Ford, asked Reagan if he supported helping Ukraine now or fighting Russia if it invaded a NATO country, to which a Reagan supporter shouted, "leading question." Ford called for the sheriff to quiet the person.

"If there is a violation of NATO we have no choice," Reagan said. But also said he would have "avoided the war altogether."

The debate was marked by occasional outbursts from Reagan supporters and admonitions by Ford, who told one audience member to "go back to New Jersey or wherever you came from with a gesture like that." It was not clear what the gesture was.

Candidates staked out positions on the military, the integrity of elections, Social Security and the border with Mexico. Reagan had criticized Edwards for agreeing to only one debate and its location. While Clay is Reagan's home county, it is far from most district voters and media, which are clustered around Asheville. The congressman said he was too busy with legislative and other duties for another meeting.

The winner of the March primary will face the lone Democratic candidate Caleb Rudow, a state legislator and data scientist from Asheville.

The most heated moment came when Reagan, who called Edwards an "elite," saying such people "represent Washington, D.C." rather than Western North Carolina.

"They come here, and they have the jargon, and they have it down," he said.

Edwards, the owner of multiple McDonald's franchises, shot back that he was far from elite and was born in Haywood County where he lived in mill housing and trailers and watched his family's car be repossessed.

"I worked my tail off all my life, like my father and my grandfather did," he said.

Reagan first said he did not use the word elite, then recanted and apologized to Edwards.

Reagan, 61, is a political newcomer and Clay County mortgage broker who has said the national debt is a primary motivator for him. Originally from Texas, Reagan wore a cowboy hat throughout the debate as he was referred to by Edwards as "the gentleman from Smith County, Texas."

Edwards, 63, a WNC native, served three terms in the state Senate. In 2022 he beat Madison Cawthorn, the controversial Donald-Trump aligned incumbent in the 11th District congressional primary.

Both Edwards and Reagan voiced support for Trump and raised no doubts about the ex-president's false claims of election fraud when asked if they supported federal "election integrity" legislation. Reagan opposed it as an infringement on state and local government. Edwards said he supported some legislation such as stopping the practice of third-parties collecting finished mail-in ballots by workers or volunteers, known as ballot harvesting.

Military spending, cutting back Social Security, other issues

Here are some other issues from the debate:

Military spending: Reagan called for cutting military spending, saying "it's unbelievable the amount of money we spend to police the world" though he supported aid for Israel because it is "God's country." Edwards said more should be spent because of the large number of nuclear missiles and other armaments owned by China, Russia and Iran. "We have never been weaker. We have never had less respect in this world," he said.

Social Security cuts: To keep Social Security solvent, despite recipients living longer and the number of taxpayers falling compared to recipients, Edwards said he would look to recommendations by a commission being put together with both House members and senators. Reagan suggested changes that included raising the $160,200 cap on earnings that could be taxed to $200,000 and increasing contributions from 6.25% to 6.5%.

Climate change: Reagan said he was "not a believer in climate change," despite agreement by climate scientists that humans are causing an increase in the planet's temperature. Both he and Edwards said they would work to enlarge the country's fossil fuel industry. Edwards called subsidies for electric vehicles "a fallacy" and looked to claw back money to be spent through Biden's Inflation Reduction Act.

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Joel Burgess has lived in WNC for more than 20 years, covering politics, government and other news. He's written award-winning stories on topics ranging from gerrymandering to police use of force. Got a tip? Contact Burgess at jburgess@citizentimes.com, 828-713-1095 or on Twitter @AVLreporter. Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Western NC GOP debate: pull Ukraine aid; fight Russia for NATO