June 6 is a unique day for the 50th Congressional District, where citizens will choose between a Republican, Independent, Democrat or Libertarian to represent their interests in Washington, D.C.
The spin is that the candidate will have a five-month trial period to please the constituents before the Nov. 7 election. The four candidates will vie to fill the time remaining for the seat vacated by Randy “Duke” Cunningham, who is now serving eight years in prison for taking at least $2.4 million in bribes from defense contractors.
For a little more spice, June 6 is also the primary election, in which voters will choose their party’s candidate for the November election. Republicans Bill Hauf and Brian Bilbray, who is in the run-off, will go head to head.
The 50th Congressional District extends from Carlsbad south to include parts of La Jolla and University City.
Libertarian Paul King, Independent William Griffith, Democrat Francine Busby and Bilbray will contend to complete the rest of Cunningham’s term. At the same time, Hauf will race against Bilbray in the Republican primary.
Although Busby beat Bilbray in total votes this past April 11, she did not tally a 50-percent-plus majority to win the race outright.
Immigration topped the list of important issues to the district for all the candidates, except for King, who said that overspending was his number-one priority.
Griffith believes that protecting the borders “is national defense in its purest form.” He calls for Congress to deny amnesty, deny the guest worker program and guard the borders with an armed presence as well as a wall.
Bilbray called the Senate bill a “disaster.” While previously in Congress representing the 49th District, Bilbray authored a bill to prevent the children of illegal immigrants from getting automatic citizenship, and he said he plans to carry that forward if elected.
“I grew up in this county, and I’ve seen what illegal immigration has done to this county in terms of crime, the costs to hospitals and the huge costs to schools,” Bilbray said.
Hauf advocated sending more troops to the border, but he also stressed the necessity of tracking the illegal immigrants who enter the country with a legal visa and overstay their visit. Washington has the capabilities to monitor these people but is deterred by special interests that want the cheap labor, according to Hauf.
Illegal immigrants risk their lives to seek work, and so Washington needs to focus its efforts on employers, Hauf said. There is currently a Social Security verification system in place that can check the validity of employees’ numbers, and the government needs to use it, Hauf said. A labor bank should also be established to match employers’ needs with immigrant workers, who could be granted a temporary work visa.
Busby backs the McCain bill that increases border protection but would also establish a path toward citizenship for the 12 million illegal immigrants in the country.
King advocates a free flow of labor so that immigrants can work in the United States and then return home instead of becoming stuck in the U.S. He also called for the government to stop handing out free health care and education.
King pointed to overspending as his first priority, while Hauf and Bilbray cited it as their second major concern.
When politicians get hold of citizens’ money, they use it to go to war in Iraq, King said, adding that he is running “on the notion that I’m going to give you a better government for half the price.”
King cited his second priority as pulling American troops out of Iraq, where their presence is making the situation worse.
Bilbray said he aims to stop discretionary spending from depleting the budget. Hauf said he would work to re-establish the J. Peter Grace commission that inspects federal departments for waste, mismanagement and abuse.
Busby said she would fight to reduce the cost of health care as her second goal. Forty-five million Americans don’t have insurance, Busby said.
After immigration, Griffith believes the second most important issue is fighting the Free Trade Area of the Americas that will essentially open the U.S. borders to Mexico and Canada and eliminate U.S. sovereignty.
Every candidate championed fighting to preserve the Mount Soledad cross, except for Busby, who said that the issue lies in the “hands of the court system.”
Three of the five candidates oppose joint use between Miramar Naval Air Station and Lindbergh Field. Griffith and King support moving the airport to Miramar. Miramar is the only location that will keep an international airport in San Diego, Griffith said.
Voters who declined to state a party affiliation when registering may request any of three primary ballots: Republican, Democrat or American Independent.
The Registrar of Voters is calling on citizens to volunteer to work at the polls for $75 to $150 for the day, depending on job duties.
For more information, call (858) 694-3480.