(The Center Square) – Auditing the federal reserve, reforming the tax code and decentralizing health care were just a few of the policy solutions proposed by the three Republican candidates vying for Wisconsin’s 8th congressional district in a debate Thursday.
Trump-endorsed businessman Tony Wied, state Sen. André Jacque and former state senator and veteran Roger Roth participated in a 90-minute debate played host to by Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce. A panel asked the three candidates their opinions and policy suggestions on issues including rising inflation and interest rates, regulatory agency funding, border security, labor shortages, energy, taxes and health care costs.
To lower inflation, all three agreed on the need to reign in federal spending and that congress should propose single-subject spending bills. Jacque said promoting domestic supply chains and cutting federal agency funding is also critical, while Roth proposed pulling back the unspent money allocated in the Inflation Reduction Act.
Regarding high interest rates, Wied said the federal reserve needs to be audited, and Roth again advocated controlling reckless federal spending, because high rates are inflation-driven. Jacque proposed ending the federal reserve entirely.
“We have to starve the beast. The beast is government. We have to stop printing money, we have to actually hold the federal government like we do at the state level to a budget, and we need to end the federal reserve,” Jacque said. “Because frankly, it's been encouraging risky – and basically bailing out – leftist social engineering.”
All three candidates want to reduce the size of the regulatory state, which they argue hurts industry and drives up the cost for the consumer. All support a federal REINS Act, which would require congressional approval of major administrative agency rules before implementation.
Roth said taking away power from the administrative state also holds elected officials accountable by forcing the legislature to write better laws, instead of allowing regulatory agencies to impose rules. Wied suggested eliminating some agencies entirely, such as the Department of Education.
On border security, everyone agreed on finishing the construction of the border wall and empowering border patrol agents. Roth, the only candidate who has visited the southern border, said the situation is “a thousand times worse” than what any news channel covers.
“What is happening down there is a catastrophe, a human catastrophe,” Roth said, referencing the cartel’s influence and human trafficking there. “And I can tell you, the reason immigration [policy] has always failed in the past is that they’ve tried to come up with these grand compromises – no. We’re going to seal and secure the southern border. That’s where it starts.”
To solve the shortage in the workforce, the candidates said major unemployment reform to incentivize people to work is critical. Wied said that America turning into a welfare state is the main cause of the problem.
“We are just giving benefits out left and right, and people are just continuing to stay on those benefits,” he said. “Folks are learning the system, and they're not incentivized to work.”
Wied also supports promoting the trades, along with Jacque who wants to expand internship programs in schools. Roth added the forgiving student loan debt has exacerbated the problem of people relying on the state to provide financial benefits.
All three candidates maintain that American energy independence is essential, not just to lower energy costs but also for national security, given that the U.S. is relying on politically hostile countries like Iran for oil instead of drilling it in the United States. Wied, Jacque, and Roth also voiced support for the construction of Line 5 in Wisconsin.
The candidates each promised to support making the Trump tax cuts permanent. Jacque, who says all taxation is theft, supports tax code reform, while Wied and Roth proposed lowering the corporate tax rate to encourage business competition and consumer costs. Roth referenced his work lowering taxes in Wisconsin with former Gov. Scott Walker, who has endorsed him.
In terms of lowering the cost of healthcare, the candidates oppose universal healthcare initiatives and support a competitive, free-market approach instead. In particular, Wied advocates healthcare company decentralization and cost transparency. Jacque also supports employer-provided healthcare, which he says will have the double benefit of incentivizing people to work.
The Wisconsin primary is Aug. 13.
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