Spotlight on the IL 11th Congressional District

Submitted by IP on Thu, 2010-04-15 10:35
Republican Candidate, Adam Kinzinger
Illinois’ 11th Congressional District originates in the northern part of the state and cuts an irregular pattern in its stretch westward from the Indiana border and southward to McLean County. Major cities are Joliet, Kankakee, Ottawa, LaSalle and Bloomington-Normal. Republican Jerry Weller held this seat for seven terms before retiring in 2009. Democrat Debbie Halvorson, ex-Illinois Senate Majority Leader, won the open seat handily over businessman Marty Ozinga. This cycle, Republicans are excited about their candidate, U.S.A.F. Captain Adam Kinzinger. Kinzinger entered the world of politics at age 20 when he mounted a successful run for the McLean County Board. He fiscal and constitutional conservatism present a stark contrast to the liberal agenda enthusiastically supported by Halvorson. Her votes for the disastrous stimulus bill, Cap & Trade and Obama health care reform are decidedly out of line with the political leanings of her constituents. Since she cast those unpopular votes, she has eschewed traditional town hall meetings in favor of “telephone town halls”. Her cowardice has not been lost on Kinzinger who conversely has traveled far and wide in the district holding dozens of town halls. Halvorson has low favorability ratings at home and polls in March showed her trailing Kinzinger, but she does have a formidable cash advantage. If Kinzinger can come close to matching her dollar for dollar, he will have a great chance to capitalize on the anti-Democrat mood and topple the incumbent.
Adam Kinzinger
  •  Illinois native
  •  Illinois State University, 2000
  •  Intern for former U.S. Senator Peter Fitzgerald
  •  Elected to McLean County Board at the age of 20
  •  U.S. Air Force Special Ops, Air Combat Command, Air Mobility Command, and Air National Guard, 2003 to present
  •  U.S.A.F Captain, Iraq and Afghanistan Veteran (5 tours in all)
  •  United States Air Force Airman's Medal, 2007
  •  National Guard's Valley Forge Cross for Heroism
  •  Southeastern Wisconsin American Red Cross "Hero of the Year" for saving a woman from a knife wielding attacker
  •  Endorsed by Sarah Palin

ISSUES

  • Economy and Government Spending: Make the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts permanent; similar to the post 9/11 incentives-permit businesses to immediately write-off the entire cost of new vehicles, computers, and other investments; new spending must be limited to critical national security and infrastructure needs;
  • Energy: Aggressively explore our vast energy resources to create new jobs, save dollars and strengthen national security; support measured, sensible steps to protect the environment but not at the cost of economic prosperity; oppose Cap & Trade
  • Health Care: Oppose Obama Health Care Bill; take steps to increase the number of insured but not by expanding the role of the federal government, cutting Medicare or raising taxes; allow buying insurance across state lines; increase purchasing power by the formation of pools; enact tort reform,; support measures tat reduce costs; 
  • Immigration: Secure our borders; National Guard can play a supporting part in helping to solve the problem
  • Second Amendment: Strong supporter and member of the NRA
  • Afghanistan: Cannot allow the country to once again become a training ground for terrorists; remember that Afghanistan is a NATO operation and the U.S. should not be shouldering the responsibility alone
  • Iraq: Continue to work toward making Iraq a functioning, albeit, imperfect democracy; do not support a timetable for withdrawal
  • Iran: Be forceful in convincing the US to pass hard hitting economic sanctions; keep up funding for opposition groups; keep military strikes on the table
“The Supreme Court has re-affirmed that our Constitutionally-protected ‘right to keep and bear arms’ must be preserved and defended at all levels of government. As Congressman, I will vote to defend those rights as well, and support leaders who do the same. Congresswoman Halvorson claims to be a supporter of the right to bear arms, but consistently gives her full support to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other anti-2nd Amendment Democratic Congressional leaders whose anti-gun, anti-liberty stances are well documented. While today’s ruling is an important victory, this debate will continue in Washington and throughout the country in the weeks, months and years ahead. We must not become complacent, and continue to hold all elected leaders responsible for their votes and protection of our individual freedoms.”
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