Mary Katherine Murphy

Staff reporter

Repealing Obamacare and balancing the federal budget were the main selling points for two Republicans seeking to unseat Democrat Larry Kissell.

Richard Hudson and John Whitley each made cases for their candidacies to members of the Scotland County Republican Party in Laurinburg.

Hudson and Whitley, each hoping to secure the Republican nomination for North Carolina’s District 8 seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, presented their platforms to some 30 members of the Scotland County GOP. Attendees included State Rep. G.L. Pridgen and Scotland County Board of Education Chairman Charles Brown.

Hudson and Whitley, along with current state representative Fred Steen, former Winston-Salem city council member Vernon Robinson, Salisbury dentist Scott Keadle, and Daniel Barry, mayor pro tem of the Weddington town council. Robinson and Keadle both spoke to the Scotland County Republicans in the fall.

Hudson grew up in the Charlotte area and graduated from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in 1990 with a bachelor’s degree in political science and history. He has worked for Congressman Robin Hayes and also managed the gubernatorial campaign of Pat McCrory in 2008. Beginning in 2009, Hudson served for two years as chief of staff for Texas Congressman Mike Conaway.

“I could be effective on day one,” said Hudson. “I understand what the job entails. You’ll have someone out there on day one who understands your ideals and represents your interests.”

Hudson said that, if elected, he will not be party-blind when it comes to potential Congressional coalitions.

“I’m going to get in and roll my sleeves up and build coalitions with conservative Democrats,” he said.

Hudson spoke in opposition to Obamacare.

“Larry Kissell could have been part of the solution to get rid of Obamacare, but he didn’t,” Hudson said. “He even voted for a bill that would force a doctor to perform an abortion even if he’s morally opposed to it.”

Hudson would support a Constitutional amendment requiring a balanced federal budget, he said, proposing a sunset clause on all bills passed in order to eliminate waste.

“Right now, you set up a program or department, and who knows what’s going to happen,” he said. “If we place a sunset clause on every single bill we pass, so that they all have an end date, we could go through and keep the things that work and cut the things that don’t.”

Hudson is not, however, a proponent of the current military spending cuts.

“President Obama’s plan to cut a trillion dollars out of defense is ridiculous,” said Hudson. “He wants to bring 100,000 troops home when we need more folks in the military as far as I’m concerned.”

When queried by an audience member about his thoughts on term limits for congressmen and senators, Hudson spoke in general support, but with reservations.

“The way things are going right now, I would vote for term limits,” Hudson said.

However, he added that established term limits leave legislators vulnerable to career bureaucrats, who will simply “wait out” the term of an opposing representative.

“I have a little concern that you empower bureaucrats by doing that,” said Hudson. “But when someone’s there so long, it doesn’t matter what party they are: I think that’s bad.”

Hudson expressed guarded optimism about the chances of the Republican District 8 candidate in November’s election.

“This election is going to be absolutely critical,” said Hudson. “We’ve got a tough job ahead of us, but I’d rather be us than them.”

Whitley

Whitley, who spoke following Hudson, lives on a 30 acre farm in Fairmont and works as a neurosurgeon in the Fayetteville area. He holds a medical degree, as well as a master’s and doctoral degree in neuroscience and anatomy from Wake Forest University. He also earned a master’s of business administration at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.

Whitley said that his primary motivation in running for Congress is to work toward the ultimate repeal of Obamacare.

“I can tell you that what really propelled me was the passage of the Affordable Health Care Act,” said Whitley.

Whitley labeled the bill unconstitutional, and shared the opinion that it will be ruinous for the future of medicine in the United States.

“My mother being a nurse was absolutely critical in my decision to become a doctor,” said Whitley. “But I don’t think that I would recommend that my child become a physician, not with the future that medicine holds.”

Whitley called Obamacare “horrendous for this country.”

“I will not practice medicine with the government telling me how to do things and that if I do not follow that, they’ll withhold payment,” Whitley said, adding that he is far from the only physician to share that sentiment. “If we cannot repeal this, there’s no turning back.”

Whitley did express optimism that Obamacare might be overturned in the Supreme Court, as its provisions may be ruled to be unconstitutional.

“It is unconstitutional to force you to purchase anything, but in Congress, it seems like that piece of paper called the Constitution doesn’t matter anymore,” said Whitley. “Technically, legally, if one aspect of that law is declared unconstitutional, the whole thing has to be scrapped.”

Whitley said that serving on the U.S. House of Representatives would be a necessary sacrifice on his part for the betterment of the country.

“I’m a neurosurgeon,” said Whitley. “That’s what I like to do. Some of us just need to sacrifice and do what we feel is right.”

Whitley volunteered the information that he is in support of term limits.

“Many representatives elected go to Washington and become self-serving – it’s all about them, and they forget about their constituents,” said Whitley.

He is optimistic that he or one of his Republican opponents will hold the North Carolina District 8 seat at this time next year.

“The way the districts have been redrawn will make it very difficult for Larry Kissell to be reelected,” Whitley said. “But then, apathy can cause problems.”

When asked by a member of the audience about balancing the federal budget and paring down the national debt, Whitley did not respond with enthusiasm.

“It’s almost impossible,” he said. “That $15.2 trillion is getting ready to go up another trillion and a half.”

He also suggested entitlement reform, stating that current government spending on entitlements is draining revenue.

“The money that comes into our taxation system just goes to entitlements,” said Whitley. “You have numbers that just don’t add up. Entitlements have to be reformed. You should not have 50 percent of the population not paying into the tax base – it’s just not right.”