Following is a special presentation of the New Hampshire Votes 2024 Candidate Forums, a project of the Granite State News Collaborative.

Partners.

Welcome to NHPR's debate for New Hampshire's first congressional district.

I'm Todd Bookman with nhpr, and I'm joined today by Andrew Sylvia of Manchester Ink Link Link these debates are produced in collaboration with the Granite State News Collaborative and New Hampshire PBS.

This forum is also streaming live at NPR's YouTube channel.

Today, we're joined by incumbent Representative Chris Pappas, a Democrat, and former Executive Counselor Russell Prescott, his Republican challenger.

Welcome to you both.

Thank you.

Thank you.

We've got a live studio audience today at nhpr.

A bit about our format.

Each candidate will have 60s for an opening statement.

Will then move to questions, with each candidate getting 60 seconds to respond.

Andrew and I will at times follow up with a question or seek clarification, and candidates will get 30s on those.

In the case of a direct attack, will get candidates 30s to respond.

We ask our audience to remain silent, and we ask the candidates to respect each other and wait until your turn to speak.

For today's questions, we relied on the public's feedback and thank everyone who supplied input.

So we'll get started with opening statements.

We flipped a coin backstage.

Congressman Pappas, you'll go first.

60s, please.

Well, thanks very much to nhpr for hosting this forum and to Russell for being here.

I'm a lifelong resident of New Hampshire, a fourth generation family business owner that understands the pressures in our economy right now on families and communities and what we need to do to fight to lower costs.

Now, over the last two years, we've seen Republicans in Congress taking dysfunction and extremism to the next level.

And it's hurt our ability to solve problems.

So it's an important time to turn the page and focus on solutions.

That's why I'm working to cut taxes for working families to invest in affordable housing and child care, to make that more accessible to New Hampshire families, to make sure that we are lowering energy bills and fighting climate change, and continuing our efforts to lower the cost of prescription drugs, make sure that everyone has access to health care.

I'm also willing to take on the big fights, and right now, it's important that we have a representative in this district who will work to restore Roe v Wade is the law of the land, and doesn't believe that politicians should be getting in the way of this private personal decision.

So to me, politics is about people.

It's about what we can accomplish when we come together.

I've got a track record as a pragmatic voice in Washington who works across the aisle, because I take my cues from the people of New Hampshire, and I look forward to the conversation here today.

Thank you so much.

Counselor Prescott, your opening statement, please.

60s.

Certainly.

Thank you very much.

I am a New Hampshire native, even though I was born in Florida.

My mom and dad were here in Exeter, New Hampshire, where my father ran a small business in Exeter on Railroad Avenue, and that business has been there since 1963.

My three oldest children have been married for 42 years.

Of course, and my three oldest children of five are running that company today.

I'm a professional engineer, served 30 years as a professional engineer, licensed by the state of New Hampshire.

I'm a problem solver, an engineer, and I brought that to, Concord as a senator for ten years and executive councilor for four years.

I solve problems when I was there.

An income tax was on the on the horizon for New Hampshire.

I made sure we weighed our needs with our wants and made sure we took care of our needs, but balanced our budget with cutting spending and not raising taxes.

However, we did save money for nhpr.

I'm glad to be here.

Thank you very much.

Thank you both.

So we'll get started with some questions about the economy.

Counselor Prescott, on the campaign trail, you've talked about the need to cut government spending as a way to slow inflation.

Could you give some specifics on what programs or departments or foreign aid that you propose to cut?

Certainly you you look at the $1.5 trillion of deficit spending, whether it's 2 trillion or more or more.

If you look at that, when I went to the state Senate, we saw that there was a 1% GDP budget deficit, and we were able to reduce spending in government here in New Hampshire.

Even with our fiscally responsible government, we were still able to, you know, where wants and needs and come to a balanced budget without raising taxes.

In the United States, that's 6% of our GDP, is our budget deficit.

I believe that for a six year track.

We can balance our budget, be able to afford to keep Social Security and Medicare solvent.

And how you do that is $300 billion per year, and $300 billion per year is more manageable to reduce that 1% of the GDP and get to a balanced budget.

And it comes to having to seven seconds do the budget process, and that is the 12 subcommittees.

And make sure you go line item by line item.

I'm happy to give you a little bit more time.

Could you give some specifics though?

Are there certain departments where you see possible departments are larger than they need to be.

I think that the government is large, and we can trim down the government by a certain percentage, and would be a small percentage for that $300 billion per year.

And how that would work is interest rates would start to fall because the the Federal Reserve would see that we're finally becoming fiscally responsible and making sure that we balance our budget.

I've got another question for you, Counselor Prescott.

Former President Trump just this week reiterated his support for tariffs on imported goods.

Briefly talk about how that may impact your own small business, which sells water filtration equipment.

And also, if you more broadly see tariffs as sound economic policy.

I certainly don't that that is a tax on every single person in the United States.

That's why I propose that we balance our budget without any increase in taxes.

We keep that the the way that our tax base is right now and work within our means.

If our means are less than the 1.5 trillion, we need to work to lower our spending to meet that.

And raising taxes is the wrong thing.

We already have 30% inflation that it's accrued over the last four years, and raising taxes would just add to that.

And if we do raise taxes and allow the tax cuts to expire, what we'll see is that people on on incomes that are, lower than, than, you know, $400,000 are going to see a 3% increase in the tax rate from 12 to 15% if they're in that bracket from 21 to 20 22 to 25% if they're in that bracket, etc.. We're going to make sure that we work fiscally responsible, cutting spending rather than raising taxes.

Thank you very much.

Turning to you, Congressman Pappas.

Unemployment remains historically low.

The stock market is hovering at record highs, but the spike in prices on food and on rent, in particular, coming out of the pandemic, have left a lot of people feeling worse off than four years ago.

What role has government spending played in fueling that inflation, and what policies would you advocate for to get the cost of basic goods lower?

Well, the fact is we've come a long way over the last few years, since the depths of the pandemic and the economic dislocation that we saw in New Hampshire.

And it was important to take bipartisan steps to make sure that our businesses didn't closed, that people didn't become chronically unemployed, and to be able to overcome the public health threat.

Now we've got to focus on lowering costs.

And so I think we have seen high inflation.

Come from 9% down to below 3% on average.

That's important.

And we know that there are a number of contributing factors, including, global conflicts.

Including a number of other, pressures, that have, you know, really hit New Hampshire families hard.

And so our focus has to be on how can we ensure that New Hampshire is a more affordable place to call home.

That's why I'm supporting expanding the child tax credit.

We had an expanded credit during the early years of the pandemic, that cut child poverty in half in our country and ensured that families could deal with basic, everyday expenses.

I think of a mom in Manchester of six kids that I took as my guest to the state of the Union.

She talked about how this would make a difference for her family, as she just dealing with higher rent right now.

Now, there's a lot of other things that we've got to deal with with respect to costs, including housing, including child care, including education.

And I believe there's a role for the government to play, to provide the kind of investments in the middle class, as opposed to pulling the rug out from under our working families.

That's just not workable at this moment.

You may have noticed the weather is changing.

Furnaces are kicking on for the first time.

Some people are benefiting from heat pumps, but those have high upfront installation costs.

Talk about some policies, Congressman Pappas, that you support that can help bring down winter energy bills.

Well, there are a number of steps we've taken, and we have to continue to find more ways for New Hampshire families to be able to make it this winter.

And really all seasons of the year.

We know that in our region, we have among the highest energy costs in the nation.

So that's why I supported legislation that has allowed families and businesses to take advantage of tax credits.

I think of some of the small businesses that I've worked with, including Throwback Brewery over in Northampton, that was able to install solar, in their business, lower their energy costs significantly, and then reinvest in their workforce in terms of the kind of pay and benefits and retirement opportunities for their employees.

So those kinds of steps are important to allow homes and businesses to weatherize to become more energy efficient.

And so those are the kinds of steps I will continue to support.

We also need to make sure that the low income heating assistance program is there for folks this winter.

We secured a record amount of funding last year.

But as energy costs are stubbornly high.

We've got to make sure that for those who are most in need, that they get the help.

Great.

Thank you both.

You both grew up and now help run family businesses.

So we're gonna ask both of you, can you briefly talk about how inflation has impacted your respective businesses?

Councilor Prescott, why don't you go first and 30s, please?

The 30s would be we have to make sure that we keep up with inflation by increasing pay.

And that is what has been the most important part of running a business in these last few years.

And keeping pace with that and also keeping pace with the higher cost of, of, health insurance.

Again, it's another double digit increase for our company.

We pay 100% of that for every individual that works for us.

And making sure that I can continue to do that.

We have to adjust pricing.

You know, you do that every once in a while, but most of the time you just make sure you run more and more efficient.

And, that's why we handle the problems.

Congressman Pappas, briefly, what have you seen at the family restaurant in terms of inflation impacting the business?

Well, look, anytime prices go up, it puts a lot of pressure on the bottom line because most of our small businesses are not run on huge margins.

They're run on very thin margins.

And so an increase in the price of chicken, for instance, at a restaurant business, really makes an impact in your overall picture.

So that's why we have to continue to work to secure supply chains.

That's been a huge contributing factor to the inflation that we've seen over the last few years.

We've done that by supporting bipartisan shipping reform, by investing in port infrastructure and a bipartisan infrastructure law that's rebuilding America for the future.

So I think those things can help in the long run.

Also, ensuring that, energy prices are lower is going to be really important for businesses to make it.

And so the steps that, ensuring they get access to tax credits, is an important step forward.

Great.

Thank you.

Andrew, you've got our next question.

Okay.

Let's turn to immigration.

Congressman Pappas, in September, you introduced legislation to boost security along our northern border.

But what role should Congress play when it comes to influencing immigration at its sources?

That is the country's other origin.

Well, we do have to go upstream and make sure that we've got a more stable picture with respect to the Caribbean, to Central American countries where we know that, the war, the poverty, the lack of economic opportunity, is sending people, here to undertake a dangerous journey to get to the United States.

And so I think diplomatic efforts are incredibly important.

Working with partners, not just in our hemisphere, but around the world, at addressing the fact that we've got more displaced peoples today than at any time since World War two.

So it's really important to look at those factors.

We also have to be smart about how we modernize a broken immigration system and fix it so that it's serving the needs of our country.

That's why I support the bipartisan bill, which is bottled up in Congress, because Donald Trump won't let us vote on it, which has provisions in it that would reform the asylum system, to make sure that we are, promoting border security, investing in technology and resources along the border that can keep this country safe.

And ideas like ensuring people can apply for asylum from their home country so that they don't have to undertake that dangerous journey and that they can get in line and get their case heard, I think would be an important step forward.

Thank you so much.

Follow up question for you, Congressman.

New Hampshire's tourism economy, including many businesses in your district, are reliant on foreign workers.

But a lot of those companies complain about the process for applying for those workers.

In your view, does that process need to be improved or expanded?

Yes, it should be streamlined for businesses.

It's overly burdensome right now.

I've talked to a number of business owners through the years about this issue.

Whether you're in landscaping or you're in the hospitality industry.

A lot of these seasonal businesses rely on H-2b J-1 visas and other programs that allow them to get the workers in here to meet their customers needs.

I think of a business owner up in the Mount Washington Valley named Matt.

He's got a few seasonal businesses, relies on these visas.

But, the process has not been clear.

And in fact, there's been a cap that's put on over the last few years that have prevented them from getting workers at the numbers that they need.

And so that's why the bipartisan law is important around immigration.

It would raise these caps and allow for more capacity in these programs.

Thank you so much.

Now, do you, counselor Prescott.

How are you?

Good on immigration.

You said securing the border will be your top priority if you are elected to serve in Congress.

You told the New Hampshire Journal that you'd advocate for the return of a, quote, remain in Mexico policy.

What incentives does Mexico have to participate in that policy?

What incentive would be is that they would have less crime in their in their country.

They'd have less, drugs coming over the border into, into America.

If we could stop that inflow with the door open at our borders, it's affecting Mexicans as much as it is affecting United States citizens.

This problem is not just the border north.

It's also a problem.

The border south.

If we firm up that wall in working with our our neighbor to the south, Mexico helps both of us.

And that's what I'm talking about.

Make sure we have a plan that will help remain people in Mexico, and not just Mexico or the other South American countries need to know that we are working very hard to streamline our, way of becoming a citizen of the United States.

We need to open up the market in terms of categories, where you can get a green card and categories where you can come here to work on a visa.

That would help New Hampshire's, you know, unemployment rate here and make sure that we have the good quality people to work and become part of the great melting pot that America is.

Thank you so much.

Going back to tourism, Counselor Prescott.

Do you support expanding work visa programs or jobs in the tourism sector specifically?

Absolutely But there's another one that needs to be done is, you know, we have a lot of these, area community health, facilities around our country, right around our state.

And they need to have an a program that says you can come here if you're going to be a health care worker.

You don't have to be a nurse.

You don't have to have higher education.

Just the fact of that category, if we would open up different categories, including tourism, to have a work visa, that would help with streamlining the process to get people here who want to be American citizens.

Thank you.

Todd back to you.

Thank you, Congressman Pappas.

Climate change is driving a crisis in the insurance industry, with many property insurers losing money or pulling out of markets altogether.

What role, if any, should the federal government play in Backstopping home insurance?

Well, this is at a crisis, especially in areas like Florida and California where we have seen destructive wildfires and hurricanes.

There's a lot of pressure on the insurance market right now.

And we've seen, companies pull out of these states altogether.

And unfortunately, people can't get the insurance that they need.

So if you take a look at flood insurance, for instance, the federal government does backstop that.

And frankly, we need to do a better job at giving a longer look on that program.

We've been working through one year extensions for a long period of time, and that doesn't provide the predictability that the market needs.

So I think that's something that federal government should consider.

And as we work to mitigate climate change, we also have to recognize that we're not powerless to be able to bend the curve and make the future more sustainable and make the planet more habitable.

And so efforts like spurring, clean energy growth, in what we did through the Inflation Reduction Act, are important steps for this country to begin to reduce emissions, in the threat that climate change will continue to pose.

Let me ask you a follow up question.

What about local infrastructure damaged by climate change, change driven weather events?

Should the federal government play a stronger role in telling local communities where they can rebuild?

If they can rebuild, given that that taxpayers are often forced to fund storm recovery efforts?

Well, I think it's important that our communities have that information to understand how a changing climate is impacting, homeowners and businesses and properties.

That's one of the reasons why we need to ensure that, research institutions like UNH have the support that they need of.

They're doing terrific work around mapping along the seacoast.

That's helping share information with stakeholders and local leaders.

But you're absolutely right.

We have seen by some estimates over recent years, about a half $1 billion worth of storm related damage.

A lot of it on the sea coast of New Hampshire.

Including twin storms this past January.

And so we've got to make sure we're investing in a resilient infrastructure and providing information and best practices and technical assistance to communities to be resilient.

Councilor Prescott.

Yes.

Seacoast communities in New Hampshire have seen more and more frequent flooding events.

Road washouts, beach erosion, homes are being threatened.

The scientific consensus is clear human activity is warming the planet and leading to these kinds of extreme, extreme weather events.

Do you agree with that consensus, and what policies would you support to address the impacts on residents of this congressional district?

Well, being a a, native of the seacoast, I have seen it practically my whole life that every, every winter they're always cleaning up the, you know, route one and one day along the coast.

And that's, a troublesome thing when you have a, you know, the full moon, the wind and the tide all working in concert with itself.

And it happens quite often.

And it may be even more frequent if the if you can get that, you know, data and see it.

So my, position has always been when I was on the state Senate, I was, the chairman of energy Committee and also the Commerce Committee.

And my goal was anything that came before our, our committee that's going to study the effects of whatever happens around our coastline.

We make sure we have all that data.

We pay for it.

As, Congressman Pappas has said, make sure we have the data around the seacoast and make sure that we attack it in a way that follows the science.

And so I've always been for that.

Many Republicans, including former President Trump, have dismissed or tried to minimize concerns about the climate crisis.

Do you think your party has done enough to address the crisis?

I think that we have to be concerned about corporate giveaways in terms of, balancing our budget, which we've talked about it before.

We have oil, corporate giveaways.

That's not a good thing.

And then we also have the green energy corporate giveaways.

That's not a good thing if we cannot balance our budget.

Remember it's, the story is that if we become less secure economically here in America, we become less of a good force around the world, and everything becomes more dangerous and more costly.

So we have to weigh our needs and our wants and make sure that we don't overemphasize industry corporate giveaways and make sure we balance our budget.

Make America strong first.

Thank you both, Andrew.

Okay, now we're turning to abortion.

Counselor Prescott, you describe yourself as pro-life and have regularly voted against expanding or protecting reproductive rights while you were here in the New Hampshire legislature.

You've also said that abortion is an issue that should be legislated right here in New Hampshire.

Does that mean you would not, in any circumstances, support any bill that would change current federal policy when it comes to abortion?

That is correct on the federal level.

And I need to also, you know, state that I've been disappointed in what, Chris Pappas has run his negative ads concerning, you know, services that I voted for.

So as early as, just 20, 21, in that session, when I was in Executive Council, I voted for judges that said, Roe v Wade is concrete.

It's the law.

And I voted for those judges.

Also, while I was in the state Senate, I also voted for a, budget.

I mean, an amendment by the Democrats to be able to make sure that we enshrine Roe v Wade in our laws.

And my record stands.

And I'm just wanted to say that I'm disappointed that Chris is having a negative campaign.

And it's, troublesome to have this of that, please, because, you may be disappointed that this is a political problem for you, but the women of America are disappointed that they had a right taken away from them.

That was guaranteed by the Supreme Court for nearly half a century.

And the fact is, you supported overturning Roe, which is now created, this new paradigm where we have a race to the bottom across the country, dangerous laws being passed that are threatening the health and safety of women.

And so the only way to get out from under that is to elect a pro-choice member of Congress who's going to restore, row and support the Women's Health Protection Act.

And that's what I'll do.

So I have to speak up and say, I was you can you can verify it with, different members that I've spoken to as an executive council.

When I did my interviews for judges, I did not.

But, you know, vocally say we should overturn Roe v Wade.

Ever.

So the question comes my record, my record 12 years ago on the Senate floor, I voted for a bipartisan Democrat, brought in an amendment to a bill that would have made sure that we held up Roe v Wade, because I believe, as I believed on the Executive Council, it is concrete.

It was law and I was for it.

Thank you.

Well, this is a little bit of a change because throughout this campaign and the last one.

He said he supported what the Supreme Court did in the Dobbs decision, which got a few months.

And that is contrary to a just fine.

We have another question for you.

Counselor Prescott, do you see a role for Congress when it comes to any other reproductive issues, such as contraception or IVF?

No, I again, we have the, the the concrete, of the Roe v Wade decision that I wanted to uphold as an executive counselor is the same way.

We have to make sure we have access to all those things that Roe v Wade stood for.

Okay.

Now, do you, Congressman Pappas?

Since the Shreveport Star ruling two years ago, congressional Democrats have tried and failed to pass a federal right to abortion.

The fact is that Democrats are unlikely to get the majorities in Congress that they need to pass any abortion legislation.

As you know, 60 votes are needed in the Senate.

So what options are available to advance the kinds of policies that you would support on this issue?

Well, I think it's an issue that's on the ballot this year.

And the next president could select multiple Supreme Court justices that, will help determine this issue in so many others for generations to come.

And it's also important to have folks that are champions of reproductive rights.

Now he's trying to wordsmith something here, but he shouldn't be let off the hook for the fact that he supports Dobbs.

He supports overturning and taking away a woman's right to choose in this country and putting this power in the hands of politicians as opposed to women.

So we do have to fight this fight.

And we passed the bill through the House twice, a couple years ago when we had the majority.

I think we're not that far away from being in a position where we have a pro-choice majority in both the House and Senate.

I can't speak for Senate rules and how they will work to get that through.

But I do think this is an issue that concerns a lot of folks across the state, and whether it's an assault on abortion access or these efforts to, go after IVF, contraception, there's a role here that, I think means that the next member of Congress from this district should be on the side of the people of New Hampshire and share their values.

And that's a difference between the two of us.

Okay.

Counsel, you weren't directly, mentioned, but he, Congressman Pappas did say your name.

Your pronoun.

Yeah.

Do you have any response to that?

Well, again, when I was on the Executive Council, I voted for judges that felt that Roe v Wade was concrete, was the law.

When I was in the state Senate, I voted for that Democrat amendment that would have created the, you know, in our state law, the, requirements of adhering to the Roe v Wade and make sure that when that bill was passed, which it wasn't when that bill was passed, it would not come under constitutional scrutiny.

And eventually and, you know, and this is very, very poignant about being independent.

You know, a lot of my Republican colleagues did not vote for that.

However, four years later, because of my trailblazing on this subject, the, legislature voted for what our law is today.

Our law is today, you know, upholding Roe v Wade.

And that's the same thing that I would vote for.

I mean, the fact you're trying to say you're a trailblazer today, I mean, you flip flopped on this more than Donald Trump has.

People need to know that someone's going to be a consistent voice in favor of reproductive rights, and I'm the only candidate who will do it.

Okay.

Thank you both.

Todd, back to you.

Thank you both.

So, turning now to foreign policy.

Congressman Pappas, the bloody conflict in Gaza has dragged on for more than a year.

You remain a staunch supporter of Israel.

Public records show you've received more than a half $1 million from apac, the pro-Israel lobbying group, which has angered some progressives in your party.

Do you see Israel's ongoing response to the October 7th attacks as proportionate, and how can this conflict be brought to an end?

I believe firmly that Israel has every right to defend itself.

It was attacked nearly a year ago, and 1200 innocent people were brutally slaughtered by Hamas terrorists.

More than 100 remain in captivity today by Hamas, including four Americans that are estimated to be there and are still alive.

And so we need to return these hostages and ensure that there's a ceasefire that will, secure their safe return and provide Israel with the security guarantees that that they need.

Now, I think that Israel has, degraded Hamas is ability to attack them again.

Yesterday, we heard the positive news that, sinwar was taken off the battlefield.

And so that's an important development because he was the head of Hamas and the mastermind of the October 7th attacks.

And we have to recognize that Israel is in a dangerous neighborhood.

They face threats from Iranian backed militias in the region.

And other hostile groups that want to wipe Israel off the map altogether.

So they're in a fight for their survival.

It's important that we provide security assistance.

We can do that at the same time as we look out for humanitarian needs and provide the kind of relief that people who are caught in conflict zones, including in Gaza, that they deserve.

Well, you mentioned humanitarian relief.

What leverage should the U.S. be using to limit the loss of civilian life in Gaza?

30s, please.

Well, the administration needs to continue to work on this, and we need the parties involved to agree to a cease fire that will allow for the infusion of the kind of humanitarian assistance, including food, water, medical supplies that people desperately need.

And I've been advocating for that all along, since the very early days of the conflict.

I'll continue to push the administration in that direction.

And I worked with a bipartisan group in the House to pass security legislation that included $9 billion worth of humanitarian assistance to folks in Gaza, in Sudan and other, conflict zones around the world, because that should be part of the United States responsibility.

Thank you.

There's another war, the one raging in Ukraine.

Counselor Prescott, you've raised skepticism about the United States continuing to aid the Ukrainian military.

If you don't support additional spending in Ukraine, what actions should the U.S. take when an ally comes under attack from a hostile actor like Russia?

I did not say that we should not support Ukraine.

I said that we must balance our budget, and if we can balance our budget and have money for Ukraine, we definitely need to need to do that, because I am for anybody that's fighting in their own backyard, similar to Israel, to be able to keep their sovereignty.

It's the most important thing and we need to be there for our allies.

We need to be relied upon, but we have to be strong.

And to be strong means we need that immigration reform.

We can't have our national debt increasing by 50% since 2020 to 2024.

That is destroying our country and we need to attack it now and not wait and not talk about it and just do it.

And I'm a I'm an engineer and a problem solver.

I can get it done.

I did in the state Senate.

Thank you, Andrew, I think you've got our next question.

Okay.

Question for you both.

Many U.S. presidents have had foreign policy doctrines such as the Monroe Doctrine and the Truman Doctrine, although you're both running for Congress rather than the presidency.

If you had a foreign policy doctrine named after you.

What would it entail?

What were the broad strokes be?

60s.

For both of you.

Congressman Pappas, why don't you go first?

Well, I think it would be, a strong diplomatic engagement with our allies and with the rest of the world and a strong military.

We have the most lethal fighting force on the face of the earth.

It's important that we maintain that strategic edge, but we also need to ensure that we're working with our alliances.

And right now, we're at a point where NATO is, growing.

We've seen two new countries join NATO during this administration, and that's an incredibly positive development as we face, the conflict in Ukraine, in Russia's ongoing war, as we face, other threats, including from China and Iran.

It's important that we develop these deep relationships, through, alliances like NATO, the partnership of Aukus, and others that are provide for the kind of strategic military cooperation that the United States should engage in.

Okay, counselor.

Appeasement is war, and strength is peace.

That would be my slogan.

So that would be the Prescott Doctrine.

I guess it might be, because what we have today is that we have appeasement around the world that says, you know, please don't do this.

We don't want you to do this, but there's nothing to back it up.

And we need to start being able to be forceful and have a strong military that's stronger than what the influence is in our world.

We have a less military than China in the Naval Department.

We need to work hard to make sure that happens.

As I mentioned before, balancing our budget is the most important thing.

And how do we do that?

We do it by taking care of our needs.

That's our military and our wants have to wait.

We have to make sure that we become stronger.

Interest rates will come down.

Things will be more affordable.

And that is how we make America able to be the strong person or the strong, you know, leader of our world.

And quick follow up, building one on what you said about China for both of you, how would you apply that doctrine to, your relationship with China?

Since it seems that they're committed to becoming crew liable to the United States, both economically and militarily across the globe.

Congressman, you go first.

We need to stand up and counter China's malign influence.

And that's why I've supported tough legislation and worked across the aisle to introduce bills that hold them to account.

We should be sanctioning members of the Chinese Communist Party that are involved in sending precursor chemicals that are manufactured into fentanyl, from China to Mexico.

We should be holding them to account for their humanitarian rights abuses, with the Uyghur population.

We should be, holding them to account for the fact that they've steamrolled democracy in Hong Kong.

So I think we have to be very circumspect of China.

And I believe there's growing bipartisan consensus, that we need to pay attention to this threat.

Both in terms of it from a national security perspective and an economic perspective, by working to rebuild our industrial base here.

Okay, quickly, counselor, the, you know, the naval bases that we have in America, there have been some of them have been mothballed and shut down.

We need to make sure that we can, if there is ever an attack here upon our our, our naval fleet, that we are able to immediately rebuild those.

I think that we don't we are not prepared in this, in this world today by having all of our naval shipyards, some of them mothballed, other just not brought up to the highest of technologies to be able to, you know, rebuild and build new ships.

We are probably just two thirds the amount of ships as China is today.

And if we lost a few of those ships, it would be hard to get our economics, you know, going again to rebuild all of our naval.

We have to make sure we get prepared.

Thank you so much.

Yep.

All right, folks, we've reached just about the halfway point.

We're going to take a short break.

This is NHPR's candid debate for New Hampshire's first congressional district.

We'll be right back.

You are watching a special presentation of the New Hampshire Votes 2024 Candidate Forums, a project of the Granite State News Collaborative.

Partners.

Welcome back to NHPRs first Congressional District debate, in partnership with the Granite State News Collaborative and New Hampshire PBS.

We're talking with incumbent Democrat Representative Chris Pappas and his Republican challenger, former Executive Councilor Russell Prescott.

I'm Todd Bookman, reporter for nhpr.

With me is Andrew Silvia of Manchester Ink Link We continue now with health care.

Andrew.

Thank you.

Todd.

Congressman Pappas.

Access to health care in rural areas is increasingly limited.

Primary care is especially stretched thin.

What can members of Congress do to boost rural health care networks and reduce the nationwide shortage of primary care providers?

Well, this is a huge problem.

And the further north you go, the further you get into rural communities in New Hampshire, the more that this is an issue.

And so I've worked to expand funding for our community health centers across the state, working with stakeholders and leaders on legislation.

I've also introduced a bill around telehealth that looks to extend pandemic era telehealth regulations to make sure that this is utilized more, it can extend the reach of providers, much further and allows people to get access to care that can be more efficient and even cheaper as well.

In addition to that, we need to support the workforce.

That's why I delivered a grant, recently to Saint Anselm College that's helping them build out, their nursing school that will expand capacity in their program.

We've had a nursing shortage in New Hampshire going on 15 years or so.

And so if we're not taking the steps to expand programs and invite more people into the pipeline to join that profession, we're never going to get there.

In addition to that, we need to look at the burden that folks take on to pursue an education and to get to one of these critical fields.

That's why I support loan forgiveness programs.

That can help get more providers into, underserved areas of New Hampshire.

Thank you so much.

Follow up for you, Congressman Pappas.

New Hampshire has seen a wave of hospital mergers in recent years with concerns about the impact on services, most recently in Exeter hospital Do you see a role for the federal government in regulating this trend?

Well, there is a concerning trend in health care, and it's there's a tremendous amount of financial strain on our hospitals right now.

Everyone is looking for a partnership or a combination.

We've seen a number of those go forward in New Hampshire, and including, you know, a for profit, hospitals that are playing in this market now, too.

So I think anytime you're losing services, it's deeply concerning.

We have that happen in the lakes region, where, the birthing unit at Lakes Region Hospital went away.

And so what does that do for the ability of our state to attract the young families that we need as the second oldest state in the country?

That's got to be a priority for us.

So absolutely working in concert with state officials.

That's something that we have to see how we can address.

Okay.

Thank you counselor.

Similar question.

Do you see a role for the federal government in regulating health care consolidation, or do you believe the private market should be left alone?

I think there is a role that the federal government can do in commerce, to make sure that we can purchase, from anywhere in the country for our, corporate people that need to, you know, have competition in health insurance.

If I can purchase from a Massachusetts, in a, insurance provider or a Texas insurance provider, we need to be able to provide all of the data from New Hampshire for our work base and make sure that they are able to work here with that data and know what the risks are and be able to be competitive knowing what the risks are.

That's important.

I think that we can do that from a federal level to make sure we can purchase health insurance across state lines.

Thank you so much.

Counselor Prescott, another question for you.

Republicans have been criticizing the Affordable Care Act since it was passed more than a decade ago.

If the GOP were to gain the majority in Congress, what changes to the ACA would you push for, if any?

Well, there is one, and that is the work requirement has not then is not been there.

And it's a small part of the Medicaid program in all the other parts of Medicaid have a work requirement.

And I believe that that was a major flaw in that, expansion.

And I think that's an easily changed, thing to do federally and make sure that we have a opportunity to train and make sure that those individuals that aren't encumbered by taking care of elderly parents or disabilities, or of course, if you're retired, you shouldn't be required to work.

This is an opportunity to keep away from being a socialized, country.

Socialism means that, you know, you just get your money from the government, and that's how you subside.

And that's not good.

We want to make sure that we are able to train people to be in the workforce.

Okay.

Congressman Pappas had a chance to talk about his plans for a rural health care.

What are your ideas?

Counselor for increasing access to care, especially in the rural parts of the first congressional District.

I think the natural forces of the economy would be benefit from having a streamlined immigration that would allow people to have be classified as home health care, individuals, for having a green card or work visa to be able to come to our state.

It would drive down the, the high cost of, of, employment because, we won't have a low, not interest rate, but unemployment rate.

The unemployment rate is so low now everybody is fighting for the same employees.

We need to make sure that that companies and corporations are able to.

And and also our health care, people to be able to have from a larger pool, be able to have more employment.

And that would help naturally in the, the process of getting people to work.

Thank you so much.

Talk back to you.

Thank you.

Councilor Prescott, you talk about faith a good deal as you campaign and in your long political career, you've staked up positions that you have said respect, or reflect those beliefs.

Some of those positions have been in opposition to gay rights, including criticizing adoption by gay people and opposing gay marriage.

How did those past positions reflect your current views on equality for LGBTQ people?

I do appreciate you saying past views and the fact that, you know, you and all over time your your, your views do change in terms of respect for individuals and I take it so closely to my heart.

Love your neighbor as yourself.

And it shouldn't end where I was always did that as a businessman and always did it with my family.

It should never have ended with negative campaigning where you're just, you know, you're out there just, you know, saying wrong things about people.

It's wrong.

And so that's why I do try and run it as best as I can.

A positive campaign on the issues.

Describe myself by my actions.

Like I like 12 years ago when I did vote for that amendment that would have codified Roe v Wade here in New Hampshire.

Those are my actions.

I want people to see my record over the last 10 or 15 years and, you know, take it as a place where over time, I've realized that we must have respect for all.

Thank you, Congressman.

Congressman Pappas.

Yep.

You're the state's first openly gay person to be elected to Congress and as co-chair of Congress's Equality Caucus.

You're backing a bill that would prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity.

Does that mean you see no circumstance where it's appropriate to limit transgender rights in the context of women and girls sports?

Well, I appreciate the question.

I do want to get back to what Russell was addressing there, and I appreciate that his views have evolved over time.

But I think back to when I was a young state legislator and the one of the first times I got up on the floor and spoke was against a bill that would have prohibited New Hampshire from recognizing out-of-state same sex marriages.

He was the lead sponsor of that bill.

And as a young person in New Hampshire, I was left wondering whether there was a space for me in this state.

And so I think that Russell has shown throughout his career that he's out of step with New Hampshire.

I think part of our values here, include, everyone and ensuring that everyone can be themselves and be empowered to be a part of our society and economy.

And I would hope that's the same for everyone across our state and our country, regardless of what zip code you live in.

So that's why I do support the Equality Act, which would add LGBTQ individuals to our nation's civil rights statutes.

And it's just something as basic as equality under the law.

That's an American concept.

That's something we should all embrace.

And with respect to sports, I think that people are trying to continue to divide people.

Politically on this issue.

Congress should be focused on a whole host of other issues in terms of solving problems and lowering costs.

But what we should do is allow parents and communities and coaches to figure this out without politicians getting in the middle of that debate.

Councilor Prescott, you were mentioned just to get on the record.

How do you stand today on the topic of gay marriage?

I am fine with that.

And also, you know, I have a have and had experience with being in, you know, marriages of, of the same sex.

So I think that that Chris Pappas has been very gracious, very gracious, to say that, you know, there has been a change and I appreciate it very much.

And we really need to grow that way in relationship with each other.

And that's why I do call upon you to, you know, bring down those those negative ads that do not reflect my record.

As I mentioned, I can get all that information to you.

So, you know, you you can see where 12 years ago, that was the way I voted.

Well, I would I would just say my husband's here in the audience today and I'm glad that we're able to be married and to have a loving relationship.

And there were folks that stood in the way of that.

But I hope we can move forward together as a country and recognize everyone's dignity.

So let me talk about that.

So it was the definition of Marriage Act.

It was it was exactly that Bill Clinton's words, that he signed into law.

And as soon as I realized that it went into the House of Representatives, we made it into a study committee.

And that's what happened.

And, you know, I that's I think that's what it's the most important thing is that you need to be able to listen to people and understand where you might be able to say, hey, take a second look at this.

And I immediately made it into a study committee.

I did not object.

You also said after New Hampshire passed same sex marriage legislatively as a candidate for state Senate, that you would repeal that law.

So I'm glad that your views have changed today.

Maybe it was I don't believe I would say, and I didn't even do that when I wasn't.

I wasn't active when I came back in the state Senate in 2010.

My activity was balancing the budget.

But as a candidate, you were clear about that.

I want to thank you both for your candor on this topic.

We certainly appreciate it.

We're going to move on to the next question.

Thank you.

Okay.

Public Congress, public trust in Congress is very low these days, and doing even basic things like electing House speakers or passing budgets, seemed to plunge the body into crisis.

Congressman Pappas, you're already there.

I know you're only one member of the House of Representatives, but, why should voters expect that to improve if you get reelected?

Well, I think you have to be committed to the proposition that we're all in this together, and that ideas from both parties, can be sensible.

And you should put everything on the table and figure out what's going to work.

And so that as we think about some of the toughest challenges we face right now, whether it's the opioid crisis, mental health, whether it's protecting our environment and our drinking water.

I've worked across the aisle with Republicans.

I'm rated by the Lugar Center as the third most bipartisan member of the House.

That's the way that you solve problems.

It's also the way that you dial back the, intensity and the noise, to figure out how we can cut a path that's going to serve the people of this nation.

Well, so, that's what I'm committed to.

That's my record.

I think people know me as someone who's incredibly pragmatic and open minded, and what I try to do is to create a feedback loop between the stories and experiences of people here in New Hampshire, and how we can turn that into change and into positive results in Washington.

And I would hope that more members would follow that path as opposed to the, sort of cartoonish, you know, view that, you see of a lot of members that are really focused on clicks and on division.

We've got to push that extremism to the side.

Counselor Prescott that same question, even though you'd be one person in Congress if you are elected, what would be your approach to, for solving the dysfunction in Congress?

Would you, try to reach across the aisle, or would you hunker down in your caucus?

I would certainly reach across the aisle same way as I did for the same issue.

We were just talking about abortion.

When I was in the state Senate, I did also voted against my Republican colleagues when they wanted to have a voter ID bill that was not going to have votes counted that very day.

So I was able to make sure that that did not pass.

And I was the prime sponsor of a voter ID bill.

ID bill that I worked with the governor to make sure it didn't get vetoed by Governor Lynch.

And I also made sure that it did not get, pursued by the Obama administration and under their Justice Department review, and we were able to work with the town clerks and city clerks of our state on a bipartisan way to make it a very, very workable voter ID bill.

It still is still in force today.

That year, when it was, voted into law, it was was passed into law.

It was administered that very same year for the election.

So it was a law that worked.

And it was the a person that, you know, actually has a record of being bipartisan to make sure, you know, you have to stand up to your party when they're not right.

We should have been able and we have been voting, getting our votes counted every single day.

Thank you, counselor, that you turn.

So turning now to public safety and guns.

Vice President Kamala Harris, I think, surprised a lot of Americans by talking about her ownership of a Glock handgun recently.

Congressman Pappas, I'm curious.

Do you own a gun?

No.

Many Democrats say there are simply too many guns on American streets.

Some in your party support gun buyback programs as a voluntary way to reduce the number of guns in America.

I'm curious, what's your what's your stance on that?

Well, I think we should focus on what we can do to partner with local law enforcement.

And that's what I've done during my time in Congress.

Delivered, resources to Manchester, worked with Chief Altenburg for a gun shot recognition program that is helping to curb gun violence in the center city area of Manchester.

So I would look at those ideas, by, trusted folks in law enforcement, that now need our investment.

And so whether it's a program like that, upgrading radios, giving our police officers recruitment and retention bonuses, those are the things that will bolster law enforcement in our state.

But I don't believe that we're powerless to address gun violence.

It's the number one killer of young people in this country.

And we have got to stop the mass slaughter that we see, where too many weapons of war are falling into the wrong hands.

And so ideas like universal background checks, closing loopholes, building on the bipartisan Safer Communities law is the work that I'll do in Congress.

You mentioned universal background checks.

Counselor Prescott, do you support universal background checks that would include transactions at gun shows and private sales?

Should should every gun transaction be subjected to a background check?

No, I think that, the Second Amendment needs to be defended when you take your oath of office.

That is the most important thing.

And they have a A+ rating by the new, by the, Gun Owners of America.

And it has to do with the fact that I was the prime sponsor of constitutional carry.

And it didn't pass the first time that it was brought forward.

But eventually people realized that, you know, it is our Second Amendment right.

And if they didn't, we have make sure that we have, very responsible gun ownership in New Hampshire.

That is the most paramount part of having rights.

So you have to be responsible with those rights.

And would always act to have education and brought that education down to the younger level in our in our grade schools or in any way that we can to educate people to be very, very careful of firearms.

Many states have so-called red flag laws that allow, family member or law enforcement to ask a judge to intervene if they're worried about the mental health of a gun owner.

New Hampshire has rejected efforts to pass such a law at the state level.

Counselor Prescott, you support, such an initiative at the federal level?

No, I would not support that at the federal level.

I don't believe at the federal level we should have a list of gun owners that's just, you know, makes the people's hair stand up in the back of their neck where they have a list of people that have, gun ownership.

So when we talk about red flag laws, that's exactly why we call them red flag laws.

If you're missing the point that it's part of it being coming up on a list that you have that, you know, an owner of a gun, we don't want that list to get larger and larger.

Okay.

Thank you.

Andrew.

Okay.

Question for both of you on the topic of higher education, is there a way to help people saddled by higher high student loan debt without putting taxpayers on the hook for students who can pay back their loans, but choose not to?

Counselor Prescott, you first.

Certainly, when I was in the state Senate, we really emphasized, our needs of our state as, funding more for the community college system and make it reciprocity between our university system so that every college community credit, is put right over to the university system that saves costs.

You know, people are not going to, four year college is any longer because it's so much easier to go to a local college in a community, area and then be able to just immediately transfer those credits to the last two years of a college degree.

And also, you have to realize that, you know, there are other ways of making a living, and that is the trade.

So we can continue and invest in that.

And that's what I did also as a senator.

Okay, Congressman.

Well, I do think we need to be providing support to students.

This is an important issue in New Hampshire, where we have the highest student debt load of any state in the country, in part because our state does not step up to the plate and provide adequate funding to our university system.

So I would look at what we can do moving forward, to make college more affordable, including by expanding Pell Grants and tuition assistance and loan forgiveness programs.

Like I mentioned when we were talking about health care, getting people into professions where they're serving the public in needed areas like law enforcement, education, health care, those are the ways that we can, not just meet the burden that individuals are facing, but also support the needs of our economy overall.

I'm also a big supporter of apprenticeships, skills training programs, and career and technical education, programs.

We've had great departments around New Hampshire.

We've worked with them to make sure that, they have stable funding and that, they're able to receive the sort of updated equipment to, allow a good relationship with the private sector and a warm handoff, for students to be able to get out there into the world, into a good paying job here in New Hampshire.

So we have to think about this holistically.

But both, reducing the burden, on individuals, there's absolutely a role we can play in working in concert with the state government.

All right, Todd, you're up.

Thank you.

You both have been in politics a long time.

I believe you both won your first election to the state House in the same year, 2002.

In that time, what have you learned about legislating?

About getting things accomplished for the various districts that that you've represented?

Counselor Prescott, we'll start with you.

Well, certainly I do turn to how I did operate when I was in the, state Senate.

That was making sure that I looked at every single bill and made sure that, you know, if I can make a difference here and move my, move the needle on bringing my party more to the center, I would do that.

And I did that with voter ID again.

You know, that is what true bipartisanship is trying to be.

That person that steps out and says this is wrong.

And even if it is part of your your colleagues, make sure you do that.

That's that was what I would bring to Washington, D.C., to make sure that that I keep people on track down in Washington, D.C. we know that that it's all about ego and wanting to be on TV and, maybe get an interview and, it is the wrong way to do things.

And I would dedicate hours and hours a week because it would be something that I would get down there and work and make sure we balance our budget and make sure we, we, you know, do.

Immigration reform is is the most important things that move our country forward.

Thank you, Congressman Pappas.

Lessons learned from 20 years of political office.

Well, I think that you've got to specialize in what is important to the people that you represent.

And so for our district, it's making sure that I'm getting committee assignments that correspond to what the needs are of New Hampshire.

And so I serve on the Transportation Infrastructure Committee, the Veterans Affairs Committee and the Small Business Committee.

They're all very constructive and actually bipartisan committees, even in a divided Washington.

And so for me, it's how do you find partners and build relationships?

Because that's the building block of getting anything passed.

And how do you figure out ways to, just fine tune your operation so that you're meeting the needs of people, hearing from folks in the Granite State in real time and turning that into wins.

I'll mention one issue.

It's the first issue which is very present in New Hampshire, have learned a lot from folks on the ground that have been directly impacted by this issue.

Joined a bipartisan caucus in Washington working across the aisle with, a Republican, Brian Fitzpatrick, from Pennsylvania, on legislation to regulate PFAS under the Clean Water Act.

So, it's it's about creating that, relationship between your district and your legislative team and how you can really lean in on things that are important.

Right.

Thank you both.

Okay.

We're running short on time.

Let's try to keep things tight by touching on a handful of important issues.

On term limits, do you support term limits for members of Congress?

Council.

Prescott?

Yes.

I, was the first person in this race for Congress to sign the pledge.

I think six years is plenty of time to be able to get your your work done in the in the Executive Council.

I mean, in the, in Congress.

That's why I will, you know, make sure that I sign something and, adopt the bill.

That would say the term limits of the Congress would be six years in term limits for the Senate would be two terms, which would be 12 years.

It's important for the people in New Hampshire just to say, you know, the in, in the, the, Congress, you have the House of Representatives, which is going to be the people's House, right?

It's more bubbly and bubbly and you got to get things done.

We need more turnover there to make sure that people aren't just entrenched in the same things happen every single year.

Thank you so much.

Congressman, your thoughts?

Well, I haven't supported term limits, but I do think that people stay far too long in Washington, and we need more generational change and turnover.

And that's why an idea like ending Partizan gerrymandering, which is something that I'm supporting, would help create more competitive districts across the country.

Unfortunately, we're in a unique situation in the in competitive races in New Hampshire, but most of the country isn't like that.

And if you gave voters the option of truly being able to shape the outcome of elections and not just have it settled by primary voters, that's going to be better off for the electorate and also, achieve the kind of turnover that we do need in Congress.

I think with that, we need to conclude today's debate.

I want to really thank both of our candidates, Representative Chris Pappas, Counselor Russell Prescott, for taking the time to be here today.

Also, thanks to the Granite State News Collaborative and to New Hampshire PBS for partnering with us on this event.

Our next forum is on Tuesday, when we'll hear from the candidates running for New Hampshire's Governor's race.

You can find all of our election coverage at nhpr.org.

I want to thank Andrew Sylvia from Manchester Ink Link.

I'm Todd Bookman from nhpr.

Thank you all in the audience for joining us today.

And again, a special thanks to our candidates for participating.

Thank you.

Thanks.

Thank you.

This has been a special presentation of the New Hampshire Votes 2024 Candidate Forums, a project of the Granite State News Collaborative Partners NHPR Manchester Ink Link Laconia Daily Sun, NH Bulletin, Concord Monitor and NHPBS.