Foxx, Kennedy Battle in First Major Debate of Midterm Elections

Published by The Mountain Times
October, 13, 2010
By Jesse Campbell

West Jefferson became center stage Tuesday night for what is shaping up to be a hotly contested race for the Fifth Congressional District seat between Congresswoman Virginia Foxx and Democratic challenger Billy Kennedy.

The Ashe Civic Center was filled to near capacity as some residents found their place against the back wall to hear the candidates exchange in a war of words over some of the more controversial issues facing the nation today including the economy, immigration, abortion, proper use of the nation's military, education and the role of the federal government in those issues. ...

In terms of job retention, Kennedy attacked Foxx's policies on keeping jobs from going overseas and pointed out that the unemployment rate in the district had more than doubled since the beginning of her tenure. Foxx believes that lowering the nation's corporate tax, the second highest in the world, will create more jobs stateside and act as incentive to keep companies from leaving.

Throughout much of the night, Foxx battled claims made by Kennedy that her actions in Congress were influenced by corporate contributions.

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