Congressional candidates debate U.S. role in accepting refugees

In a candidate forum hosted by the American Association of University Women on Friday in Atascadero, the nine candidates running to succeed retiring nine-term U.S. Rep. Lois Capps for the 24th District congressional seat split, predictably, along party lines on a range of issues.

The most revealing answers of the night may have come in response to the question of whether the United States should accept refugees from war-torn countries such as Syria. Asked whether they would use their congressional vote to accept refugees, most Republican candidates said no.

However, Katcho Achadjian, a Republican whose family survived the Armenian genocide, broke ranks with the other Republican contenders and said the United States must show compassion and has an obligation to accept some refugees — after they’ve been thoroughly vetted.

“We have some responsibilities,” Achadjian said. “But we need to ask, ‘Who are they? Are they real refugees?’ ”

Justin Fareed, a Republican who called the San Bernadino mass shooting in December an “ISIS attack,” said he does not support accepting any refugees from war-torn regions. Doing so, Fareed said, presents a significant national security risk.

Salud Carbajal, a Democrat, said he would support accepting a nonspecific number of refugees into the country, although European nations need to take the majority.

“We need to make sure that American security is paramount,” Carbajal said.

Bill Ostrander, a Democrat, criticized his opponents’ responses. Their responses, he said, contradicted America’s tradition of welcoming those in need, a message that is enumerated in the Statue of Liberty’s inscription: “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.”

“Are we xenophobic or are we really concerned about our safety?” Ostrander asked. “This is xenophobic, and I don’t like it.”

Matt Kokkonen, a Republican who rejected the idea of accepting refugees from any Middle Eastern nation, called the Islamic faith “a totalitarian system” that is fundamentally at odds with the U.S. Constitution. No other candidate voiced support for Kokkonen in that regard.

Other questions focused on the candidates’ stances on equal pay for equal work, campaign finance reform, the Affordable Care Act (often referred derisively by Republicans as “Obamacare”), the proposed Phillips 66 rail spur extension, education and climate change.

Following opening statements, moderator Shirley Summers gave each candidate — Democrats Carbajal, Ostrander, Benjamin Lucas and Helene Schneider; independent John Uebersax; Republicans Achadjian, Fareed and Kokkonen; and independent Steve Isakson — one minute per question.

When asked about campaign financing, Ostrander, founder of San Luis Obispo-based campaign finance reform organization Citizens Congress, called out some of his opponents for the amount of money they’ve received.

“The single biggest determinate of legislative outcomes is money,” Ostrander said. “It’s frightening the amount of money that’s gone into this election.”

Carbajal, who’s received more money than any candidate in the race, said he supports campaign finance reform and called the Supreme Court’s 2010 decision in Citizens United v. The Federal Election Commission — which gave corporations and unions a greenlight to raise and spend unlimited amounts of money to advocate for or against candidates — a “travesty.”

Candidates split along party lines in their support for or against the Affordable Care Act, with Democrats saying they would uphold the law with minor alterations and Republicans pledging to try to repeal it entirely. Isakson said he supports the Affordable Care Act but would work to revise it.

“It’s not affordable,” Isakson said. “The costs are much more expensive that what was sold (to us). The insurance companies have a captive audience.”

Schneider, who is the mayor of Santa Barbara and formerly worked in management for Planned Parenthood of Santa Barbara, said the law can be improved but has successfully provided health care for millions of formerly uninsured Americans.

“The Affordable Care Act is not perfect, but it is better than what we had before,” she said. “Insurance companies ... should not be making money off the backs of families.”

Turning to funding for prekindergarten education, most candidates seemed in agreement that pre-K education should receive federal funding and that it should be seen as an investment.

“These are our children, and how dare we not invest in their future?” Achadjian said.

Kokkonen, however, disagreed and called for dissolving the U.S. Department of Education.

Responses varied when the questions turned to climate change.

Several Democrats and Republicans Fareed and Achadjian said California is leading the way in reducing carbon emissions, although Republicans disagreed on whether global warming is exacerbated by the fossil fuel industry. Although Kokkonen said the idea of climate change is “based on a lie,” Achadjian said climate change is real and that he is glad the topic is being discussed.

Schneider said promoting alternative energy is critical in addressing climate change and that the most effective programs have come from mayors and city governments.

The two candidates with the most votes in the June 7 primary election, despite party affiliation, will advance to the general election Nov. 8.

Correction: An earlier version of this story had the incorrect party affiliation for John Uebersax. He is running as an independent.

This story was originally published April 9, 2016 at 6:27 PM with the headline "Congressional candidates debate U.S. role in accepting refugees."