Greenwich Time - Himes, Whitnum Face-Off

News Article

Greenwich Time - Himes, Whitnum Face-Off

In their first and only debate before next month's primary, Democratic congressional foes Jim Himes and Lee Whitnum clashed yesterday over foreign policy, the war on terrorism and domestic spying programs.

The tension between the candidates, both from Greenwich, was palpable even before the start of the News 12 debate, which was taped during the afternoon at Cablevision's Norwalk studios and scheduled to air last night.

Whitnum was 20 minutes late for the taping, which she later blamed on Interstate 95 traffic. When she finally did arrive, she brusquely walked past the party-endorsee Himes and onto the set, where the rivals went back and forth for 28 minutes in a "open format" moderated by anchor Tom Appleby.

"He talks a lot and says absolutely nothing," Whitnum, 48, said after Himes commented about the impact of the war in Iraq on the economy and on middle-class families.

The greatest area of disagreement between the two candidates was over the war in Afghanistan, which the party-endorsee Himes said is where the U.S. military should focus its efforts and resources, not on Iraq.

"The fight is in Afghanistan and Pakistan," said Himes, 42, who was endorsed in May during a party convention that Whitnum boycotted.

"No, no," responded Whitnum, who frequently interrupted Himes during the program.

Whitnum, in contrast, questioned the invasion of Afghanistan, saying the U.S. should have offered economic aid to war-ravaged nation in return for the capture of Osama bin Laden, the mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. She also disputed the Taliban's role in the war on terrorism, saying that regime was not bent on a holy war.

"We should have recognized their sovereignty," Whitnum said. "I say we give the Taliban back their country."

Himes said he couldn't disagree more about the strategic importance of Afghanistan.

"I'm just staggered to hear Ms. Whitnum say we should have never overthrown the Taliban," said Himes, a former Goldman Sachs investment banker turned nonprofit housing executive.

The winner of the Aug. 12 primary will take on Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., in November.

Shays, first elected in 1987, was the lone Republican House member in New England to survive the 2006 election. His district, which includes most of Fairfield County and a sliver of New Haven County, is being targeted once again by Democrats looking to seize upon his support of the Iraq war.

In a familiar refrain during her grass-roots campaign, Whitnum blamed the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on what she called the pro-Israel foreign policy of the U.S., saying that American support for the Middle East nation has inflamed Muslim extremists.

"We are the problem here," Whitnum said.

Whitnum's pronouncement earned her a sharp rebuke from Himes, who said the implication that U.S.-Israel ties caused the attacks was "nothing shy of abominable."

The sparring didn't stop there, however, as Whitnum accused Himes of pandering to a pro-Israeli lobbying group with his recent visit to that country.

"How do you go from Greenwich to having your arms around (Israeli Prime Minister Ehud) Olmert?" said Whitnum, a substitute teacher and former software engineer.

At the end of their debate, the candidates diverged when asked how they felt about domestic spying programs.

Himes said that the Bush administration has thumbed its nose at civil liberties and hurt the nation's credibility when dealing with other countries such as Russia that suppress human rights or quash the press.

"How do we say that if we have not been true to our own values?" said Himes, a former chairman of the Democratic Town Committee of Greenwich.

Whitnum disagreed.

"I don't think we have given up our civil liberties that much," Whitnum said.

Source