KUNR’s Lucia Starbucks moderates debate with District 2 congressional candidates

The atmosphere at the Brewery Arts Center was cheerful and polite. Incumbent Republican Congressman Mark Amodei leaned on his Nevada roots, while bipartisan challenger Greg Kidd said he chose the Silver State as his home. “How many people here weren’t born in Nevada?” Kidd asked the crowd. Most of those present raised their hands.

On the topic of access to reproductive care, Kidd’s answers drew the most applause. He said he supported Nevada ballot question 6 He called for abortion access to be enshrined in the state constitution, saying it was a kitchen table issue with his wife, who is a gynecologist.

“I realize that states may regulate fireworks and manufacturing and where you can get a massage, but making something that I believe is a civil right a state issue so that a woman crossing state lines has her rights can lose, I can’t. “Think of any area where men suffer such a loss of rights,” Kidd said.

Amodei did not comment on Ballot Question 6. Instead, he pointed to a law passed by Nevada voters in 1990 protects access to abortion up to 24 weeks.

“I can’t sit here as someone who currently holds an elective office that the voters gave me for 24 months at a time and say, ‘Throw that away,'” said Amodei, who has represented Northern Nevada in Congress since 2011. ” It hasn’t been broken here in Nevada, but if Congress decides to change that for you in a way that says what voters don’t want, I won’t vote for the federal law, regardless of whether it passes.” shorter, longer or whatever.”

One point both candidates agreed on is their support for mining in Nevada.

Amodei said he trusts the National Environmental Policy Act to determine where in Nevada the extraction can take place.

“A few years ago people were talking about exploring the Ruby Mountains of Elko, all these letters; “Don’t let her do that. Don’t let her do that.” It’s like, hey, we have something called NEPA. Let’s look at what the Forest Service does when carrying out this process. Lo and behold, they came back and said, ‘No,’ that means it works,” Amodei said.

Kidd wants support for the lithium cycle, including mining, processing and recycling of lithium products, to occur entirely in Nevada.

“I love silver. I love gold. I like my electric car, my phone batteries and laptop,” Kidd said. “One day the minerals will be gone, but we will still be here. Therefore, the strategy of not setting aside money for the future is not strategic. It’s not an investment in Nevada.”

When pressing the Concerns shared by members of the Indigenous communityB. Mining, the destruction of sacred land or the contamination of resources such as water. Neither candidate provided any information about why they raised these votes or supported Nevada’s tribes.

Many questions from the audience focused on housing, including how to keep up with Nevada’s growth and affordability. Amodei said Nevada’s federal delegation was successful in passing Property billsthat allow for the transfer of federal land for development. He said this must be done responsibly.

“Do we want uncontrolled growth? No, we don’t do that. Do we need to make sure we have water, sewage, flood protection and all the things that go into responsible development? Yes,” Amodei said. “The locals also have to play a role in this because once you get the land, which is not easy to do, there are still tons of costs that go into how are we going to build this apartment or this house?”

Amodei said the country needs to examine construction costs. Kidd praised Amodei for his track record on land bills, but said he would like to use more existing buildings.

“There is land on the edge. We want to do that, especially in the urban areas or areas that need housing, but look, there’s land right in downtown Reno that’s blighted. I don’t fully understand it and would like to talk to Hillary about it. “Why isn’t there a bond issue to buy up this land and create affordable housing there?” Kidd asked.

At the end of the debate, both candidates shook hands. This was the fourth and final electoral forum organized by Sierra Nevada Forumsthe League of Women Voters of Northern Nevada and the American Association of University Women. KUNR and the Nevada Appeal were media sponsors.