GOP Race For 7th Congressional District Grows More Heated | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's note: The author of this post is Barry Smith, who is an associate editor for the Carolina Journal, John Hood Publisher.

Winner of contest between Andrade, Rouzer, and White likely to take open seat

    RALEIGH     Three Republican candidates are battling for their party's nomination to succeed Democrat Mike McIntyre as North Carolina's 7th District Congressman. McIntyre, who held the job for nine two-year terms, chose not to seek re-election this year. He won his race two years ago by just 654 votes out of 336,736 cast.

    The district, stretching from the southeastern coast of the state to the Research Triangle suburbs, is considered Leaning Republican by the North Carolina FreeEnterprise Foundation and Likely Republican by the Washington, D.C.-based Cook Political Report.

    The candidates are David Rouzer, who lost that close race to McIntyre two years ago, Woody White, and Chris Andrade. The race has grown heated in recent weeks, as White has charged Rouzer with being too close to the Washington GOP establishment and Rouzer countering that his experience in Washington would allow him to be a more effective legislator sooner should he win in November.

    White, an attorney who also served a brief stint in the N.C. Senate, said that his top issue in the campaign was whether a career politician or an average person would represent the district in Washington.

    "In our primary, I think the most important issue is just being someone to go to Washington and bring a voice — an average person from the real world — to the way Washington does business," White said.

    White's comment was targeted at Rouzer, who worked for former GOP U.S. Sens. Jesse Helms and Elizabeth Dole, as well as serving in President George W. Bush's administration.

    "I've been very blessed over the course of my life to have a lot of great opportunities," Rouzer said in response, adding that his experience in Washington will help him advance conservative causes. Rouzer also served in the N.C. Senate for four years.

    Rouzer said that the country's future is the most important issue. At least he said he's hearing on the campaign trail that people are "scared to death" of the policies that have come from Washington in recent years.

    "It's quite personal to everybody," Rouzer said. "This Obamacare is wreaking havoc in a lot of sectors." He said business people aren't seeing a bright future and are looking for an exit strategy for their businesses. "They're worried that the American dream is escaping them," he said.

    Andrade, a retired Marine and Army veteran, said he's not running against either Rouzer or White.

    "I've given the voters another choice, somebody else to look at," Andrade said, noting that he has served the country for 30 years in the military and four more years in the civil service. "I have entered into the race because I'm ready to serve again."

    Andrade thinks that the voters are tired of elected leaders not coming up with answers to solve the nation's problems.

    "I think the voters, not just in the 7th District, but throughout North Carolina and the country, are thirsty for leadership and thirsty for solutions to the problems," Andrade said.

    All three candidates are critical of Obamacare.

    Rouzer said it should be repealed in its entirety and replaced with free-market reforms that create competition. He supports letting insurance companies sell policies across state lines, allowing people to set aside money tax-free to pay for minor medical expenses, and medical malpractice reform at the federal level.

    Saying the whole notion of Obamacare was premised on a falsehood, White said it needs to be repealed and replaced over time with a system that incentivizes healthy lifestyles. "The individual mandate and corporate mandate have increased unemployment," White said.

    Andrade said that opening up websites and competition across state lines would bring down costs for the American consumer. "Then the government is not telling you what kind of healthcare to have," Andrade said.

    Andrade said he didn't mind the Obamacare provisions making it easier for people with pre-existing conditions to get insurance, or the one allowing children to stay on their parents' insurance until they're 26.

    People's personal liberties were not being abused by the National Security Agency in the wake of revelations by NSA contractor Edward Snowden, Andrade said. "I think all these things were being done with the best intentions in mind," Andrade said, adding that Snowden misused his clearance to do something that was damaging to national security.

    Andrade believes that getting rid of overregulation would help the economy. He said cutting spending would free up money to pay down the national debt. He was also critical of President Obama's use of executive orders, saying, "I think it's an act of desperation."

    White said the government should stay out of the way and allow the economy to recover on its own accord. "We saw government take an active role in trying to become a substitute for the free market," White said. "That's one of the reasons that our recovery is slow."

    The budget deficit and national debt represent an unsustainable model, White said. "What we have to do is get back to basic budget principles, understanding that we have finite resources and infinite need," White said. White also said that he felt Snowden put the nation's intelligence at risk. However, White said he was "very uncomfortable with secret panels and secret tribunals" determining access to American citizens' private matters.

    Rouzer said excessive federal regulation is hurting businesses. "It's just the compounding effect of all of them," Rouzer said. "They feel like they're dying by a thousand cuts." To fix the budget deficit and national debt, Rouzer said that we've got to do two things simultaneously. "We've got to grow the economy, and we've got to cut spending," Rouzer said.

    The president has taken executive orders to a new level, Rouzer said. "He's unilaterally made changes to Obamacare, time after time," he said. And he thinks that Snowden is "probably guilty of treason," he said he is "very leery of an intrusive federal government, particularly in terms of curtailing individual freedoms."

    Rouzer and White have lined up endorsements from conservative state and national organizations and political personalities. Rouzer is supported by the Citizens United Political Victory Fund and the 60 Plus Association; House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., and former N.C. Secretary of State Rufus Edmisten, a Democrat, have hosted fundraisers for Rouzer. White has the backing of Americans for Legal Immigration PAC and former Republican presidential candidate and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.

    The winner of the GOP primary will face the winner of the Democratic primary — either Jonathan Barfield or Walter Martin — and Libertarian Wesley Casteen in the November general election.