TOLEDO, Ohio -
Marcy Kaptur and Dennis Kucinich along with political newcomer Graham Veysey squared off Friday night in a debate hosted by 13abc.
The three battled for one hour on the Woodward High School stage in front of a live television audience answering questions from our journalists including Lee Conklin and Bill Hormann.
Incumbent 9th District Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur hasn't faced a serious primary challenge in her 30 years in Congress until now.
Kaptur says, "I spent most of my life helping this community, and I intend to keep on doing that, with the help of the listeners."
And she took the opportunity to remind voters just how much she knows about Toledo.
"Let's talk about the building of the high school we're standing in. Let's talk about what the volunteers of America are doing in north Toledo. Let's talk about housing and neighborhood schools in north Toledo that we work with the YMCA and United Way on. Let's talk about section 8 housing that undergirds the lives of the people who live in north Toledo.
The newly redrawn 9th district now stretches 120 miles along Lake Erie and it swallowed up seven term Cleveland Congressman Dennis Kucinich's district in the process.
"The question that the people of Toledo face, frankly the question that all Americans face, what are our priorities? When we spend money for war, that takes money out of communities like Toledo and Cleveland."
Kucinich repeatedly painted himself as the anti-war candidate. "It took 2 billion from Toledo, cost Toledo 2 billion. Cost Cleveland 2 billion. We have to change our priorities. If we are going to have an economy that creates jobs, quit wasting money on wars. If we're going to have an economy where there's healthcare for all, quit wasting money on wars."
And trying to play spoiler, Cleveland businessman Graham Veysey. "This is an example of two career politicians who've been incumbents for a combined 70 years. They're more interested in scoring political points than finding policy solutions.
Veysey is a 29-year-old entrepreneur who's never run for office before.
"What we need to do is put people who are trying to solve the solutions as opposed to just trying to score political points into congress because congress is filled with career politicians. They've lost touch with reality, and this whole squabble is an example of that."
The candidates were crisp, on point, and the tightly timed format left little room for fun until Graham Veysey got a laugh for his rebuttal to a facebook question asking Kucinich if he would run for president.
Veysey said, "I pledge I will not run for president." Kucinich pointed out the 29-year-old Veysey wouldn't be old enough to run for president in four years.
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