North Texas candidates for U.S. House focus on bailout, energy, health care

US Congress District 24

Kenny Marchant, ending his second term in Congress after 18 years in the Texas Legislature, faces two first-time political candidates, Democrat Tom Love of Grand Prairie and Libertarian David Casey of Bedford, for the District 24 seat.

Mr. Love, 58, said health care and the energy crisis are among his top issues.

He looks at Germany as a model for inexpensive universal health care. He advocates prevention, periodic medical screening, development of more vaccines, and encouragement for more doctors to go into general practice.

On the energy front, he said the U.S. needs to get away from foreign oil and develop green technology.

"It was harder in 1960 to put a man on the moon than it is for us to have energy independence," he said, noting he supports biofuel development.

Mr. Marchant, 57, R-Coppell, could not be reached for comment.

But he said on his Web site he believes economic growth is spurred by tax cuts for families and businesses, not on higher taxes or increased regulation by the federal government.

He also supports expanding the college student loan program; improving access to, but not controlling, the health-care system; working with the international community to stabilize Iraq; and having a long-term energy plan to reduce dependence on foreign oil. He has said he supports promoting wind, solar and nuclear energy.

Mr. Casey, 29, a legal clerk and student, said he decided to go into politics after spending almost nine years in nuclear propulsion, both in the military and as a defense contractor.

"It became this culture of waste," he said, comparing putting a ship in for maintenance and repairs to taking a car in for an oil change and having the transmission fall off on the way out of the shop.

"My priority would be to return to responsible spending and not just this culture of, 'We'll throw more money at every problem until it goes away,' " he said, adding that the bailout was an example of that.

The district includes part or all of Carrollton, Farmers Branch, Grapevine, Colleyville, Lewisville, Coppell, Southlake, Hurst, Euless, Bedford, Irving, Grand Prairie, Duncanville and Cedar Hill.

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