Lugar, Johnson touch on race's hot issues

EVANSVILLE -- Senator Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) and challenger David Johnson spent about an hour Friday debating issues, arguing each other's attacks point-by-point.\nThe format followed the Lincoln-Douglas debate of the 1850s, said moderator David James, news anchor and managing editor for WFIE in Evansville. Friday's debate was the second of three debates. The final one is scheduled for Oct. 22 in South Bend.\nTaxes\nJohnson opened his 20-minute remarks with the topic of taxes -- displaying a chart that showed a large amount of money given back to people earning more than $319,000, compared to those with lesser incomes. \nLugar, who has served as senator since 1976, said he assumed Johnson's chart was referring to George W. Bush's tax plan. Lugar said he favors a 7 percent tax cut for everyone, and because people earning a lower-income don't pay that much in federal income taxes, "there isn't much to give back."\nHe said he voted to end both the inheritance and marriage-penalty taxes this year, and that some tax cuts are needed to boost the economy and create jobs.\nJohnson stressed the importance of setting limits to how the surplus will be spent. \n"We can be doing something today to be sure that we don't squander the opportunity we have by making large reckless tax cuts and spend the surplus before we even have it," he said.\nHealth care\nJohnson said a Patient's Bill of Rights is needed to protect doctors' decisions. In response to Johnson's claim that Lugar hasn't voted for a "real" bill of rights, Lugar said he has rejected many bills because they allow for "unlimited suing of about everybody in sight."\nEducation\nOn education, Johnson said he doesn't want "Washington, D.C., in our classrooms," but resources must be allocated to lower levels of government to meet the needs of education. \nLugar said Republicans aren't opposed to allocating more resources.\n"I have no quarrel with the need for more teachers and better buildings," he said. "I do have a quarrel with those who want to micromanage it in the Department of Education." \nFarming\nBoth candidates discussed farming and the effectiveness of the Freedom to Farm Act. \nJohnson said farmers are not benefiting from this program.\n"I understand we are paying more in farm subsidies," he said. "They (farmers) refer to them as welfare checks."\nLugar said the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimated farm income was down 4 billion dollars, from a 44 billion dollar profit the year before. \n"Far better that the American people have an abundance of food. Far better that the prices for food in markets be lower so less of our income is spent on food than the other way around."\nLugar said President Clinton has failed farmers when it comes to export policies. He also criticized the administration for its energy policies.\nHe said Clinton and Vice President Al Gore's plan to take oil from the reserves only withdraws enough to last 36 hours in the United States, and it wouldn't reach anyone before the election.\n"I'm not Bill Clinton. I'm not Al Gore," Johnson said in his rebuttal. He said later this race is only about two candidates for the senate and how their stances on the issues will affect Indiana.\nLugar also brought up his work in destroying nuclear weapons stockpiles. He said with his alliance with Senator Sam Nunn (D-Ga.), the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction Program has prompted the destruction of about 5,014, or half, of nuclear warheads left over from the former Soviet Union's breakup. \nBoth senators have been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts.