The Hawkeye - "Miller-Meeks vows to look at larger picture"

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The Hawkeye - "Miller-Meeks vows to look at larger picture"

Republican congressional candidate Mariannette Miller-Meeks wants to build off of her past experience in working for District 2 voters.

"Without having knowledge and experience, we get representatives who merely pass laws ... in which they have very little knowledge or competence or expertise and they don't understand the effect those laws have on the people who are regulated by them," Miller-Meeks said.

She said it's the unintended consequences of that legislation that curse the people.

Miller-Meeks said she decided to get into the race to see health-care reform, to make it accessible, affordable and portable to every citizen.

"Health care is related and integrated to what happens in business, which is related to what happens in our economy, which is related to what happens in a competitive global marketplace," Miller-Meeks said.

Miller-Meeks said she wants to raise Iowa's Medicare reimbursement rate and move health care coverage to a free-market, consumer driven system.

One Republican opponent accuses Miller-Meeks of being liberal in her views on abortion, but for Miller-Meeks it comes down to an issue of education.

"I feel that people should have access to information, which includes abstinence and other means of birth control," Miller-Meeks said. "Not every person is blessed to have a mom and a dad who are trying to help them to problem solve and resist peer pressure."

Miller-Meeks said because it's a judicial issue there is nothing she can do as a lawmaker to stop abortion, but she can make it easier to support families.

Miller-Meeks said being in good health and pursuing an education -- either formally or informally -- are patriotic duties.

"It (education) gives you just another avenue of experience to help the education system and to help understand teachers and the difficulties that schools face," said Miller-Meeks, who is married with two children.

War efforts

Miller-Meeks said it's fair to debate whether the United States should have invaded Iraq but since Congress voted in favor of the effort, it is now an obligation to give soldiers support.

"That means the number of troops, the armor, the equipment and the support of all of us back home, and that means supporting their families and making sure that when they come back they have the proper counseling," Miller-Meeks said.

She said the United States should not offer a withdrawal date because it's illogical to keeping stability nor should it expect to have the exact same style of democracy as is here.

Miller-Meeks said oil independence -- through alternative energy sources -- is also key to national security.

"Even if we were to drill in ANWR (Arctic National Wildlife Refuge) or offshore, it would take 10 years for those production capacities to get online," Miller-Meeks said.

Miller-Meeks said tax credits, incentives, grants and less regulation would help the United States ramp up production in alternative energy in a shorter period of time.

The candidate is also for a free market economy, a revamp of the tax code and fewer subsidies.

"Farmers want to have a free market in which to trade. They don't want subsidies; that's what they've told me," Miller-Meeks said. "It may take the United States to be the leader and say we're going to get rid of subsidies and you'll follow suit."

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