Register Star - Chuck Sweeny: Adam Kinzinger on Politics, Health Care, Peotone

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U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger is back in the 16th District for the August recess, and he's spending a lot of his time in the Rockford area, the northernmost part of his vast district, which stretches far into central and eastern Illinois.

The Channahon Republican visited the Register Star Editorial Board for an hourlong interview Friday, which took place minutes after President Barack Obama finished a news conference at the White House. These are edited highlights.

The president just said in his news conference that the Republicans want to stop 30 million people from getting health care and are willing to shut the government down to do it. He also said the Republicans had no plan to replace ObamaCare.

"That's an insane comment, and obviously it's used to help stoke people's fears. I agree, we have to have an alternative ready to go. I think (Obama­Care) is going to fail anyway. But it's the law of the land ... We voted to repeal it a number of times, the Supreme Court upheld its constitutionality, we had a presidential election over it and lost. I don't believe we should shut down the government over it."

What's the Kinzinger plan?

Kinzinger likes the idea of covering pre-existing conditions. "And for people who can't afford insurance, maybe they have a tax credit on a sliding scale or help from the government." However, the government can't just write a huge check for health care when costs are out of control.

"You have to implement a lot of things to bring the cost down. Have cross-state competition for insurance. In Illinois, you only have a few insurance companies you can buy from." With national competition, which exists in car insurance, "cost goes down, efficiency increases."

He advocates lawsuit reform so doctors don't do needless tests to guard against being sued. And he would allow small businesses to band together in purchasing pools to get the same rate advantages as large corporations.

Kinzinger also advocates truth in billing so people can comparison shop to save money on tests like MRIs.

And he suggested emphasizing wellness and exercise to keep people healthy so they won't require so much medical service. Finally, he wants people to have living wills to reduce expensive maintenance care in their last days if they're being kept technically alive by machines. This could reduce premium costs, he said.

Where do you stand on the proposed Peotone airport?

It might have made sense years ago, but no more. "It's been too long, we're done. Illinois is not flush with cash, I don't know why they're pressing ahead. Thirty years ago you had two dozen airlines, now you have four airlines that are well-established between O'Hare and Midway.

(They) aren't going to move. So now they're playing up this idea that, since we're not going to get airline service, we'll make it a cargo hub. Well, Rockford already is the cargo hub. ... I'm pretty fired up about the future of the Rockford airport."

The Rockford Tea Party seems to believe you aren't a conservative.

"All you have to do is look at my voting record. I'm a conservative. I'm a believer that when you only control one-third of the government, there's nothing wrong with talking to the other side of the aisle. Sometimes you can't let perfect become the enemy of good.

I've made tough leadership decisions and every vote I think is right for the future of the country. My job is not to represent specific interests, my job is to represent all the people of the 16th District."

Is sequestration the new normal?

"No. The big driver of cost is mandatory spending, including Medicare, Social Security, Medicaid, interest on the debt. That's 70 percent of the budget, and that's where we need to have grown-up conversations. Right now, that's growing at 6, 7 percent a year.

"Ten thousand baby boomers retiring every day is stressing the system. We shouldn't take away their retirement, they deserve it, they've paid into it. But for someone who's 35 years old, you can probably make changes and I'll be fine."

Kinzinger said Congress must prioritize cuts affecting the military, scientific research and infrastructure because across-the-board cuts threaten our military readiness.

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