U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz and U.S. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa waded through Social Security, Medicare and other issues important to seniors Tuesday night in a mostly tame Democratic primary debate that had a few barbed edges.
The debate was sponsored by KHON and AARP Hawaii, so many of the questions dealt with seniors.
Schatz and Hanabusa both pledged not to put Social Security cuts on the table as part of any "grand bargain" on the federal budget and deficit. The two Democrats also said they support lifting the $117,000 annual cap on earnings subject to the tax that finances Social Security, which would mean higher-income workers would pay more.
Hanabusa said she would consider backing a bill Schatz has co-sponsored to expand Social Security benefits, provided the senator shows how the expansion would be financed.
Both candidates also said the federal government should be able to negotiate with drug companies for lower prescription drug prices in Medicare.
But Schatz said he favors requiring drug companies to offer larger rebates to the government for low-income seniors and the disabled in Medicare Part D, including the estimated 9 million eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid. Hanabusa has been critical of mandating rebates for the so-called dual eligibles that she fears could trigger higher drug prices or insurance premiums for seniors.
Hanabusa faulted Schatz for his vote for the Bipartisan Budget Act, which, among other provisions, extends a cut to Medicare providers for an additional two years. The congresswoman has warned that the extended cuts could affect seniors. Schatz joined all Senate Democrats and President Barack Obama on the budget compromise meant to avoid future federal government shutdowns.
The most engrossing segments of the debate came when Hanabusa tried to tie Schatz to Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s unpopular pension tax in 2011 to help close a projected state budget deficit.
The congresswoman referred to the "Abercrombie-Schatz administration" and noted that the governor once said he would roll over AARP Hawaii after the seniors group helped defeat a pension tax.
Hanabusa said Abercrombie and Schatz "wanted to balance the state’s budget on the backs of our kupuna when you proposed taxing retiree pensions." She said she wondered what Schatz was thinking.
Schatz, Abercrombie’s former lieutenant governor, said, "I didn’t agree with the pension tax. But when I worked in the Abercrombie administration, when we had disagreements, they were in private.
"Now I’m in a different role. I’m your senator. And when I disagree with you, or when I disagree with the governor, or when I disagree with President Obama, I will certainly disagree publicly."
Hanabusa responded by holding up a photograph of Schatz and Abercrombie at an Aiea-Pearl City town hall meeting in 2011 where she said Schatz defended the governor’s budget proposals.
The one-hour debate was moderated by KHON’s Gina Mangieri. The debate was the fourth of five before the August primary. Schatz and Hanabusa are expected to appear at their final debate Thursday, which is being sponsored by Hawaii News Now and the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.
Hanabusa was the aggressor in a KITV-Civil Beat debate last week, and the congresswoman again sought to rattle Schatz on Tuesday night, but the senator remained unruffled.
Hanabusa, 63, called Abercrombie Schatz’s mentor and asked Schatz whether he agreed with the governor that she is too old to build seniority in the Senate. She pressed Schatz, 41, asking, "How old is too old to be a U.S. senator?"
"Colleen, age is not an issue for me," Schatz said. "Age is not something I’m focusing on. What I’m focusing on — totally, with total commitment — is which one of us is more effective in getting things done for the state of Hawaii. I want voters to have an opportunity to compare our records. We are different. We’re different in terms of style. We’re different in terms of our accomplishments.
"And I think that’s where this debate ought to take place."
