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Davis, Callis Respond To Negative Ads

Mike Thomas/WILL

The candidates for the 13th Congressional District squared off in a debate at the WILL studios in Urbana.  Republican incumbent Rodney Davis  and Democratic challenger Ann Callis promoted themselves as problem-solvers ready to reach across party lines.

They concurred on some issues, like forming a bipartisan commission for Social Security reform.

On immigration reform, Callis responded to a tweet from an undocumented college student, and noted what she was told during a visit to the University of Illinois.

“And touring Research Park, and talking to the executives at Yahoo there, their number one, their number one issue was comprehensive immigration reform,” she said.

Davis says the real immigration challenge isn’t securing the southern border but fixing a broken visa system that results in international students overstaying their visas, when they should be welcomed for their training in engineering, and science.

“We tell them to come get educated here, and then tell them to go back and compete against us,” he stated.

Davis dismissed Callis’ call for House passage of the immigration reform bill passed last year in the Senate. But he said visa reform was something that the two parties could work on together.

But speaking to reporters afterwards, the two candidates criticized the attack ads that paint them each as out-of-touch big-spenders.

The ads accuse Davis of spending 40-thousand dollars on meals at steakhouses for donors and lobbyists, and enjoying a congressional gym and lifetime healthcare while voting to shut down the government and cut Medicare.

"I have not bought a single steak, let alone expensed a single piece of food and drink on the taxpayers’ dime. I have not flown first class on the taxpayers’ dime or my dime, ever."

Meanwhile, other ads attack Callis for owning several out-of-state homes, while renting the one in her district --- and even listing her home address as Missouri on some real estate papers while serving as an Illinois judge. Callis says that as a judge, she lived and raised her children in Troy, in her downstate Illinois judicial district.

"My son was football captain and quarterback of Triad High School. If what he’s saying is true --- and he led his team to conference championship --- their team would be stripped of that title. What he accused me of doing is violating my ethical code and really violating the law."

Callis calls the ads against her “vicious lies and personal attacks”. Davis says the ads against him obscure the fact that he and Callis actually agreed on some issues during their debate. Neither said that their negative ads against the other would stop.

The two will meet again in a debate on the UIS campus in Springfield Tuesday night Oct. 21 at 7 p.m. That event is sponsored by WUIS and AARP.  WUIS News Director Sean Crawford and the State Journal-Register's Political Columnist Bernie Schoenburg will question the candidates. 

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