IN-04: Ackerson Accepts Debate Invite at Purdue; Buyer Will Be a No Show

I heard on WBAA that Nels Ackerson, challenger to Republican incumbent Steve Buyer in Indiana’s Fourth Congressional District, will be accepting a debate invitation at Purdue. Steve Buyer has already indicated his unwillingness to make himself available to his constituents in such a setting. My understanding is that the event will be taking place at 7:00 p.m. on Sunday, September 21, 2008 at the Stewart Center at Purdue’s Fowler Hall. I don’t know what the format will look like.

The WBAA report was funny because it mentioned Buyer’s claim that he would not debate because of supposed rules violations associated with the previous debate sponsored by Farm Bureau. The report immediately noted that Farm Bureau has indicated that there were no rules violations. In the legal biz, this is known as a “pretext.”

In other Fourth District news, Ackerson is decrying the culture of entitlement and corruption in Congress and in the energy industry. The recent revelation of sex, drugs, and corruption in the Department of the Interior adds fuel to the fire.

Ackerson specifically criticized 16 year incumbent Steve Buyer, a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, for not only failing to fight the corruption, but instead showing a consistent tolerance of lax ethics in the Energy industry and encouraging the lobbyists from oil, gas, and energy companies that he oversees. “The incumbent Steve Buyer has shown his loyalty to oil industry executives and corporate PACs who have contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to fund his campaigns. Since taking office 16 years ago Steve Buyer has taken over $160,000 from energy companies, and voted repeatedly to stop reforms that might reduce his fundraising perks.”

. . .

Congressional records show that Buyer has consistently voted against restricting the influence of lobbyists and against legislation that would forbid Congressman like himself from receiving gifts. Among the positions Buyer has supported are:

* Voting against the investigation into Jack Abramoff’s illegal lobbying activities (3/30/06, RC#76);
* Voting against stronger reporting requirements for lobbyists involved in fundraising for candidates (5/24/07, RC#420);
* Voting against repealing weak House ethics rules (4/27/05, RC# 145); and
* Voting for allowing groups to pay for a Congressperson’s travel, and lobbyists to cater dinners to their offices (1/7/03, RC#4).

In Buyer’s defense, I suppose with these sorts of charges hanging out there and with the energy industry being about as popular as small pox these days, further debates could be uncomfortable for Mr. Buyer.