By Sara Hall | NB Indy
Transparency in government, creating jobs and tax cuts were the issues emphasized by Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Carly Fiorina Tuesday afternoon at a forum in Newport Beach.
Fiorina spoke to a packed room at the Newport Beach Golf Course.
S she stressed that government spending was out of control and the first step to fixing the problem was to change who voters are sending to Washington. The first part of that change includes voting Senator Barbara Boxer out of office in November, she said.
It is no longer about whether a voter is Republican or Democrat, she said, it’s about getting the job done.
Also at the golf course was a group of protestors from MoveOn, a political action committee, who stood outside with signs and props. Members of the group spoke to passerby’s, performed a skit and made speeches. The group held an oversized check for $300,000 from the fictitious merged company “RepubliCorp” made out to Fiorina with the notation “buying your vote.”
According to a statement, the group was trying to “highlight Fiorina’s role in the corporate takeover of Washington should she win the election” and emphasize “the allegiance between corporate interests and their Republican allies.”
“We’re (trying to) buy her vote,” said Guy Johnson, regional coordinator for MoveOn, “like all the other corporations do.”
Another MoveOn member said in a speech that “corporations and CEOs will get what they want at the expense of the American people.”
Inside, Fiorina also talked about government transparency. A senator should be accountable to the public, she said. People should know how their money is being spent, she added. She suggested posting budgets on the internet.
“You can get accountability with transparency,” Fiorina said.
She said the key to increasing employment rates is to give businesses incentives to set up shop in California.
“All of them have taken jobs overseas,” the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard said about Cisco, Apple and other big name corporations. She suggested a two-year payroll tax holiday as an incentive for small businesses to hire unemployed American workers.
The federal government has two jobs, she said, and “they have failed in both.”
First, she said, they need to protect the nation and secure the borders. Mexico is close to becoming a failed state, she said, meaning the government can no longer control what is happening in their country.
“(And) they’re on our border,” she said, mentioning the violence that is happening just miles from the U.S. border.
The second job the government has, according to Fiorina, is to create a temporary worker program that actually works.
“Not amnesty,” she added about the guest worker program. “I don’t support amnesty in any form.”
Fiorina told the audience she plans to serve only two terms because “12 years is enough time to get something done.”
Fiorina said she hopes voters will see how “stark the contrast is” between her and Boxer during all of the forums and debates before the November election.
This race is about the issues that voters care about, she said, primarily jobs and out of control government spending.
Paul and Mary Breithaupt of Costa Mesa said they were interested to hear what Fiorina said about healthcare and a few other key issues. It was helpful to see her in person, they said.
Roger and Kathy Thiede of Newport Beach agreed.
“It was reassuring,” said Roger Thiede. “She talked about all the issues that were important to me.”
Issues concerning small businesses, small and transparent government, healthcare, and taxes, he added.
Barbara Richardson of Newport Beach said Fiorina had specific ideas and a plan of action regarding bringing jobs and businesses back to California and to “help heal the economy.”
“We can be the golden state again,” Fiorina said. “but first we must change the people we send to Washington.”
For more photos from this event, visit www.newportbeachindy.com
