5 Key Moments From The Rossi-Schrier Debate

ELLENSBURG, WA - Democrat Kim Schrier's campaign sent out an email a few minutes before the Wednesday debate with a gag at Dino Rossi's expense. In the email was a bingo card with some of Rossi's most well-worn phrases, and Schrier's campaign asked watchers to play along during the debate.

It was a clever if cruel way to undermine Rossi's performance. By the end of the hour-long debate at Central Washington University, Rossi had used at least 11 of the phrases on the bingo card, everything from accusing Schrier of being part of the "#resistance" to referencing his time as an employee cleaning bathrooms at the Space Needle.

But that bingo card was about as close as the two candidates got to confrontation during the debate. They answered questions, sometimes evasively, without interrupting each other, and with relatively few interpersonal jabs. The candidates did, however, outline some important distinctions.

Here are five important moments from the debate.

1) Abortion

During her opening remarks, Schrier underscored Rossi's opposition to abortion. When the debate moderators asked about the issue, Rossi made it clear he's not in favor of abortion except in the case of "rape, incest, or the mother's health."

"I've never run on this issue. My wife and I are both Catholic," Rossi said.

"You can say you're not running on this issue, but it's a really important issue for the women in this district," Schrier said. "We need advocates for women's healthcare. I will always support a woman's right to choose."

2) Guns

The issue didn't come up until the end of the debate. Schrier said she's in favor of I-1639, which would raise the age of purchasing a gun to 21. Rossi said he was not in favor of raising the age to 21.

3) The Environment

One of Rossi's major blunders was saying, "We don't have coal burning plants in the state of Washington." But one of the biggest polluters in the state is the TransAlta coal plant in Centralia. Rossi went on to say that he favors hydroelectric dams, and said that, on balance, the dams do not hurt the state's salmon population.

But multiple studies have found that dams hurt salmon by changing their habitat and making it harder for them to reach spawning sites.

4) Universal Basic Income

Both candidates do not seem to favor a universal basic income, which has been floated as a solution to compensating people who lose jobs to automation. Rossi flat out does not support UBI, and Schrier said she doesn't think we're "there yet."

5) The Trade War

Although he didn't signal support for President Trump's trade war with China, Rossi did criticize China's theft of U.S. intellectual property. Rossi also didn't say that Trump's tariffs are a bad thing.

"My advice: you don't have to throw uncertainty in and put our farmers at risk," Schrier said when asked what she would tell Trump.

The debate was moderated by KING 5's Natalie Brand and KUOW's Ross Reynolds. If you missed the debate, you can watch the whole thing here:

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the location of the debate.

Image courtesy Kim Schrier, Dino Rossi