The Democrats running for the presidential nomination got together in Iowa Tuesday for another debate (this time it was on the radio). We’ve pulled highlights from the transcript that might be of interest here at our little intersection of the web. Our usual list of topics didn’t get much attention this time around (Iran and immigration took most of the focus), but the candidates did touch on a few things that are tangentially related: regulation of toxics in consumer products, science education and global warming. The breakdown is after the jump.
Hillary Clinton responding to listener question about regulation of consumer products that could contain toxic chemicals:
Well, first, I really sympathize with the young mother, because we dont do anywhere near enough to try to prevent dangerous materials and products from coming into our country. We dont even do enough of it within our own country. We have totally turned our back on the information that is available to try to better track the impact on children and others of these kinds of exposures to toxic materials.
So, number one, we need tougher standards across the board; something Ive been advocating for for years.
Number two, it should be especially applied to any kind of imports, and the requires going and making sure that we have inspectors on the ground and we have tough standards and we exercise recalls.
You know, the reason we have such few recalls, even though they have been increasing, because the evidence has been so overwhelming, is because this administration has basically de-fanged the Consumer Product Safety Commission, they do not have any real appetite for going after these companies and countries that are flooding our markets with dangerous products, and that has to stop.
Chris Dodd following up on the same question:
I have a child that has serious food allergies here. I know what its like every day to read a label every single day because my child could die if she consumed the wrong products here.
Eighty percent of the food we consume in this countrys imported and only 1 percent of it is inspected. And theres no country of labeling on those products here. And youll have 10 different descriptions of an egg here, and thats very difficult, if not impossible, for women like Karen. And parents who have children have to be careful about the products they consume.
John Edwards responding to a question about H1-B visas:
The underlying issue is, are we making it easier for kids to go to college?
Are we driving our young people into engineering, science, and math, the very areas that were talking about?
And are we doing it in a way that will strengthen the American economy over the long-term?
Because if we dont — if we are not the most creative, best educated, most innovative workforce on the planet, it is very difficult for us to compete.
Joe Biden (and Dodd) following up on the H1-B question:
Im the author of the Violence Against Women Act. It came to my attention not long — its relevant, believe it or not.
What happened? Immigrant women getting the living crap beat out of them; getting brutalized — brutalized. And theyre afraid to come forward and acknowledge theyre being brutalized because theyll be deported.
So what we have to do, sometimes humanitarian needs trump — trump immigration laws. So what did I do? I changed the law. My colleagues all voted for it.
Its now the law that a woman who comes forward of being beaten will be effectively immune from being deported so you can put the SOB whos beating her in jail.
So sometimes it trumps.
Sometimes humanitarian needs trump an existing law relating to immigration like that.
MODERATOR: Let me move on to another subject here because our time is quite short.
DODD: Health care would be a good example of that as well.
Barack Obama responding to a question about what he doesn’t have an answer for:
The issue of climate change. Ive put forward one of the most aggressive proposals out there. But the science seems to be coming in indicating its accelerating even more quickly with every passing day, and by the time I take office I think were going to have to have a serious conversation about how drastic steps we need to take to address it.
The New York Times has a full transcript.
The audio of this debate is available from NPR.