Buhrmaster, Tonko, Amedore and Blanchfield air views at forum

21st Congressional District & 105th Assembly District — Candidates for Congress and the state Assembly spelled out contrasting viewpoints Wednesday at a forum for members of Montgomery County’s business community.

About 100 people filled the Rolling Hills Country Club in Fort Johnson for a “meet the candidates” breakfast organized by the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce.

Congressional candidates Jim Buhrmaster and Paul Tonko and Assembly candidates George Amedore and Mark Blanchfield were asked questions on topics that included government spending, health care and the environment.

In several instances, the candidates expressed viewpoints that outlined some of the fundamental differences between the Republican and Democratic philosophies.

GOVERNMENT SPENDING

Both Buhrmaster, the Republican candidate running to represent the 21st Congressional District, and Amedore, a Republican seeking re-election in the 105th Assembly District, spoke of minimizing the role of government and its spending.

“It’s out of control at all levels; we’ve allowed it to grow excessively,” said Buhrmaster, a local energy company owner and member of the Schenectady County Legislature.

Both he and Amedore, the incumbent assemblyman and vice president of an upscale home-building business, said they believe New York needs to be run like a business and said they, as businessmen, know how to do it right.

Tonko, an engineer and former longtime assemblyman who led the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority before his congressional campaign, and Blanchfield, an attorney who sits on the Schenectady City Council, disagreed with the Republicans’ call for smaller government.

Instead, they voiced support for government helping people, when it’s done right.

Blanchfield said government inaction can be seen as an obvious problem today and asked rhetorically if people wanted government to be run like Bear Stearns and Lehman Bros., two financial service companies that have collapsed amid the financial crisis.

Blanchfield contrasted his business, a two-member law firm, with Amedore’s. Blanchfield said he does his payroll and business paperwork on his kitchen table.

Blanchfield, who attended Wednesday’s function alone, said he doesn’t have a massive staff “shining his shoes” for him and noted that Amedore was accompanied by five people to the event.

Taking the opportunity to highlight differences between himself and Tonko, Buhrmaster warned that Tonko, a state assemblyman for more than 20 years, was part of what’s been called the most dysfunctional legislature in the country.

Tonko criticized Buhrmaster’s call for smaller government and less regulation. The lack of a “watchdog” — government oversight — has been blamed by some for the current breakdown in the financial markets, Tonko said.

“You said ‘less regulations’ days before the collapse,” Tonko said to Buhrmaster.

THE ARTS

The candidates differed again when asked about supporting the arts at a time of financial stress. Tonko said artistic talent should be fostered in school like any other skill with the help of government funding that supports the education system.

Buhrmaster said people have to start playing more of a role in a volunteer capacity.

“We can’t depend on government; we need to be doing stuff as members of the community to support the arts,” Buhrmaster said.

Amedore said he believes the arts are vital to the community and said educators play an important role in drawing out the arts among youth.

Blanchfield pointed to government funding in Schenectady as an example of a successful government focus on the arts sparking urban development. Blanchfield said two hotels, a movie theater and other upgrades downtown followed a government-funded renovation at Proctors.

HEALTH CARE

Health care was another topic, with the question being whether it was a right and what role government should play in it.

Tonko described the provision of health care as “a moral obligation.

“I believe it’s a right to have health care,” Tonko said. He said he supports the notion of developing a “single-payer” system, one option discussed in talks about reforming health care in the United States.

Such a system would entail health care costs being paid for out of a single fund that could be administered by a government agency. Implementing such a system could eliminate duplication in the current system and cut added administrative costs that come with the current system of numerous health care companies, Tonko said.

Buhrmaster said he doesn’t like the idea of a system run by the government and said people need more choices for health care, including options that come from other states. He also said eliminating the current system would impact existing health care providers such as MVP and CDPHP.

Buhrmaster said real help for the health care system could come from reforming tort law to reduce the number of lawsuits doctors face, thus reducing their costs for malpractice insurance.

Amedore did not suggest changing the current system but said free health clinics should be expanded.

“I think it’s a duty of ours to take care of the less fortunate,” Amedore said.

Blanchfield said he would like to explore the single-payer system but said he’d want to ensure small businesses such as medical practices get paid for their services.

ENVIRONMENT

A question posed on environmental concerns drew different answers from all four candidates.

Amedore said incentives should be provided for businesses exploring alternative fuel sources.

Blanchfield said he’d want to make sure any decisions come with a thorough cost-benefit analysis to determine the environmental impact of actions and their benefits.

Tonko said the country needs direction on energy policy and said a comprehensive energy plan must be developed.

The topic of the environment was brought up by Carol Constantino, president of the Amsterdam-based Noteworthy Company. She introduced the topic by saying that plastic bags have gotten a bad reputation, noting claims that plastic bags fill up landfills, since they are not biodegradable.

But she said plastic bags overall do less damage to the environment because they weigh less than paper bags. Since they’re lighter, Constantino said more plastic bags can be transported at a time, which ultimately reduces the number of trucks and amount of gasoline used to carry them.

Constantino said compared to paper, it takes less fossil fuel to create plastic bags.

Buhrmaster, who responded first, said he’s noticing a lot more people using reusable bags and cloth bags when they go to the grocery store.

He said he envisions such bags helping the environment and being used for advertising, suggesting that they could replace plastic bags and feature business names like Amedore Homes or Buhrmaster Energy.

Buhrmaster’s comments drew a bit of laughter from the room full of Montgomery County business leaders, who were aware of the fact that Constantino’s company makes and sells promotional materials including plastic bags featuring business logos and information.

BUHRMASTER OK

During a response to one of the questions Wednesday, Buhrmaster lost his train of thought and asked for a question to be read back. He again lost his train of thought, appeared flushed and said he needed to go get a drink of water. When he returned, Buhrmaster said he wasn’t feeling well earlier in the morning and said he might be coming down with a cold.

Buhrmaster spokesman Josh Hills later Wednesday said the candidate was feeling sick Wednesday morning but decided to attend the function to avoid disappointing people. Hills said Buhrmaster was OK and resting Wednesday afternoon and said he expected to be back on the campaign trail as early as Wednesday evening.