Eastman, Bacon Spar in First Debate for 2nd Congressional District Race

Oct. 7, 2020, 9:23 p.m. ·

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Democrat Kara Eastman (left) is challenging incumbent Republican Rep. Don Bacon (Photo: NET Nebraska)

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Republican Rep. Don Bacon and Democratic opponent Kara Eastman met in the first debate for the 2nd Congressional District Wednesday night, hosted by NET News.

Both candidates touted bipartisanship as a top priority.

Incumbent Bacon highlighted his record during two terms in office.

"We’ve right-sized our trade, we’ve got USMCA and much more," Bacon said. "And we’ve fixed a military that was in the worst shape it’s been, four years ago, since 1977. And we’ve turned it around to the point where it’s back to, with the statistics, back to Ronald Reagan-era readiness stats."

Eastman emphasized her commitment to work on affordable healthcare, and criticized Bacon for voting to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

"He enthusiastically voted, like was excited to actually vote, to take away healthcare from Nebraskans, from millions of Americans," Eastman said. "That is unbelievable. His vote was not just yes, it was a profane, hell yes. He was thrilled to do this."

The candidates agreed on supporting a Constitutional amendment to impose Congressional term limits, responding to a question from constituent and first-time voter Nearly Hernandez of Springfield.

They also answered questions on COVID-19 stimulus relief, systematic racism, climate change, and more.

Bacon narrowly beat Eastman in the 2018 election. On Wednesday, the Congressional news publication Roll Call ranked Bacon as the number one most vulnerable incumbent up for re-election in the House.

Mail-in voting has already started in Nebraska, about four weeks ahead of the election on November 3.

Watch the full debate below: