I recorded the video, but since there’s not really much to see and it’s a pretty large file size I figured I’d post the full audio instead. You’ll notice a few places where the audio cuts out for a split-second. The content of the audio is completely unedited. The cuts in audio simply makes it easier on me in working with the file.

Listen to the 2-part audio below or click here to download the full audio (1 hr 13 min) – and a very special thanks to Anna Vasquez for providing a quick transcription on such short notice. Anna is a self-described “live and let live” American Patriot and a fighter for individual liberty and our founding libertarian principles.

Be sure to click here to share your comments (opens in new window so the audio will continue to play). Tell us what you think about what the candidates have to say.

Part 1 of 2 Steven Palazzo and Joe Tegerdine (34:18)

Part 2 of 2 Steven Palazzo and Joe Tegerdine (38:30)

Listed below are the questions asked of each candidate and a brief overview of their answers. Personally, I was glad to see the issue of the Auditing the Federal Reserve come up first.

Part 1 of 2 Steven Palazzo and Joe Tegerdine

• Opening Statements
  • Tegerdine on his family, deciding to run for Congress, changing the way we elect people, exporting jobs to China, free trade
  • Palazzo on separation of Church and State, firing Nancy Pelosi, his family, taxes and spending
• Audit the Federal Reserve and eliminate central banking (12:30)
  • Palazzo: yes, Federal Reserve is unconstitutional
  • Tegerdine: yes, people want to know how money is being spent and how the monetary system works, will co-sponsor the “Audit the Fed” bill
• Primary responsibility of every member of Congress (15:20)
  • Tegerdine: to uphold  and defend the Constitution
  • Palazzo: to protect and defend the Constitution against all enemies both domestic and foreign
• Whats the difference between a right and a privilege (16:40)
  • Palazzo: Not really sure, a right is given to you by God – privilege is something you earn
  • Tegerdine: Rights are given by God – not man, privilege is earned and given by man. Governments are setup to protect God-given rights
• Do you support Gene Taylor’s Multi-Peril Insurance (18:40)
  • Tegerdine: no, at insurance symposium Wicker and Taylor ignored free market solutions, let’s consider free market solutions, Texas Seed Act did not get a bailout
  • Palazzo: no, can’t support flood insurance plan – does not want to encourage people to build homes in flood plains, goes against free market principles, Gene Taylor is fear-mongering after a natural disaster
• Congressional Term Limits (23:45)
  • Palazzo: previously did not but does now because Congress members are entrenched in Lobbyists, supports 6 terms in House/2 terms as Senator
  • Tegerdine: fully supports term limits, self-imposed term limit to 4 terms, will sponsor term limit legislation that will add amendment to US Constitution
• 3 Federal programs you would like to abolish or defund (28:00)
  • Tegerdine: IRS, Department of Education, EPA, Healthcare, 624 government programs duplicate the same thing costing Americans $20 Billion per year, budget is on unsustainable fiscal path, reduce federal budget from 30% to well under 20%
  • Palazzo: keep promises made to seniors and veterans, everything is on the table, Department of Education has to go, EPA over-regulates business and individuals, abolish IRS for the Fair Tax

Part 2 of 2 Steven Palazzo and Joe Tegerdine

• How will candidates handle negative press – Will you cave into pressure from the press or people you represent? General comments on the state of the Media
  • Palazzo: local media should try to print conservative statements, media should print good news, traditional media is dying out and Internet is growing,
  • Tegerdine: if the people of South Mississippi send a person to Congress then he isn’t obligated to answer to the big money that sent you there, God bless the Internet, media gives spin – not always facts.
  • Palazzo: has thick skin, doesn’t answer to bloggers
• How your Religion impacts your political philosophy (7:40)
  • Tegerdine: been a Christian all his life, served a Mormon mission in Taiwan for 2 years preaching Jesus Christ to people that had no concept of Jesus Christ, his Christian faith made him who he is, made commitments as a young man to live by the teachings of Jesus Christ
  • Palazzo: faith is something you live and pray and not boast or brag about, chose the Catholic faith – wife is Southern Baptist, served overseas and in the Airborne division – couldn’t have done it without his faith in Jesus Christ
• Eminent Domain being used more frequently by Government taking private property for the use of private industry (11:00)
  • Palazzo: Eminent Domain is not as simple as not wanting government to take property, 100% in favor of private property, E.D. has been used in America for 200 years and in MS for 175 years, a clear public use is the only time government should take private property – but you take it by giving them fair and reasonable compensation, voted against Eminent Domain bill in MS House last year because it was unconstitutional, bad public policy, and was pure politics, Mississippi has the toughest Eminent Domain laws, Eminent Domain has never been used to take private property to be turned over to private industry and never will happen
  • Tegerdine: 5th Amendment of the US Constitution, Government should pay Just compensation to victim of eminent domain – not reasonable compensation, 118 bipartisan said last year’s Eminent Domain bill was Constitutional, Mississippi has some of the weakest eminent domain laws, eminent domain has been used to take private property and given to private corporations – Nissan and Toyota, eminent domain is a big issues federally in our district, Gene Taylor refuses to meet with eminent domain victim in his own district, look at Palazzo’s record and make up your own mind
• Will you participate in or decline Congressional healthcare and retirement systems (19:50)
  • Tegerdine: I will decline
  • Palazzo: ditto – no brainer
• Palazzo’s wife is President of Harrison County Republicans club – allegations she is using her position, against rules of the party, to promote Palazzo’s campaign. (20:17)
  • Proud of his wife, wife supports him, not gentlemanly to bring wife into things, for the record his wife has stepped down
• Tegerdine was raised in northwest, relocated to Florida, then Mississippi in 2007, voted in Florida elections in 2007. How do you connect with South Mississippi residents on their social, political, moral beliefs? (22:00)
  • voted in Florida in 2007 in order to vote on marriage amendment he had helped to move forward, experienced liberalism in other states, Mississippi represents his Christian families values that transcend geographic boundaries, hopes people adopt him as he has adopted them
• Closing statements (26:54)
  • Palazzo: we have to fire Gene Taylor so we can fire Nancy Pelosi, Gene Taylor is a good guy just ineffective – not a fighter, Gene Taylor “votes and runs”, healthcare bill is unconstitutional, healthcare needs free market reform, stop radical Socialist agenda, trying to foster high-paying jobs and reduce spending in Mississippi, live free or die brave!
  • Tegerdine: wants term limits, one-subject law for legislation – hate crimes and military spending so we know where our Representative stands on each issue, balanced budget amendment, abolish IRS for a FairTax – illegal immigrants, welfare recipients, and the wealthy would have to start paying taxes, China and India prospering with free market solutions, committed to “Patriot Pledge”.

Anyone seen Gene Taylor lately? He hasn’t held a Townhall meeting since he was in Ellisville on March 1st – nearly 2 months ago!

Maybe it’s because he’s spent the last several months – even up to the final days of the healthcare debate – assuring his constituents in South Mississippi that the healthcare legislation would NOT become law… but it did.

Gene Taylor spent the first few minutes in Ellisville, on March 1st, discussing his theory on why the healthcare legislation would NOT become law. But the fact is – Gene Taylor voted for Nancy Pelosi as Speaker of the House and Pelosi passes what Pelosi wants to pass.

Maybe if Gene Taylor had spent more time doing his job representing us and attending congressional healthcare discussions instead of shaking a leg at rock concerts, he might have had a better understanding of what was going on in Congress and he wouldn’t have mislead his constituents.

However as time passed and I learned more of Taylor’s politics I found more to disagree with him than agree.Flash forward to the here and now. It’s hard to admit but this guy sucker me. I can no long support  Gene Taylor for any elected position at all not even the local dog catcher.In the end his politics are directly opposed to most everything I believe in. I mantained some hope for the man,as he was one of the very few of his party that voted for the Empeachment of Clinton but that all come to an end.

In seeing Taylor in action at several Townhall meeting and not getting answers with meaning, and his attitude toward those present GENE TAYLOR got to go! The people of Mississippi deserve better than some self serving clown.How could anyone calling themselve a conservative of any stripe side with Nancy Pelosi and little Harry too.The time has come for his political sun to set.VOTE TAYLOR OUT!

Regards,

Gregory Jouette

She says that the average folks like you and I that are going to these townhall meetings and voicing our concerns about the government takeover of health care, are simply “astro turf”. Then she says we’re toting swastikas and other such hateful symbols into the townhall meetings with us.

I have news for Nancy Pelosi, Gene Taylor, and all the other BIG GOVERNMENT Democrats, I was at the townhall meeting in Waynesboro, Ms last Monday evening and I didn’t see any swastikas or anything like that.

This is just a way for the liberal media and the liberal politicians to ridicule you until you give up. It’s in their playbook. It means we’re winning the fight!

What I saw was a bunch of people that would rather be at home with their families getting ready for work the next day. But because we’ve been completely shut out of any discussion on the issue, and because Gene Taylor REFUSES to give us a clear answer on his support for socialized health care (so long as “WE” can “PAY” for it), we’ve reached the point where we want our voice to be heard.

Good for you if you stood up and let your opinions be heard!

From the Americans for Tax Reform:

(1) He will support it if it has “major changes.” This was his position on his website as of July 30, 2009.  Yet after the major changes orchestrated by Congressman Taylor’s own Blue Dog caucus, the congressman has become irate, offensive and belligerent in his attempts to distance himself from the caucus he helped found.

(2) He “opposes” the plan. This was stated in the offensive press release, littered with ad hominem attacks, issued by Rep. Taylor on Friday, July 31.

(3) He will support the plan if it is “paid for”. This was revealed in an interview with Mississippi’s WLOX on Saturday, August 1.  Rep. Taylor’s description of his newest policy is at http://www.wlox.com/Global/story.asp?S=10832230.  It is critical to note the Blue Dog Coalition’s enforced policy of “pay fors”.  Since Speaker Pelosi took the helm of Congress, Rep. Taylor’s Blue Dog Caucus has insisted that any government spending is fine as long as it is “paid for” with new tax increases.  Rep. Taylor has even voted to include the tax increase rule as a part of the governing rules of the House of Representatives. Now, Rep. Taylor admits that he will support government-run healthcare if it is simply coupled with enough tax increases.

He was asked a few pointed questions about his stance on the Health Care bill at a townhall in Waynesboro, Ms. So where does he really stand on this issue?

This video is courtesy of citizenlibertygc.

The best I can gather from Gene Taylor’s own lips is that he’s for government run health care (along with anything else he can get his hands on) under “3″ conditions:

1) so long as we can “pay for it”

2) it get’s rid of the anti-trust exemption

3) prescription drugs are more affordable

d) it doesn’t fund abortions

Even if all of this language is to his satisfaction, he still wants to put bureaucrats between you and your doctor. According to the bill, those social engineering bureaucrats would be necessary in order to ration health care services between the “useful”, the “useless”, and the “used” Americans (and non-Americans) among us; schedule “end-of-life options” consultations for the elderly; and to determine whether or not you need a liver transplant, a pain pill, or a just a band aid.

As one gentleman pointed out, if this bill passes, Gene Taylor should be held accountable and should be run out of Congress in 2010. He’s sat on his hands in his cushy little Congressional office for the past 20 years with his mouth shut and watched all of this socialist legislation come through the pipeline and hasn’t taken a clear stand against the socialist ideology that running a muck all around him on Capitol Hill.

After 20 years Gene Taylor should have mustered enough influence to put a stop to this sort of thing. The most conservative district in the nation should NEVER have to wonder where their Congressman stands on such an intrusive piece of legislation.

One gentleman asked where in Article 1, Section 8 of the US Constitution does Congress have the right to shove some of this recent legislation down our throat. Here’s Gene Taylor’s arrogant response.

This video is courtesy of citizenlibertygc.