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Rematch in the 6th district?
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Johnson
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Wilson
A rematch in November awaits U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson, a Republican, and Democrat Charlie Wilson if they each win their party’s primary March 6.
Johnson of Marietta defeated Wilson of St. Clairsville, a two-term incumbent, in the 2010 general election.
In next month’s GOP primary, Johnson is challenged by Victor Smith of Waterford, a former military officer and engineer.
Wilson will face Cas Adulewicz of Steubenville, an attorney, in the Democratic primary.
After 13-plus months in the U.S. House, Johnson said, “Washington is broken. It’s a lot worse than I thought when I ran. It’s the partisanship, the gridlock. The American people are disgusted by it. I don’t think we do a good job of” building relationships between Republicans and Democrats.
Johnson said he has personally built relationships, including one with U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan of Niles, D-17th.
“We have disagreements, but we have similar thoughts” on issues such as economic-development projects in the Mahoning Valley, Johnson said.
During his 2010 campaign, Johnson criticized Wilson as a “Washington insider” pointing to his record of voting about 98 percent of the time with then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat.
Johnson has voted about 93 percent of the time with current Speaker John Boehner, a fellow Republican.
When asked the difference, Johnson said his record “shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone because we came into the House of Representatives with a mission and a vision to stop the out-of-control spending and to pass job-creation legislation. That’s the type of legislation the speaker supports and I support.”
Wilson said his percentage is similar to Pelosi’s because “there are a lot of throwaway votes that didn’t matter [that increased the percentage.] It’s not uncommon for a lot of us to have high percentages with our party.”
But Wilson said he refused to vote for cap-and-trade when Pelosi asked him to do so on the House floor. He added that “Pelosi’s leadership was difficult for people like me.”
Wilson also said, “I don’t think Johnson stands for the policies that are good for the district.”
Johnson wants to repeal the health-care bill pushed through Congress by President Barack Obama.
The congressman said the law does and will continue to drive up the costs of health care. The only provision Johnson said he likes is the requirement that insurance companies not be able to eliminate coverage for people with pre-existing conditions.
Wilson, who voted in favor of the bill, said there are many positives including the pre-existing condition provision, adults being able to keep their children on their health-care coverage until they turn 26 years old, free wellness testing, and filling Medicare’s “donut hole.”
But Wilson said, “There are a lot of improvements and changes that need to be done with this plan.” For example, Wilson said the mandate that everyone have health insurance should be “adjusted.”
Adulewicz said the health-care bill needs to be revamped, but didn’t provide specifics in a questionnaire he submitted to The Vindicator. He also declined to meet with newspaper editors and reporters for an endorsement interview.
Adulewicz wrote on his questionnaire that he is running for office because “all attorneys have an obligation to do public service, and now that I have the time, I will follow that obligation.”
Smith didn’t respond to repeated attempts by The Vindicator to contact him by mail and telephone and didn’t respond to a candidate questionnaire.