Slotkin, Rogers spar in US Senate debate over which is trying to deceive voters

Democratic U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, of Holly, and Republican former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, of White Lake, clashed in a fractious debate Tuesday night ahead of the Nov. 5 election for Michigan's open U.S. Senate seat, with Slotkin saying her opponent would say anything to get elected and Rogers repeatedly calling her "deceptive."

"I’m not sure she could even pass the polygraph test in the CIA anymore," Rogers, a former FBI agent himself, said in one particularly sharp exchange with Slotkin, who was an intelligence officer and acting assistant Defense Department secretary before entering Congress in 2019, after she accused him of having voted to cut or privatize Medicare and Social Security, claims he denied.

She hit back just as hard later when Rogers, a staunch opponent of abortion rights throughout 14 years in Congress and earlier as a state legislator, insisted he would protect rights to the procedure now enshrined in Michigan's constitution. "He's put his finger in the wind and said 'I won't win if I don't look good on this issue.' He's changed 30 years of being unilaterally pro-life and never breaking once with his party on this issue," she said. "Do not trust him."

Throughout the hourlong debate — the first for the open seat being vacated after this election by Democratic U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow — the two traded pointed barbs not just on abortion and social welfare programs but the situation at the Southern border, electric vehicles, and China. The debate was hosted by WOOD-TV 8 in Grand Rapids and moderated by political reporter Rick Albin. A second debate is scheduled for next Monday at WXYZ-TV 7 in Detroit.

Many of the claims have been made before by the candidates or their allies in what is considered a close race that could help determine which party controls the majority in the Senate next year. Polling has shown Slotkin 3 to 5 percentage points ahead on average.

And while neither candidate raised his or her voice and Albin kept tight control on the clock — while allowing the candidates to rebut claims rather than trying to present counterclaims on his own — the tone of each became mocking at times: Slotkin saying the "Mike Rogers of 2024" didn't seem as reliable as he was when in office because she claims he is spreading false claims that she signed a nondisclosure agreement with a company linked to China that is building a battery plant in west Michigan; and Rogers claiming she took money from "Chinese agents" supporting that company.

Several of those claims were broad ones made without clarifying context.

There is no evidence that Slotkin signed a nondisclosure agreement — as some Republicans and other Democrats did — with the state regarding Gotion, the China-linked company. And the only record of Slotkin receiving money from anyone linked with that deal is a $250 contribution she received from someone at a Michigan firm doing work with that company's efforts in Michigan. Likewise, while Rogers voted in support of budget resolutions that called for reforming and possibly privatizing partial future social welfare benefits, he didn't vote for legislation that would specifically authorize cutting them, though Democrats at the time argued that would be the effect.

Watch replay: Elissa Slotkin, Mike Rogers meet for first U.S. Senate debate

The two sparred on electric vehicles, with Rogers again claiming that Slotkin supports a "mandate" by President Joe Biden's administration that he and other Republicans argue would force people to buy zero-emission cars. Rogers said "85% of everything" in an electric vehicle at present is material that has to "go through China," though he didn't provide any backup on that claim. "Why on God's green Earth we would cede that auto market to the Communist Party of China is beyond me," he said.

But Slotkin countered, saying while she has made clear that she doesn't support any effort which would try to force people to buy certain cars and trucks, there must be an effort to move those supply chains to the U.S. and hone domestic capabilities if the Michigan auto industry is to remain relevant. She also reminded viewers of past losses on small cars to Japan and South Korea.

"I don't care if it's a gas-powered car or an EV (a person buys). I live on a dirt road. I can't have an EV for the foreseeable future. What I do care about is who is going to build the next generation of vehicles, right?" she said. "Literally, it's either going to be us or China. Right now, China is eating our lunch on these types of vehicles."

There is no "mandate" on electric vehicles, although the Environmental Protection Agency this year finalized rules that would virtually require two-thirds of new cars sold in 2032 to be zero-emission, or EVs, or automakers could face hefty fines. But automakers were part of those talks and the rules could be changed before then — changes in the standards have become somewhat typical — or some other technology could potentially be used.

The two also traded barbs on several other issues, including what had been high rates of illegal immigration that Rogers blamed on Democratic policies, while Slotkin argued the situation could have been helped earlier by bipartisan legislation Republicans in Congress walked away from at the behest of former President Donald Trump. They also went back-and-forth on questions of which candidate — Rogers was previously chair of the House Intelligence Committee and a supporter of the Iraq invasion — was more hawkish on wanting to curb Iranian aggression in the Middle East.

On inflation, both agreed prices were too high but differed on what they would do about it. Slotkin said bringing supply chains back from overseas and increasing child tax credits and other breaks to middle class families would help, as would government further negotiating drug prices down, something Rogers has opposed in the past. He said lowering the price of gasoline would cut food prices and that reducing government spending was the key.

Contact Todd Spangler: [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter@tsspangler.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Senate race: Slotkin, Rogers spar over which is deceiving voters