The economy, immigration and the ongoing war in Iran took center stage during a televised forum featuring Nebraska’s 2nd District Democratic candidates Sunday night.
The live event, hosted by KETV, included candidates Kishla Askins, John Cavanaugh, Denise Powell, Crystal Rhoades and Melanie Williams. One will face lone Republican Brinker Harding in the Nov. 3 general election.
The race has the potential to influence political control of the House of Representatives.
Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District, sometimes called the “blue dot,” has awarded its singular electoral college vote to Democratic candidates in the past two presidential elections – while also consistently supporting Bacon, a moderate Republican. With Bacon’s retirement, the Cook Political Report rates the district as leaning toward a Democratic flip.
If Democrats fail to secure the seat, it will be difficult, if not impossible, for them to take control of the House. With the May 12 primary just weeks away, Democratic candidates are doing all they can to reach voters and set themselves apart from the pack.
All five spoke against the ongoing war in Iran, calling for Congressional oversight and criticizing the Trump Administration’s actions in the Middle East. And the candidates spoke out against ICE to varying degrees. They also answered specific questions on their policies and platforms.
Kishla Askins
When asked about health care costs, Askins spoke of her plan, Whole Health America.
“I am going to ensure that we are actually building and preventing chronic disease. Essential care will now elevate mental health in a way it’s not. It will include dental care. It will include optometry or eye care, audiology, rural health care, the OSHA standards for all of the union workers will be included in my plan. What that does is bring it down. It brings down the cost. It prevents chronic disease, which is the biggest cause of medical bankruptcy, and it will be affordable, and we will approach this from a holistic instead of reactive.”
Asked about the Iran war, Askins pointed to her military background.
“I’m going to address this, both from a veteran and the families at home, let’s be reminded, 15 service members have been killed, over 300 service members have been injured, and with that, we have to think about what Is the end state right here in Nebraska, we just had Nebraska National Guard deployed to Africa, which is a result of this Iran war, when we are putting all of our assets in the Middle East, that leaves gaps, and that is when the reserves and the National Guard are called Up to fill those gaps. So as a military officer, I think about the second and third and fourth order effects. And so with this, are we? We have to ask this, are we in a better place than before we started? And if the answer is no, if you remember, Trump took us out of the Iran nuclear agreement during his first term, and so now here we are. Blood and treasure has been spent. Families have been forever changed, and lives have been lost.”
On immigration, Askins called for reform.
“In 2024, we actually had a bipartisan solution to put forward, and we know what happened and who stopped it. So there’s about five laws that we need changed for immigration reform. Number one, we are and can be, a nation with a secure border and a nation of values full stop. Number one, secure the border. Number two, if you are a violent criminal and you are undocumented, then you don’t belong in this country. Number three, if you are paying taxes and are undocumented, it is important that you are given a fair and humane pathway to citizenship. And the final point is we need real immigration reform. And on that there are about three to 4% of our military that are non citizens. So keep that in mind that there are people willing to lay their life down for me and you serving in the military and not a citizen, and I’ve stood shoulder to shoulder with them, and always will, because our country is better with a society of immigrants.”
John Cavanaugh
Asked about a tax increase on the wealthy and support for working-class families, Cavanaugh pointed to his experience in the state legislature.
“I have been focused on finding concrete ways to help working people get ahead. I’ve already talked about my bill to repeal the tax on diapers. Talked about the fact that people now – we’re seeing first-time homebuyers are 40 years old – and so I’ve found ways, big and small, to help working people get ahead. Just passed a bill this week that creates a first-time home buyer tax-benefited savings account. So like a 529, we can put into an account and save for a down payment. That’s something we could do at the national level. I’ve been attacked for proposing permanent tax cuts for working people and no tax cuts for the wealthy. I’m somebody who, when I get to Congress, is going to find ways to make permanent and substantive change for working people and not the wealthiest Americans.”
On the war in Iran, Cavanaugh called for Congressional oversight. The state senator said the military action “has put in jeopardy the lives of American service people and civilians across the world.”
(Trump’s) unchecked aggression overseas is a huge problem. It’s driving up gas prices at home and abroad. It’s creating instability for our allies and loss of life of I think at this point, 15 American service men and women have lost their lives as a result of Donald Trump’s decision to unilaterally go into Iran I believe that Congress must assert itself, both budgetarily and in the War Powers Act to ensure that Donald Trump can no longer engage in overseas action without authorization from Congress, he’s putting us at risk and endangering American lives and driving up costs at home. So when I’m in Congress, I’m going to ensure that any allocation of money comes with strings attached for the president when he’s trying to engage overseas, and that we will have to authorize all use of force overseas.”
On immigration, Cavanaugh called for more transparency and accountability.
“Donald Trump has made our country less safe, not more safe, and the erratic behavior of these ICE agents in the streets we’ve seen as a model in Minneapolis, the pulling people out of the cars, shooting American citizens wearing masks, arresting people without warrants, that has got to stop. We need real reforms, and we need law enforcement to be treated like law enforcement and not a private military service that gets to go out and harass Americans in the streets of American cities. And so I support real reforms to hold ice accountable. I support a strong border that makes America actually safer, and I support making sure that the ICE agents are held accountable when they act out. We need real accountability. We need body cameras. We need to remove the masks, and we need to ensure that due process is followed. We are building these detention centers across the country, like out in McCook, where their shadowy organization, they won’t let people come in and observe and visit the people who are incarcerated there. And it is about cruelty and not about justice and making our communities safer.”
Denise Powell
On tariffs, Powell called for Congressional oversight and said Trump’s policies have hurt local farmers and families.
“I think a good tariff policy is not one that looks like a roller coaster, and I think that’s the real problem here. Look, I am a mom, and I am out there in this world. I’m also a small-business owner, and I see how these real, real foreign policy decisions impact everyday families we need to get a grip on. And the first thing is that Congress is asleep at the wheel. Congress should have oversight on how we set tariff policy and how we hold tariff policies. This is the number one thing that I hear when I’m out talking to people, and one of the first things that I want to address when I get to Congress.”
Powell called the war in Iran, “a war of choice.”
“This has to stop, and the president cannot be given a blank checkbook to wreak havoc on the American people. Congress, and in particular the House of Representatives, is supposed to be the voice of the people, and that voice has been lost in this conversation. So absolutely, I think Congress needs to take back oversight on these decisions. But beyond that, I think we need to be very clear about what our priorities are in this country. This is a president who campaigned on no foreign wars and keeping affordability down, and he has betrayed the American people both ways.”
Powell said the topic of immigration is personal to her.
“I’m the daughter of immigrants. I carry my passport with me at all times, and I have been horrified to watch this department go rogue and not do anything to keep our communities safer. Do I believe in secure borders? Absolutely? Should we be deporting violent criminals? No question. That is not what is happening. We are pulling grandmothers and children off the street and throwing them in detention centers in deplorable conditions. I believe ICE needs to be completely overhauled, and they should not get a penny more from this administration until there are significant changes. And those changes look like prohibiting ICE from operating in, around schools, day cares and hospitals. It means ensuring that there are independent investigations when there have been reports of abuse. It means holding our federal law enforcement agencies to the same high standards that we hold our local law enforcement agents. This administration has run roughshod over due process and the Constitution, and they’re not doing anything to make our communities safer. We have communities right here in Omaha who are living in fear, who can’t leave their house, businesses that are shuttering their doors. I will always, always stand for good immigration policy that makes our planet and our world safer.”
Crystal Rhoades
On Social Security, Rhoades called for fewer tax cuts for the wealthy.
“(Social Security) has been the most successful anti-poverty program ever administered in this country. I think, quite frankly, that we are going to have to tax wealthy people more. We are going to have to do that. We are also going to have to actually pay people living wages. The reality of the situation is that Social Security is based on how much you earn, and the fact of the matter is that fewer and fewer Americans are earning enough money to actually make ends meet.”
Asked about her support for Israel, Rhoades said:
“Look, I think that Israel has the exact same problem that the United States has, and that problem is that they have a leader who is putting the entire country in a compromised situation by behaving in ways that are, frankly, inexplicable and oftentimes are not being explained to the people that they’re representing. I think that what we have to do, particularly as it relates to Israel and Iran, is to evaluate exactly what the objectives are, how we’re going to meet them, and how we’re going to get out of this situation as quickly as possible. But I also think it’s very important. I’ve been very distressed to hear this noise in the background about Israel has somehow made us do this. Make no mistake about this. Donald Trump is responsible for his actions. I do not think that it would be appropriate or fair to blame the entirety of the people of Israel, much in the same way that I definitely would not want our allies, American allies, to turn against us in light of the way that President Trump is conducting himself.”
Rhoades said she does not support the ongoing federal shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security.
“These shutdowns are holding dedicated public servants and their families hostage. They are accomplishing nothing, and. And they are causing more harm than good. So no, I definitely do not support that. The fact of the matter is this, we must pass a comprehensive immigration reform that allows for people in needed industries and needed fields to come to this country, to work here legally, to pay taxes, to integrate and have a path to citizenship. I don’t think that there’s any question that that is what most Americans want to see happen. We do need to secure our borders, but what we’re doing right now is allowing this president to use ICE as his own personal goon squad for his own personal satisfaction, and it’s abhorrent. I never thought I would wake up and be afraid that agents of the United States government might murder people on the streets in this country. I never thought that I’d see that day, but now that I have seen it, I’m more determined than ever to get to Congress and just make these people do their jobs. They just aren’t doing it. There is absolutely no reason for it, and it is something that we can and must address immediately.”
Melanie Williams
Williams was asked how she would pay for her ideas of Medicare for all, expanded Social Security, universal housing and canceling student debt.
“Every time progressives bring up what people need in this country, that is a question that is always asked, but we never ask that question when a president takes us into an illegal war, the war right now in Iran, I would say the war on Iran, because it was unprovoked, is costing us over a billion dollars a day now, if we were to tax the wealthy what their fair share is, and stop the loopholes for offshore accounts, and at the same time reallocate the money from areas that really are not needed. For instance, the military has so much of taxpayers’ money for exactly what they’re doing right now, they’re burning through it because they can.”
Williams called for an end to the Iran war.
“I am a humanitarian. I believe that we need to respect human rights here and everywhere, and that is why I am very much against genocide, whether it’s in Israel, whether it’s in Africa, whether it is in Germany, we need to all stand together and realize that innocent civilians do not deserve to be slaughtered. Let’s just say the word. I know it sounds extreme, but it’s true. We have tens of thousands of civilians who have been killed, and they are innocent. And the thing that worries me the most is that, and I’m going to go to Israel, the majority, there have been polls taken, and the majority of the people in Israel do support this and the new law of hanging Palestinian prisoners. So to your question about when I would say that it would be something that should happen. I’m for diplomacy first. I think that that should be where we go every single time.”
On immigration, Williams called to “abolish ICE.”
“ICE is an entity that has been untrained, unvetted. These are people who have no idea of what due process actually is, because they’re not trained. There is no reason why we need a paramilitary force running around this country, terrorizing our communities and being ready, I think, to populate areas around polls, to frighten people away from exercising their right to vote. These are the things that I’m worried about prior to November. And I think it’s just abhorrent that people have to live in fear, and it’s not just immigrants who are living in fear, it’s everyone, because they don’t discriminate. They break windows, pull people out of their cars and disappear them, and we don’t even know where they are most of the time, and we do know that these are terrible conditions that people are in from what has been said. But I also want to say that I absolutely am for the shutdown. I was for the shutdown before, when the Democrats were actually holding firm and people were cheering them, and then they just pulled the rug out from under everyone.”