The Dakota Student

Earl Pomeroy [Click to enlarge]

Earl Pomeroy's mood changes instantly at the mention of opponent Rick Clayburgh's "Pomeroy Shuffle" TV advertisements that declare him unsupportive of the military.

"I have always supported pay raises for our troops," he says in a tensely focused voice.

Pomeroy, who has held North Dakota's lone seat in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1993, hopes to earn his sixth term in next Tuesday's national elections. And in a race that has been widely declared one of the ugliest ever, he takes exception to what he calls blatant lies on the part of the opposition Republican party.

Like his challenger, Pomeroy is a product of the University of North Dakota. After graduation from public high school in Valley City, he earned an undergraduate degree in Political Science and a Law degree in Grand Forks, years he counts as "some of the best of my life." Pomeroy says his educational background has left him "very committed" to public education.

"If there's a shortcoming in my performance, it's not my teachers' fault," he said.

After UND, Pomeroy served as a state legislator and as state insurance commissioner before residing for the last five terms in the U.S. House.

As a Congressional representative, Pomeroy has worked his way to the Ways and Means Committee and the Social Security and Oversight Sub-committees. He is also a member of the House Democratic Leadership and the Democratic Caucus Retirement Security Task Force. Pomeroy said that the seniority he's gained gives him a valuable advantage in the elections.

"Working with (North Dakota Senators) Conrad and Dorgan, we're a team," he said. "That working relationship has brought back $1.95 for every (North Dakota tax) dollar sent to Washington."

Pomeroy said one of the important issues in this election would be his opposition to President George W. Bush's budget, which Congress passed. He said that the tax cut, of which 40 percent of the benefits go to the richest one percent of the population, is irresponsible and would increase the national debt while diverting $2 trillion in social security funds.

"I don't know a single family that would plan for retirement by living large, not saving anything and having an expectation that the kids are going to pay for it," he said.

"That's what we're doing as a federal government."

Pomeroy addressed economic growth and retention of quality jobs as another important issue for North Dakota. He offered last week's presentation at UND's Energy and Environmental Research Center (EERC) as an example of federal money coming back to the state to provide high-paying, skilled jobs.

"That's a case where you've got federal dollars coming back to the EERC," he said of the new technology. "Those (dollars) add to research, creating jobs and generating new technology that helps us use coal, which we've got an abundance of."

Talk of jobs and economic development in North Dakota often leads to much-debated Measure 3 these days. Pomeroy said that he is committed to keeping young people in the state, but that "more of the same" is an insufficient strategy. But while he plans to vote yes on the measure, he says that "people are going to have to make their own minds up on this one."

Pomeroy has come under Republican fire for leaving the Agriculture Committee for the prestigious Ways and Means. Shouldn't the North Dakota's U.S. representative be on the committee devoted to the state's primary industry, Clayburgh charges? On the contrary, Pomeroy said, being involved in the Ways and Means Committee gives him pull in other areas while still maintaining a voice in agriculture issues.

"It's the most powerful committee," Pomeroy said of his jump. "It makes sense to me to have (North Dakota's) one vote on the most powerful committee. The next smallest state (with a spot in Ways and Means) has five times the population of North Dakota."

"I still fight for agriculture. I can also work on tax fairness, trade, Social Security and Medicare."

And as for the anti-military allegations? Pomeroy said that he has voted 36 times to raise pay for the military, as well as to improve housing, retirement funds and improve schools on military bases. He said that the vote that is quoted by the Clayburgh campaign omits that it was also a vote against another round of Air Force Base closures. North Dakota has bases in Grand Forks and Minot.

"That threatens Grand Forks' economy," he said. "It would devastate Grand Forks' economy."

"I think when North Dakota has one vote in the House and two Air Force Bases, the only responsible thing is to vote against another round of base closures."

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