Candidate Hunter has full day in Reno
JACLYN O'MALLEY
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
DAVID B. PARKER/RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
Republican presidential candidate Duncan Hunter waves to the crowd while riding in an open car on Sunday during the Reno Veterans Day parade.
Republican presidential candidate Duncan Hunter told a few dozen people Sunday afternoon in Reno that his priorities for the country are increasing its industrial base and securing its borders.
The California congressman's appearance at a town hall meeting at the Airport Plaza was preceded by his appearance at Reno's Veterans Day parade in downtown Reno.
Hunter, 59, is a Vietnam War veteran and was in the Army's 75th Ranger Regiment, attached to the 173rd Airborne Brigade. His son, Duncan, a candidate for the U.S. House in California, is a Marine captain deployed in Afghanistan.
Hunter, in the House since 1981 representing San Diego, told the crowd that he wants to increase the country's industrial base and prevent China from illegally devaluing its currency. Hunter gave an example of China exporting a piece of furniture into the United States for $60 when locally it's worth $100. He said China uses the money we give them in trades to buy ships, planes and missiles that could be used against us.
"It's not just an economic thing," he said. "They are taking our cash and doing something with it. They are building a military machine with our trade money.
"I will stop them from cheating and level the playing field."
Hunter, the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, said he could find only one company in the country that could install armor plates on military vehicles to protect soldiers from roadside bombs. He said cheaper labor overseas attracts companies to move outside of the United States. Duncan said their departure from the country causes a loss of jobs for soldiers when they come home from deployment.
A bill he helped author would put extra duty fees on Chinese products that have been reduced in price which would put them equal in cost with American-made products.
Hunter said he was the only candidate in either parties that is taking on the issue.
"A strong industrial base helps protect our country and build a strong national defense," he said.
Hunter next spoke about his efforts in closing the country's open borders. He said he had created a law that would build more than 800 miles of double fences on the border, but he said that only five miles had been built since the law was passed in 2006.
In specific areas he asked for two fences to be built so criminals and illegal aliens had to overcome several obstacles to get into California, Arizona and Texas.
"They built enough just so the president could have a photo opportunity," he said.
More stringent borders prevent crimes such as drug smuggling and crimes against illegal aliens trying to sneak into the country.
He also told the crowd he supported the right to bear arms and said armed, law abiding citizens who know how to use firearms help protect their home and community.