Young: D.C. experience an asset

JOHNSTON - Republican congressional candidate David Young said Friday he's seen the good, the bad and the ugly of Washington, D.C., and believes he has the experience, temperament and ideas to help change the climate of dysfunction within federal government.

Young, who finished fifth among six GOP candidates in the June 3 primary but landed his party's nomination for the 3rd Congressional District at a special convention last weekend, said he is ready to take on the problems in the nation's capital both as an outsider making his first bid for public office and as an insider who served as Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley's chief of staff.

The Van Meter Republican who will face former state Sen. Staci Appel, D-Ackworth, in the November general election, said he sees his Beltway experience as a strength.

'Knowing how to hit the ground running in Washington, D.C., is an asset and working for Sen. Grassley under his mentorship and tutelage is not a bad thing,” he said during Friday's taping of Iowa Public Television's 'Iowa Press” show.

Young, who worked for GOP senators from Kentucky and Colorado before joining Grassley's staff, said he plans to focus on economic concerns such as addressing the national debt, balancing the federal budget and expanding job opportunities rather than social issues.

While joining fellow Republicans in opposing same-sex marriage, abortion and the Affordable Care Act, Young said there likely will be little that changes on those issues during the next two years that President Barack Obama occupies the White House.

Young said the promise of Social Security and Medicare must be preserved for seniors, but he added that 'we have to put everything on the table” in bringing federal spending under control. He added that he opposed the Affordable Care Act, often called Obamacare, but would seek ways to make it work more effectively and repeal an employer mandate given that it's unlikely Republicans can succeed in getting it repealed.

Young expected Obamacare, tax policy and the role of government would be key areas of difference with Appel during the 3rd District race.

'She has a voting record. It's a very liberal voting record, and I don't have a voting record. We'll be able to make that contrast,” he said.

Shortly after his nomination at last Saturday's special convention, the Appel for Iowa campaign issued a statement calling Young a 'Tea Party extremist” who was 'hand-picked” by a small group of 'far-right Iowa GOP activists” after being rejected by 85 percent of Republicans who voted in the June 3 primary.

How to watch

'What

: Iowa Public Television's 'Iowa Press” show featuring 3rd District Republican candidate David Young.

'When

: 8:30 a.m. today on IPTV World, noon Sunday on IPTV.

'Online

: The program also is available at www.iptv.org.