The debate, billed as "Peanuts and Politics," was conducted at Forestview Middle School in Baxter and was sponsored by the Brainerd Lakes Chamber.

Debating were District 12A candidates John Ward, DFL-Brainerd, an incumbent who is being challenged by Republican David Allan Pundt of Baxter, a former broadcaster and radio newsman.

Running for District 12B are incumbent Al Doty, DFL-Royalton, who is being challenged by Republican Mike LeMieur of Little Falls.

Democrat Meg Bye of Pequot Lakes is challenging incumbent Rep. Larry Howes, R-Walker, for the District 4B seat, but Howes could not attend the debate because he was away on personal business.

That didn't stop Bye from jumping in with both feet, as she countered the policy points of the other Republican candidates. Bye hammered away on the "cut taxes" and "shrink the size of the government" themes espoused by Pundt and LeMieur.

"I want to talk a little truth here today," Bye said. "It is a myth that Minnesota is a high tax state. It is a myth that Minnesota is a high spending state. I am not going to stand up here and say that all we have to do is cut, cut, cut our way out of our troubled Minnesota economy."

Bye said that much of Minnesota's economic and budget problems began when Gov. Jesse Ventura sent rebate checks back to Minnesota taxpayers, draining a then large budget surplus.

"I have a long-term view," Bye said. "We have been facing deficits ever since Gov. Ventura sent that money back - why is that? I have an obligation to pay bills for my own family, but if I don't have the revenue to pay my bills, I can let my family starve, or get another job to bring in more revenue."

Like a family, Bye said Minnesota needs to raise enough revenue to meet all of its obligations, and eliminate its budget deficit. She suggested that raising taxes would be a way of creating thousands of jobs, putting people to work building the state's infrastructure, such as roads and bridges.

Pundt, however, said Minnesota government is already taxing and spending too much.

"How much is enough?" Pundt said, "Our freedoms are eroding, our taxes are getting higher, our government is getting bigger. Over the years I have noticed that the one question no public official can ever answer is, 'How much is enough?' I once ran into a school board member in a grocery store, and he said he had an answer to my question. He said, 'More.' "

Pundt said the Minnesota Legislature should stop being given a "blank check" and state government is loaded with unnecessary spending that can be eliminated to balance the budget without raising taxes.

Referring to his opponent, Ward, Pundt said: "One of us wants a larger government, one of us wants to raise taxes; and one of us wants to shrink government and lower taxes. That's the choice: More government and taxes, or more freedom."

But Ward countered that he and his fellow Democrats have already been cutting government programs, and the large deficits are still likely to confront the state in the future.

"We had a deficit that we balanced by cutting $935 million," Ward said. "We made cuts in all state agencies by 2 to 4 percent across the board. When we do spend, we have to spend sensibly. For example, for every dollar spent on early childhood education, $12 is returned to the Minnesota economy. That's a fact; that's a good investment."

The candidates also sparred over energy issues, including ethanol production in the state, and the 5-cent gas tax hike passed in the previous legislative session. The gas tax may increase another 3.5 cents in the future under the bill.

Pundt said that when gas is taxed, the effect spreads well beyond higher prices at the pump. He said a gas tax means trucks need to charge more to transport goods to retailers, for example, and retailers then pass on the cost to consumers who pay not only higher gas prices, but for everything else gas prices affect.

Bye, however, said the hike in the gas tax was long overdue.

"I have a question," she said. "Does anyone remember what the price of gas was when the tax went into effect? Isn't that interesting? The price of gas is lower now than it was before. The problem is that for years the state has not passed on the cost to the people who use the roads. Now we're trying to make up for it all. Before the gas tax, your property taxes were paying for the roads."

Ward agreed, saying the gas tax actually saved local taxpayers millions of dollars.

"We are getting $14 million back in Crow Wing County from that bill," said Ward. "It wasn't just about the gas tax."

The candidates also could not agree on the value of state subsidized ethanol production programs.

Ward said, "Minnesota will be the Silicon Valley of renewable energy."

Pundt scorned the idea that ethanol has been a boon to Minnesota, and said ethanol production in Minnesota has been lackluster, at best.

"I have heard that same thing about ethanol every four years," he said. "Minnesota was supposed to be the Saudi Arabia of ethanol. We were supposed to be awash in the stuff - but what's happened? It hasn't happened."

Creating jobs in Minnesota was also a topic posed by the debate hosts. Much of the discussion centered on the value of the JOBZ program. JOBZ creates tax-free zones for businesses on the theory that paying fewer taxes will help them grow and hire more employees.

Ward, however, named five additional items he believes will grow jobs in Minnesota: Investment in education, the Capital Investment Bill, building roads and bridges with transportation funds, renewable energy and building in broadband infrastructure that will bring high-speed Internet services to all areas of Minnesota.

Pundt called the JOBZ program a good thing, but said more than just a "one-time investment" is needed in job creation programs. He said Minnesota needs a more "balanced tax picture" so other low-tax states, such as South Dakota, do not lure away Minnesota businesses. He cited Northwest Airlines, which recently moved its headquarters to Georgia after a merger with Delta Airlines, as an example of a major corporation that has fled the state for lower taxes.

About 20 people attended the debate. The debate format did not allow for questions from the audience, but rather stuck to issues prepared by the Chamber debate hosts.