In 5th District Race, Foxx And Adams Differ On Health Care, Immigration, And The Economy

Ahead of Tuesday's election, we turn now to another closely watched congressional race: North Carolina's 5th District.

It's where we have Republican incumbent Virginia Foxx facing her strongest opposition since she took office nearly 14 years ago.

Democratic challenger D.D. Adams is a veteran politician, well known in the city of Winston-Salem.

This is a large district, made up 11 counties, mostly rural, but also home to urban centers like Winston-Salem and Boone.

Congresswoman Foxx is strong supporter of President Trump, who prides herself both on her conservative values and her work ethic. The former community college administrator and school teacher has risen through the GOP ranks in Congress. She's currently chair of the U.S. House Education and Workforce Committee. 

“I consider it a great honor to serve the people of the 5th District of North Carolina. I think my experience, not only as a representative, but also throughout my life has put me in a good place to be a representative," says Foxx. "There's nothing, nothing that makes me happier than to help an individual constituent solve a problem with the federal government.”

D.D. Adams has an uphill battle in this race, but she's no stranger to politics. Adams has been a city council member in Winston-Salem for nearly a decade. She's proud of her work with local leaders to help revitalize the downtown. Adams, though, is much less known in the mostly rural 5th district, where she says as a black woman, she may look different but she cares about many of the same issues.

“I knew when I decided to run that I would have to run for a long time because this district is so gerrymandered,” says Adams. “You know, it's so long and so I knew I would have to spend 70 percent of time in those counties, and I have and I still do.”

Foxx and Adams differ on many things - for instance, health care. Adams says she personally signed people up for the Affordable Care Act, and she says with many rural hospitals closing, it's more important than ever to expand programs like Medicaid, as well.

“I've always said it's the number one issue because if you don't have the quality of life, if you aren't well, if you're not able to go to the doctor and get those preventative screenings, get those prescriptions that you need, you won't have a quality of life and I don't care what kind of job you got,” says Adams.

Foxx, on the other hand, wants to use the free market to expand health care choices. She wants to repeal and replace Obamacare, and stresses that she wants pre-existing conditions covered.

"The price of health care skyrocketed with what was called the Affordable Care Act. It was the opposite of affordable," says Foxx. "We have been working at reforming and fixing what happened when that bill passed, so we've done a lot but we need to do more.”

The economy is a top issue for both candidates. Foxx says Republican leaders have accomplished a lot in the past two years. She's points to legislation recently passed by Congress, which includes giving the troops a raise, and a massive tax reform bill.

“We know the American people are better off now. The economy shows it. Our veterans tell me every day that they are thrilled with it. In fact, constituents tell me that everyday that they are much happier than they were two years ago,” says Foxx.

Adams comes from a manufacturing background and is a former union worker. She supports efforts to raise the minimum wage.

“Somebody's got to put the brakes on. We want corporations to make money but not on the heads of the people of America who need a quality of life, a quality of living. We have to move the minimum wage to ten dollars an hour,” says Adams.

Immigration is another big point of difference. Foxx supports Trump's proposal to build a wall at the border. But she says there needs to be support for North Carolina's farmers as well, who rely on migrant workers.

“People in agriculture need help,” says Foxx. “What we need is a simple, easy to use, efficient system that will allow people to come into this country and work legally, and then go home when the job is done.”

Adams says while she believes there can be more resources for border security, building a wall is the wrong answer.

“People come here for opportunities and we should be responsible for that,” says Adams. “And it's up to us to figure out whether we work with other countries to make this better for the whole world because when we lift up the least of us, whether they're living here in the 5th district or Honduras, we lift up the whole world.”

The 5th district went for President Trump in 2016 by a margin of over 17 points. It's unclear what effect he will have on this race. But one area that Foxx is most certainly ahead is fundraising. She has over $2 million for her campaign. Adams has raised just under $350,000.

*Follow WFDD's Keri Brown on Twitter @kerib_news