Candidate Interviews: 13th District Congressman Rodney Davis

Fifteen months after narrowly defeating four-time candidate David Gill, Congressman Rodney Davis (R-Taylorville) is seeking a second term.

In the first in a series of interviews covering the 13th Congressional District race, we talked with Davis about his re-election bid.

The U.S. Senate conducts a procedural vote Thursday with hopes of extending unemployment benefits by three months for nearly  two million Americans.

Davis said any extension measure to clear both chambers should not only help those in need, but reform the system to help these people find work.

He said said emergency extensions have gone on since 2008, and simply kicking the can down the road is not enough.

"We need to make sure that families who are on unemployment don’t have to choose between getting those benefits they deserve the most at that time in their career – and choose between those benefits, and going back to school and getting training for jobs that are available," he said. "And right now, the federal government in most cases actually discourages people from going back to school because of an antiquated workforce training process.”

Democrats hold the Senate, but at least five Republicans are required for the procedural measure to pass.

On the topic of the federal budget, the incumbent Davis said  he was criticized by Democrats for backing GOP colleague Paul Ryan’s budget measure, aiming to avert another government shutdown. But Davis said the plan recently approved in Congress actually spends less.