Incumbent Leonard Lance (R-7th District) and Democratic challenger Peter Jacob debated at a forum in Clark.
CLARK -- The candidates vying for a congressional seat in New Jersey's 7th District on Thursday sparred over how to create economic growth for the region, emphasizing their bipartisanship and sometimes breaking from their parties' presidential nominees.
In a debate at the Holiday Inn in Clark, incumbent Congressman Leonard Lance (R-7th District) and Democratic challenger Peter Jacob went head-to-head on tax rates, entitlement programs and government regulation of business.
Faced with a resolutely polarized nation, both candidates told around 100 listeners they are committed to working across the aisle, regardless of who becomes the next president.
Jacob said his experience as a social worker prepares him to foster inter-party collaboration, while Lance cited a study that ranked him as more bipartisan than 90 percent of congresspeople. He said he would cooperate with whoever becomes president, regardless of party.
"Under no circumstances would I ever say that I cannot work with the new president of the United States," Lance said. "The issues that confront this country are too great to continue in partisan gridlock."
Jacob and Lance presented opposing tax plans, with Jacob supporting Democrat Hillary Clinton's proposal to raise taxes on high earners and Lance declining to endorse the tax proposal of Republican nominee Donald Trump.
Lance called for a flatter tax system with fewer rates but said he would oppose a proposal, like Trump's, that threatens to inflate the country's nearly $19 trillion national debt.
Jacob stood behind Clinton's call for a tax increase on the top 5 percent of earners, saying wealthy households need "to pay their fair share."
The candidates also addressed both presidential nominees' stated opposition to reforming entitlement programs and Clinton's promise to increase benefits. Jacob proposed raising the cap on taxable income for Social Security, and Lance suggested raising the retirement age by a year or two for people in their 20s and younger.
The pair offered opposite views on regulation of the banking industry and the Dodd-Frank Act, which was meant to limit excessive risk-taking by banks after the financial crisis in 2008. Lance proposed loosening regulations on community banks, while Jacob said controls are necessary because of big banks, many of which he said are "the sinners in the system."
"The problem is not Dodd-Frank," Jacob said. "The problem is Wells Fargo."
Libertarian Dan O'Neill and Conservative Arthur Haussmann, Jr., are also running for Congress in the 7th District, which encompasses Hunterdon County and parts of Essex, Morris, Somerset, Union and Warren counties.
Marisa Iati may be reached at miati@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @Marisa_Iati. Find NJ.com on Facebook.