Chris Coons forum at Wesley College

U.S. Senate candidate Chris Coons was confronted with some tough questions at Monday night’s meeting held at Wesley College. The democratic nominee met with students and the public in an event organized by the college’s Student Government Association (SGA).  One of the first questions asked of Mr. Coons by SGA Vice President, Bryan Zara, was how his own experiences as New Castle County executive will impact decisions he makes if elected to the U.S. Senate.   Mr. Coons replied that when he came into office as the executive, the government had serious problems dealing with criminal corruption.  He stated, “The entire county ethics commission resigned twice as a group to get the public’s attention.”   Mr. Coons added that in order to combat the problems, he worked to amend the ethics code and changed how the budget process was conducted.   Chris worked as an in-house counselor for W. L. Gore & Associates for 8 yrs. and has worked with several non-profit organizations including Council for the Homeless, the “I have a Dream Foundation” and the African-American Council of Churches.  A graduate of Yale Law School, Chris holds a bachelor’s in chemistry and political science from Amherst College and a master’s degree in ethics from Yale Divinity School. Coons, a long time resident of New Castle, grew up in the Pike’s Creek and Hockessin areas.    During the Wesley event, Mr. Coons was also asked about his opinion on the war in Afghanistan and President Barack Obama’s plans for the withdrawal of troops.  His reply was that we should leave enough assets, intelligence assets and real military assets to knock down any re-emerging Al-Qaeda threats that could directly attack the United States.  He feels that troops have already given enough sacrifices and should not be forced to continue.  As  a brother and son of a veteran, Coons feels that the best way to respect men and women in arms is to  give them a clear mission, support and resources to execute, and then bring them home instead of engaging them  in an  endless mission.  When asked what has been the least notable thing of this campaign, he responded, “being away from his family, especially the kids.”  He now lives in Wilmington,Delaware with his wife Anne and three kids, Michael, Jack and Maggie.