The bailout bill, health care and the Iraq war are just a few of the items on a long list of differences between the views of the two candidates for one of Wyoming's U.S. Senate positions.

Democrat Nick Carter, a Gillette attorney, said he would have voted for the $700 billion bailout bill if he were in the Senate while his opponent, Republican U.S. Sen. John Barrasso, cast a "no" vote.

"I thought it shouldn't have been so rushed," Barrasso said. "It could've been more limited. You wouldn't have had to go so expensive and they asked the wrong people to pay for it."

Carter said Congress "didn't have a choice" but to pass.

An orthopedic surgeon from Casper, Barrasso does not think the government should have any control over a person's health care - it should be between a patient and a doctor. He is against universal health care coverage.

Carter doesn't want a complete universal health care system, either, but he supports creating a universal catastrophic plan to prevent people from declaring medical bankruptcy. People would pay into the plan like Social Security, except at a much lower cost, and would have coverage for any major accident or illness.

Day-to-day health care would be covered by a person's private insurance plan.

As for troops in Iraq, Carter said he wants to bring them home as soon as possible.

"We need to get out of Iraq as fast as practically possible," Carter said. "We got in their fast, we can get out of there fast."

U.S. military forces in Iraq haven't reached a point yet where Congress can make a clear deadline of when troops should come home, Barrasso said.

The candidates are on opposite sides of the fence on the abortion issue. Carter is pro-choice and Barrasso is pro-life.

Neither candidate is happy with No Child Left Behind education laws but for different reasons.

Carter said he likes the concept but said No Child Left Behind has been "an unfunded mandate."

Like health care, Barrasso believes decisions about education should be made at the local level. What works for a high school of 1,500 student may not work for a school with seven students, he said.

Carter is "absolutely" against privatizing Social Security while Barrasso wants "to have a national dialogue on all of the options available to ensure a financially stable retirement system."

The candidates agree on other issues.

They both would support military action in Iran if the country acquired nuclear weapons and all other options were exhausted. Both are against any form of gun control.

Finding ways to become energy independent is a major focus for both campaigns.

Barrasso supports exploring offshore drilling and drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska.

Carter is more skeptical of using energy from ANWAR and offshore drilling. He supports drilling in both areas but only if it is part of a comprehensive energy plan. However, he said if the country considers other sources of energy and other policies in a comprehensive plan, it's unlikely people would have to drill in "these pristine places."

Contact reporter Allison Rupp at (307) 266-0534 or allison.rupp@trib.com