Two Columbia residents gave credit to U.S. Sen. Jim Talent yesterday for helping pass Medicare legislation they said would lower their annual drug bills by $3,600.

Jenna Isaacson photo

U.S. Sen. Jim Talent makes a stop yesterday at the Holiday Inn Select Executive Center during an eight-city tour announcing his re-election campaign. Talent, U.S. Sen. Kit Bond and U.S. Rep. Kenny Hulshof were among speakers before a gathering of about 70 people.

Don and Carnetta Welter, who, like Talent, are Republicans, took center stage in Talent’s behalf during a campaign stop in Columbia that capped the first day of his re-election campaign. Talent is facing a challenge from state Auditor Claire McCaskill, a Democrat, for the seat he has held for the past 3½ years.

Political observers have handicapped the Talent-McCaskill contest as one of the most competitive in the country.

Welter, who managed a Wal-Mart store before he retired, said his wife takes 17 pills a day and that their annual drug bill was $6,000 last year. He said since he and his wife have signed up for the Medicare Part D drug benefit that Talent helped pass, Welter expects the annual medicine bill to be $2,400.

Cole County Sheriff Greg White also took the stand in Talent’s behalf. White said Talent was instrumental in passing legislation to combat methamphetamine, a highly addictive drug that destroys families and "turns good neighbors into dangerous people."

"We had a senator who listens to us," White said.

The Columbia stop was part of an eight-city tour Talent is making over two days. He was accompanied by his wife, Brenda, and their three children. About 70 people welcomed Talent in a meeting room at the Holiday Inn Select Executive Center.

Also campaigning with Talent were U.S. Sen. Kit Bond and U.S. Rep. Kenny Hulshof, both Republicans. Bond acknowledged the race against McCaskill "is going to be a tough election."

Talent, Bond and Hulshof all criticized McCaskill, saying she would join Democrats in Washington who are obstructing Republican priorities. They said McCaskill wanted a political solution to the war in Iraq, opposed President George W. Bush’s telephone surveillance program and opposed an energy bill that included a requirement for ethanol-blended gasoline.

Talent did not discuss his position on stem cell research, an issue that divides him from McCaskill. He opposes a ballot initiative in Missouri that would provide for protection for federally recognized scientific research using human cells. McCaskill supports the ballot initiative, saying it could lead to lifesaving cures for diseases. Talent says he opposes it because he thinks it could allow human cloning.

Adrianne Marsh, a spokeswoman for McCaskill’s campaign, said the negative tone Republicans were taking was a sign they were worried. She also said they misrepresented McCaskill’s position on some issues.

"I really do think that indicates" Talent’s "on the defensive here," Marsh said. "He’s probably a little worried that an incumbent who spent 12 years in Washington may be seen by voters as part of the problem and that voters are looking toward alternatives that Claire is proposing."

Before he was elected to the Senate in 2002, Talent was a member of the U.S. House for eight years.

Marsh said one claim Republicans had falsified was McCaskill’s position on energy.

"She has a strong record of providing funding for research for renewable fuels," Marsh said. "Talent has voted for government handouts to oil companies and didn’t do anything for high gas prices."

Asked about the three-year-old Iraq war, Talent said he believed conditions there were improving. "I think we have to continue the mission and continue to work with Iraq to help them build an ally in the war on terror," Talent said. "I think the mission is going well. I think we’ve made an awful lot of progress."

If a timetable for withdrawal were set now, Talent said, it would encourage terrorists. "We have to finish the course now."

Off-year congressional elections sometimes reflect voter attitude toward the administration in power. Talent acknowledged public opinion polls showed Bush was in trouble. But he didn’t see that affecting his campaign.

"Elections are primarily about the two candidates and the positions they take and the campaigns they run," Talent said. "There is no question that the overall numbers are part of the environment, and you have to live with that and work with that."

That said, Talent added he wouldn’t hesitate to ask Bush to come to Missouri to campaign for him.