3rd District race heats up over … a wellness center?

What’s the subject of the first big flare up among two of the Republican candidates in 3rd Congressional District race?

The Rogers Wellness Center. And the whole thing may end up with a gaggle of Republicans on treadmills, stair steppers and in saunas. (Oh, the humanity!)

Who knew?

But this initial spat between Rogers Mayor Steve Womack and Fort Smith attorney Gunner DeLay may be the sign of things to come in a GOP primary that has seven candidates trying to scramble for attention and votes.

The dust up began Tuesday (Mar. 3) when Womack suggested that if elected to Congress he would “work to establish a national program to partner with local communities for the construction of regional wellness centers, like the one in Rogers.” Womack explained that wellness programs along with allowing insurance to be bought and sold across state lines, tort reform and easing burdens on physicians are better health care reform ideas than the ideas now proposed by Democrats in Congress.

But DeLay’s campaign fired back on Wednesday saying Womack’s plan for regional wellness centers would be a “billion dollar boondoggle.” The statement from DeLay offered three reasons why Womack’s idea was bad: “First, it is not the role of the federal government to build fitness centers and compete with private businesses. Second, the proposal would cost taxpayers billions of dollars. Third, it would create an unfunded mandate for local governments.”

But that wasn’t the end of it.

Womack responded by attacking DeLay’s lack of knowledge about the success of the wellness center. The Rogers mayor also invited DeLay to tour the center.

“It’s concerning that someone running for the 3rd District appears to have such a fundamental lack of understanding of a great area success story like the Wellness Center.  I think it’s safe to say Mr. DeLay has never visited the Center, so I would like to invite him for a personal tour,” Womack said in a statement.

DeLay accepted the invitation, but with a caveat.

“Although you have extended this invitation to our campaign exclusively, I think it is only fair to invite all candidates that have filed for the 3rd District Congressional seat, as well as the media, to open a discussion about the proper use of  taxpayer dollars,” DeLay noted in a letter to Womack.

Stay tuned.