National issues dominated Tuesday evening in the  between Democrat Jon Ossoff and Republican Karen Handel in the closely-watched contest for Georgia’s 6th District congressional seat.Former House Speaker Tip O’Neill coined the slogan “all politics is local.” But that once reliable catchphrase felt like a relic Tuesday during the first head-to-head debate in the nationally-watched contest for Georgia’s 6th District congressional seat.“We need an independent voice in Congress to hold both parties accountable, to stand up for the U.S. national interests no matter who’s in charge and to stand with our allies in defense of our security,” Ossoff said.

In total, outside groups, party committees and the two campaigns have spent more than $36 million on the contest so far, according to a recent Atlanta Journal-Constitution analysis, making the race by far the most expensive in the history of the House of Representatives. Atlanta Constitution