Virginia's Democratic Candidates Debate

 WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (AP) -- Virginia's three Democratic candidates for governor traded barbs over campaign fundraising Sunday and differed on who is best qualified to build on the legacies of Gov. Tim Kaine and his predecessor, Mark Warner.

Brian Moran, Creigh Deeds and Terry McAuliffe touched on the economy, the death penalty, the state's gay marriage ban and gun control during a 90-minute debate at the College of William and Mary. The debate is the first of five before the June 9 primary.

McAuliffe, the former Democratic National Committee chairman and chief fundraiser for the presidential campaigns of Bill and Hillary Clinton, was put on the defensive for raising the vast majority of his campaign funds from out of state.

"I've got a lot of friends," said McAuliffe, whose donor list includes Bill Clinton and Donald Trump. McAuliffe has raised about $5 million, more than both of his opponents combined.

"Terry raises money in places I've never been -- Park Avenue and Hollywood," Moran said.

But Moran also had to answer for taking about $80,000 in contributions from defense contractors with business before a congressional committee that includes his brother, Rep. James Moran. Deeds asked McAuliffe if he thought those donations violated campaign finance laws.

"You should refer that to the U.S. attorney's office, man, I can't get into all that," McAuliffe said.

Said Moran: "These are Virginia companies with Virginia employees who are protecting Virginians overseas and here at home."

Deeds also targeted both of his opponents' fundraising in his closing statement.

"Our party will no longer be the party of the middle class if our nominee for governor is beholden to Donald Trump or Wall Street executives or to tainted defense contractors, who have received millions in earmarks from an older brother in Congress," Deeds said.

The winner of the primary will face former Attorney General Bob McDonnell, who is unopposed for the Republican nomination, in the general election. Moran and Deeds said that as state legislators, they supported Warner and Kaine's initiatives while McDonnell largely opposed them.

But McAuliffe said Virginia needs a governor who, like Warner and Kaine, is not a product of the legislature. He said he has created thousands of jobs as a homebuilder and in other businesses -- experience he said would help him do the same as the state's chief executive.

"To say you are creating jobs as governor is not accurate," Deeds said. "You create an environment for the private sector to create jobs."

On specific issues, the candidates' differences were nuanced. For example, all said they opposed Virginia's 2006 constitutional amendment banning gay marriage and civil unions, but Moran said he would fight to repeal it. McAuliffe said "that's just not going to happen" because it would require approval in two legislative sessions.

Deeds voted to put the measure on the ballot but said he voted against it.

None of the candidates flatly rejected the idea of raising the gasoline tax to raise money for transportation, although McAuliffe sounded more opposed than the others: "In a down economy, you don't want to be taking more money out of people's pockets."

All three candidates said they support the death penalty and closing a loophole that allows people to buy firearms at gun shows without undergoing a criminal background check. They also vowed to make transportation improvements a priority -- a goal that eluded Kaine during his four-year term.

Moran mentioned that he is the only candidate who opposes construction of a 1,500-megawatt coal-fired power plant in Surry County because of concerns it could worsen pollution of the nearby Chesapeake Bay. McAuliffe touted his proposal to generate power from windmills off the Virginia Beach coast.

The debate was sponsored by the Farm Team, an organization formed last September to promote the election of women to public office.