No, not the one at Morgan State (although they ducked that one, too – more on that in another post). Right now, I’m talking about the local debates.
The League of Women Voters has been working on a series of debates that are to be aired on the local Cox community channel. I’ve been hearing rumblings for some time that the LWV was having difficulty getting the Republican candidates to agree to record the debates. With time getting short, the rumblings are getting louder. So far, I have confirmed that incumbent Senator Fred Quayle has refused to debate challenger Steve Heretick and incumbent Senator Nick Rerras has refused to debate challenger Ralph Northam.
In the case of Fred Quayle, not only is he ducking the LWV debate, he also has declined to participate in a debate for On the Record, a debate sponsored by the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce, and, after being given ten different dates, a debate in Hopewell.
What are these guys afraid of? If they truly believe that they are the best choice for their districts, doesn’t a debate provide a great opportunity for their constituents to see it for themselves? Or are they satisfied to hide behind the half-truths and innuendos of the carefully crafted messages reflected in their mail and the upcoming onslaught of TV ads?
You want to be a public servant but don’t want the public to see you. That just makes no sense to me.
Technorati Tags: Fred Qualye, Nick Rerras, Steve Heretick, Ralph Northam
VIVIAN J. PAIGE | All Politics is Local 
In some cases, the groups are overreaching. The LWV wanted Nick Rerras to do THREE events; he agreed to one. Not ducking the LWV, but being realistic.
Well, that’s not what I heard, Henry. The way I heard it was that Rerras was given 10 different dates over the space of 3 weeks and he flatly rejected all of them.
What did he agree to do?
Vivian,
You should probably add “just shut up” Trish Stall to this list. she might do a couple forums but has no intention of doing anything in front of the public.
Vivian, he agreed to do a LWV event downtown.
I was at HQ when the three were laid out; no way he was going to be able to schedule all three. He took the one he didn’t have to reshuffle for.
I find it bemusing that most candidates (both parties) have plenty of room in their schedules and no problem making their schedule work when it comes to fund raising dinners. Think about that one, voters. We should just have a weigh-in at the end of the campaigns…let the biggest and richest SOB have the winning seat. But I am a bit of a cynic when it comes to politics. Seriously, it is time we call these folks on their schedules and have them lay it out on the line, like, say their tax or campaign fund information. I think it is a cop out to not tell the public how you feel on the issues and the debate is the oldest and best form of information gathering an informed public can have. Bravo on your call out on this one, Vivian.