Face The State Staff Report
After backing out of a debate on Denver's Channel 12 this week because of alleged liberal bias by the debate's moderator, Republican Congresswoman Marilyn Musgrave is raising eyebrows for opting for a different debate venue with a moderator who is a known donor to her opponent, Betsy Markey.
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Musgrave is now slated to debate Democrat challenger Betsy Markey on Tuesday evening at Windsor High School in Weld County. Bob Lawrence, a retired Colorado State University professor, has conceded that he made a small contribution early this year to Markey’s campaign, a fact he disclosed to debate organizers.
But the Musgrave camp says it is confident in Lawrence’s ability to moderate the debate objectively.
“He’s not a registered Republican and we know that,” said Musgrave Campaign Manager Jason Thielman. “But he’s moderated our debates in the past and we’re confident he’ll do a good job.”
Lawerence moderated a 2006 debate, also at Windsor High, where Musgrave faced off against Democrat Angie Paccione.
According to Randy Bangert, editor of the Greeley Tribune (the paper is one the debate’s sponsors) Lawrence disclosed the fact that he gave a check to Betsy Markey. Lawrence freely offered the information to organizers.
“I realized that could have been a problem,” Bangert said. “So I went to both campaigns to let them know, but neither had a problem.”
On Friday, the Musgrave campaign canceled her scheduled appearance on KBDI's Colorado Decides debate seris when KBDI producers refused to replace Eric Sondermann, a Denver-based political analyst. Musgrave reps said they were uncomfortable with Sondermann as moderator, calling him a “liberal activist.” Musgrave cited an April 2008 National Journal article that referred to him as a “Democratic consultant” as justification.
Sondermann shot back by sending a letter to Musgrave explaining in detail his journey from Democratic activism to becoming a non-partisan, fair political analyst. He directly refuted the National Journal reference by pointing out how the article referred to Denver-based pollster Floyd Ciruli, a former chairman of the state's Democratic Party as a “Republican consultant.”
“Before your allegation, I was unaware of any charge of bias or unfair, unprofessional behavior on my part,” Sondermann wrote in the letter.
Representatives for other campaigns eagerly dismissed allegations of bias by Sondermann. "I've known Eric for years, and sat on a debate panel last month where he was a moderator where he was extremely well informed and fair," said Jessica Peck Corry, a spokeswoman for the Amendment 46 campaign, a Republican, and an editorial contributor to Face The State. "I think this was a mistake on the part of the Musgrave campaign as they've lost out on a great moderator."
In response to hearing that Lawrence will moderate Tuesday's debate, Sondermann defended his credebility as an unbiased commentator and accused Musgrave of using a double standard to pick the format in which she debates.
"This strikes me as a clear case of 'situational ethics'. If Congresswoman Musgrave didn't want to participate in the Channel 12 / Channel 4 / Rocky Mountain News forum, that is her privilege," Sondermann said. "For Musgrave to accuse a straight-ahead analyst of bias in order to get out of one media engagement but to then accept a debate a few days later knowing full well that the moderator in that encounter is a donor to her opponent's campaign is a rather blatant double-standard. In a wild and wacky political year, it just keeps getting more interesting."
It has certainly been a rocky debate season so far and the Colorado Decides controversy is only the latest example. And it's not the first time KBDI has been snubbed. Jess Knox of Protect Colorado's Future was scheduled to debate three anti-union ballot initiatives, but pulled out at the last minute. After agreeing to debate each amendment on its own, Knox asked KBDI at the last minute to debate Amendments 47, 49, and 54 all in one sitting. Show producers declined, saying the agreed upon format was the same for every initiative campaign. Knox then failed to show up at the televised debate, leaving Amendments 47 and 49 backers to debate an empty chair.
Last week, Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Bob Schaffer delayed the start of a debate against Democrat Mark Udall for almost an hour at KMGH Channel 7 studios in Denver. Schaffer said he did not sign off on the event’s ground rules beforehand and therefore would not agree to put his notes away during the debate. Udall eventually gave in to Schaffer’s demands and allowed the Republican to consult his notes.
Also last week, a state Senate debate turned nasty as the two candidates traded personal barbs. Republican Bob Lane accused Democrat Joyce Foster of making a “vicious, personal attack” at their last debate. Foster refuted the claims and chalked the incident up to a “misunderstanding.”
Earlier this summer, incumbent Republican Congressman Doug Lamborn declined to debate his two opponents vying for the GOP nomination to represent the 5th Congressional District. Lamborn skirted several debates with opponents Jeff Crank and Bentley Rayburn, once saying he had important votes to cast in Washington. On another occasion, Lamborn said he was too busy accepting an award to debate.