Udall proposes at least eight debates with Schaffer
Democrat had been accused of 'blowing off' idea
By Lynn Bartels, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)
Published June 11, 2008 at 12:05 a.m.
Bob Schaffer
Mark Udall
Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Mark Udall, accused of "blowing off" debates with Republican challenger Bob Schaffer, on Tuesday proposed holding at least eight debates statewide between July and November.
The proposal came several hours after Schaffer's campaign manager, Dick Wadhams, asked why Udall's campaign was dragging its feet on scheduling debates.
"They've been screwing around for a month, hemming and hawing," Wadhams said. "They've been blowing off people."
Udall spokeswoman Taylor West said that's untrue.
A Udall news release invited "a representative of the Schaffer campaign to meet as soon as possible to discuss details and confirm an overall schedule."
"What a joke," Wadhams said.
Said West: "It's typical of Bob Schaffer to treat any offer of working together for a good result as a 'joke,' but the invitation still stands."
Wadhams noted that Schaffer on May 9 proposed a series of debates over the summer, and that several "objective entities," including KBDI-Channel 12, offered to serve as hosts.
Wadhams said he contacted those potential hosts on Monday, and learned they still hadn't received a final word from Udall.
The Udall campaign on Tuesday afternoon did confirm two debates, one in July with the Southeast Business Partnership and one in August sponsored by Channel 12.
West said the debates have to be scheduled around Udall's congressional duties.
"We're trying to come up with a plan that works given what we know about Mark's schedule," she said. "Congress is still going full tilt for large parts of the summer."
Udall, of Eldorado Springs, represents Colorado's 2nd District in Congress. Schaffer, a former congressman from Fort Collins, resigned his job at Aspect Energy LLC in January to campaign full time.
The situation is a reverse from 2002, when Wadhams ran U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard's re-election bid.
Allard still had duties in Washington, while his Democratic opponent, Tom Strickland, was able to campaign full time.
Schaffer last month proposed a series of debates modeled after the 1858 debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas, who were campaigning for a U.S. Senate seat from Illinois. Those debates involved one candidate speaking and the other offering rebuttal, with little if any input from moderators or an audience.
Udall objected to such a format.
"What we're looking at is debates where both of the candidates have to answer questions, not just give canned speeches," West said.
Wadhams said Schaffer earlier agreed to a question-and-answer format, adding that the Lincoln-Douglas proposal was an idea to get the debates to be more freewheeling and less rigid.
"We said, 'Fine, fine,' and we still didn't hear anything back," Wadhams said.
The Udall campaign has proposed that the eight debates be hosted by a "diverse array of groups," with a variety of formats that allow for the "most possible interaction between Coloradans and the candidates."
bartels@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5327
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June 11, 2008
10:27 a.m.
Suggest removal
Ian74 writes:
Maybe Mark Udall should propose having a debate on unions and his support of organized labor. They should also discuss his support of the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) also known as the card-check bill. This bill is a massive handout to organized labor and would overturn decades of settled labor law in order to give organized labor an unfair advantage in union organizing, at the expense of employees’ privacy. We need to urge Mark Udall to join the 94% of Coloradoans who oppose the card-check method of forming a union.
June 11, 2008
11:29 a.m.
Suggest removal
I.love.my.kids writes:
"Ian74" is on the ball on this one. The Card Check bill is going to be one of the biggest issues in the next congress. It passed the House (with Udall's vote and cosponsorship) in 2007 before failing in the Senate, and he would undoubtably support Big Labor and EFCA again if elected to the Senate. Big Labor Boulder Liberal Udall will vote for this undemocratic bill, what about Shaffer?
June 12, 2008
3:19 p.m.
Suggest removal
JohnHKennedy writes:
In the recent past Udall has seemed to shy away from meeting the voters or holding a meeting that wasn't rigidly controlled. Just ask the anti-war protesters that Udall avoids.
At his townhall event last year there were more police in the room than protesters. A bit threatening. And they couldn't get a word in edgewise for all of the Udall activists that monopolized the available time to speak.
Then of course there are the Cheney/Bush crimes against our Constitution. Udall claims that his refusal to even discuss Impeachment is "just an honest difference of opinion". And his staff have claimed that the "people don't want it". We beg to differ.
Udall can no longer pretend that the crimes of the Cheney/Bush Administration did not occur, that they are not extremely serious, that we voters don't know about the crimes, that we voters don't want him to protect our Constitution, and that Our Constitution and his Oath Of Office don't require him to act to impeach Cheney and Bush.
His credibility is at stake.
John H Kennedy, 43 yr Democratic voter, Obama delegate
Impeach Colorado Coalition http://ImpeachCO.com
..
June 12, 2008
7:42 p.m.
Suggest removal
Jonah writes:
Would you rather support Schaffer who is in the pocket of Big Oil, who supports taking away First Amendment rights, who supports the failed international and economic policies of the Bush Administration? Sorry, I don't want a Rush Limbaugh wannabe as our senator.