Colorado Politics reports that Republican gubernatorial nominee Victor Marx plans to debate Democratic nominee Phil Weiser exactly once before November, and Marx wants that lone encounter held without a moderator. Marx calls it strategy. To a lot of Colorado voters, it may look more like rationing accountability.
The Marx campaign also declined an Aug. 27 televised debate in Colorado Springs, saying it would negotiate directly with Weiser’s campaign over the format, host, timing and location of its single debate. Meanwhile, recent Colorado gubernatorial campaigns featured four debates in 2022 and eight in 2018. Apparently, candidates used to believe applying for governor required more than one carefully controlled audition.
Weiser’s campaign dismissed Marx’s proposal as unserious. Cute. But Weiser does not get to hide behind polished institutional debate theater, friendly formats or consultant-approved talking points either. Colorado voters are not asking for another televised recital. They are asking for answers.
The Bullet Point Brief
- Marx says he will debate Weiser once because that is his “strategy.” One debate for a four-year job running Colorado is not strategy. It is weak sauce in a campaign-branded bottle.
- Marx wants no moderator. That may sound tough in a social media clip, but without structure, follow-ups and fact-checking, a debate can quickly become two men interrupting each other like dads arguing over the last parking space at Costco.
- The Marx campaign declined the scheduled Aug. 27 debate and says it will negotiate its own event directly with Weiser. Nothing says “campaign centered on the people” quite like letting two campaign staffs privately design the public’s only job interview.
- Weiser’s team called Marx’s offer unserious. Fair enough. But Weiser should prove his seriousness by agreeing to multiple debates across the state, not by standing behind the velvet rope of establishment-approved programming.
- Colorado’s recent nominees debated four times in 2022 and eight times in 2018. Now we are supposed to applaud one appearance as sufficient exposure. Maximum power, minimum scrutiny. The modern political campaign in one sentence.
My Bottom Line
Victor Marx does not get the keys to the governor’s office after one debate staged on terms his campaign finds comfortable. If you want to run a state that is expensive, overcrowded, overregulated and politically exhausted, you do not get to order accountability off-menu like a diva at a truck stop.
And Phil Weiser should not mistake criticism of Marx for a permission slip. He is the sitting attorney general and the Democratic nominee. He should be questioned repeatedly about his record, his priorities and what he intends to do with even more power. A moderator, a television logo and a polished suit do not automatically create accountability.
Colorado needs several debates in several parts of the state. Pueblo. Grand Junction. Colorado Springs. The Western Slope. Northern Colorado. Put both men in front of voters, ask hard questions, demand follow-ups and bring receipts. No consultant-managed bullshit. No memorized filibusters. No campaign staff hiding behind “format concerns.”
Colorado does not need one carefully staged slap fight. It needs repeated public cross-examination of both men before voters get stuck with one of them. That is not political theater. That is the minimum price of admission for anyone asking to govern five million people.
Source: Colorado Politics
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