#ncsen: Burr camp says NOT refusing to debate. (They say NO ONE has invited him to debate.)
Yep. Click HERE to listen to Burr campaign spokeswoman Mary Comer spin this nonsense. Here are some of the,um, highlights:
“No one is refusing to debate. That is simply false […] There is no debate. The senator has not been invited to any debate. [..] This is an old tactic people like to use to help them raise money. […] The media, the elections people who usually set up debates — that has not been done. He has not been invited. We have not refused.”
Really? Well, McClatchy’s Colin Campbell — a RobRielleWho-in-training — says different:
While the Democrats running for U.S. Senate will face off twice, the Republicans running for Senate and governor won’t appear in debates before the March 15 primary.
That’s because the incumbents, Gov. Pat McCrory and Sen. Richard Burr, have declined to debate their GOP challengers, according to Time Warner Cable News, the network that sought to host the debates along with the League of Women Voters.
“Both of those campaigns said they would not entertain invitations to primary debates, only debates for the general election,” news director Rick Willis of TWC News said Thursday.
TWC News and the League of Women Voters will host a debate Feb. 29 involving the Democrats running for U.S. Senate at High Point University. The following night, another debate is scheduled for the Democrats running for governor – if Attorney General Roy Cooper agrees to participate.[…]
I think South Carolina congressman Joe Wilson would like to have a word with Ms. Comer.
For the record, Richard Burr faces Greg Brannon, Larry Holmquist, and Paul Wright in the March 15th primary.
Burr a “F” rated republican at conservative review and a 45% Heritage action score – if the NCGOP did the right thing they would issue a press release to telling all republicans in NC to vote for anyone else in the primary
Burr knows that Greg Brannon will destroy him in a debate! Greg has studied and prepared for the job of representing us in the Senate. Greg Brannon is an expert on the US Constitution and will uphold the oath that he will take. Burr has shown numerous times that he has no idea what his oath is or what the Constitution says. That’s why Burr won’t debate him!
I hope Greg does better than the last round of debates with Tillis. As I recall Greg did not come across very well and appeared rather nervous and jumpy. Maybe his practice and study will pay off this time.
So the real LIAR is Richard Burr. His record is indefensible and so he’s doing exactly what he’s done the past 20 years, hiding from voters who don’t contribute & who don’t drink the GOPe kool aid.
I stand firmly with Dr.mGreg Brannon.
As angry as a majority of Republican voters supposedly are about the conduct of our majorities in DC and Raleigh, it astounds me that so many would just march to the polls and automatically re-elect these weasels.
Have you “met” people? 🙂
Perhaps he is relying on polls that show over 70% of GOP voters disapprove of the job that the GOP leadership is doing in DC, primarily because they lie down to Obama instead of fighting him, and over 60% say they have been ”betrayed” by the GOP leadership, and that is a pretty strong emotion!
Aye, and just for the record, I was agreeing with him 🙂
Umm, does Burr’s spokesman not know and talk to Burr’s campaign spokesman?
Arent those two supposed to be good at, like “communications”? Maybe they should talk to each other and get their stories straight.
…and Burr needs to get off his high horse, grow up, and show up.. it’s simply out and out disrespectful to your employers to ever allow your spokesman to go out and spout such nonsense (either one of ’em).
Burr is a craven coward to run away from debates, and does not deserve a Senate seat. But with a voting record as miserably out of step with NC Republican voters as Burr’s is, I can see why he is quaking in his boots over having to try to defend his constant enabling of Obama.
That said, this incident also shows the absolute incompetence of Burr’s consultant, Paul Shumaker, as a competent consultant would have seen the way to put the best face possible on Burr’s cowardice. One of the sponsors of this debate is the far left ”League of Women Voters” which is one of the plaintiffs trying to overturn our Voter ID laws. A competent consultant would have used that and objected to participating as long as the LWV was involved.
Agreed – I might still have disagreed with a decision to show up and debate, but doing so on those grounds would have at least been “something” of a valid rationale.
The ones they gave only serve to put Burr in an even further negative light.
Quoted from above:
“For the record, Richard Burr faces Greg Brannon, Larry Holmquist, and Paul Wright in the March 15th primary.”
Exactly. However, how many of the primary voters know this? To be honest I do not feel much excitement out here in the real world to remove Senator Burr from the Senate. The Democrats may take him out but I really don’t see Brannon, Holmquist or Wright defeating him in a primary.
Why should “how many of the primary voters know this”, matter?
That was one of my points – I expect someone holding public office, esp. a Senate seat, to show up and debate the issues with the contenders for that seat, not sit holed up in his tower. When you dont, I think less of you.
“To be honest I do not feel much excitement out here in the real world to remove Senator Burr from the Senate. ”
Arent you pretty much a Democrat? (If not, I apologize – you do seem, at the least, to be a steady “establishment supporter” kind of guy). Also, again… I dont think that should be relevant – Burr occupies a public office, serving the public, and I see part of the job description as being willing to show up to debates and communicate his views with voters.
I imagine Senator Burr looks at the polls. And when those polled do not recognize any name other than his then I doubt he sees much sense in giving these folks any publicity.
When you have a strong hand why show your cards to your opponents.
Credible primary challengers should realize they need millions of dollars to challenge an incumbent and that they must get their name out in front of the voters early on. To be honest I have not heard too much from Senator Burr’s primary challengers. But hey, who knows? Maybe one of them will unmask the wizard.
This is nothing but arrogance toward the voters who are his boss (although he probably thinks Mitch ”Benedict Arnold” McConnell and the K Street lobbyists are his boss), and voters should repay that arrogance by kicking his worthless a$$ to the curb.
Oh, I get why he’d want to avoid further publicity and debate… I just think a public servant should do better than that.
“When you have a strong hand why show your cards to your opponents.”
Because you’re in a public office, and the public has a right to know plenty about your “cards”… I consider being willing to publicly debate, to discuss and defend one’s views and actions, as a part of the job.
If you’re not up to the task, and choosing to rely on incumbency, then I consider that a mark against you.
Why don’t the debate sponsors hold a debate with an empty chair for the arrogant politicians who play hooky? The media is as much at fault for condoning their arrogance when they simply cancel the debate.
Who would watch? I mean Senator Burr’s opponents are not exactly Clint Eastwood.
I would like to see the pizza delivery guy in the debate and being able to send in questions. I want to know why so many run stop signs and red lights and drive too fast. We all want a hot pizza but not to the detriment of those innocents on the roads. I would like him to pledge a national code of honor for pizza delivery drivers that would make the roads safer. Even Senator Burr could not deny that this would be a good idea.
Let’s mock someone for their occupation, instead of their actual positions?
Nice.
I believe a pizza delivery guy is just as capable as being a United States Senator as any other occupation. No one has a higher respect for pizza delivery than me. All the local guys know me and know I tip well. I also like the guy who delivers the boneless chicken wings. A nice change of pace.
Burr may also be hurting himself for November, if he gets that far. I have talked to a lot of GOP activists who have had a bellyfull of Burr’s political shananigans and have absolutely no enthusiasm for his reelection. More than a few are actively considering whether or not they would even be able to hold their noses enough to vote for him in November, if he is the nominee. Asinine antics like his refusal to debate just add more reasons not to do so. That is just dumb politics.
I, for one, have moved quite past the “holding my nose” stage – I’ll just not do it.
Gotta do more than just have an R behind your name these days.