Pat McCrory says five debates are not enough.
The Republican gubernatorial nominee called today for a series of informal debates across the state. Earlier, the campaign of Democratic rival Beverly Perdue said she would do five debates.
Campaign Manager Richard Hudson said that her list did not include some of the seven events McCrory had already agreed to attend, including the N.C. Press Association on July 18 and the N.C. Association of Broadcasters on July 20.
"I am happy to have already accepted the five debates the Lt. Governor announced today and have agreed to several others that she has not accepted," said McCrory said in a statement. "But, we should go beyond just a few structured, formal debates."
Echoing John McCain's request in the presidential race, McCrory called for a series of joint appearances around the state with Perdue.
"Instead of formalized debates with sound bite answers we should allow the voters the chance to hear where we stand on issues and how we would lead the state as Governor," he said.
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Re: McCrory calls for more debates
This debate about debates is a farce. The Libertarian Party of North Carolina jumped through all the hoops the state requires, spent $130,000 to gather the 70,000 verified signatures needed to qualify as a political party in NC, and have an outstanding, well qualified candidate in Dr. Mike Munger, chair of the political science department at Duke University.
Why are we being excluded from the gubernatorial debates? I can only surmise that the establishment party candidates fear or have no regard for the ideas and viewpoints Dr. Munger will bring to the table.
Excluding the Libertarian candidate from these debates also shows disrespect for the voters of North Carolina. The people deserve to hear from all the qualified candidates for governor to the debates, so they can get a clear and complete picture of what all the candidates have to offer.
The people are entitled to hear a candidate address the real issues facing our state, instead of providing patented answers to the softball questions the moderators are likely to gently toss to the participants.
Brian Irving
Libertarian Party of NC