Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Barack Obama is hedging on a proposal he made to his former Republican opponent, Jack Ryan, to have six debates before the November election.
Now Alan Keyes, the imported GOP candidate from Maryland and vaunted orator, is in town. Keyes picked up on Obama’s June proposal to Ryan to hold six long-format debates around the state like the legendary faceoffs in 1858 between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas.
But Obama hasn’t committed to more than three debates. “At this point, the schedule is getting short, and we are not going to have my schedule and the schedule of my campaign dictated by somebody who just arrived two days ago,” Obama stated. Keyes, in turn, likened Obama to Muhammad Ali, initially willing to take on all comers, but “running out of the ring” now that Keyes is his challenger.
This dance, with Obama and Keyes as partners, is an oldie called the Election Year Jitterbug. The frontrunner makes every attempt to wiggle out of debates lest an inadvertently boneheaded comment slice away his lead. Meanwhile his lagging, usually underfunded opponent pushes for as many debates as there are days before the election to maximize the free exposure.
If Obama were smart about this, he’d say, “Sure I’ll debate you six times, and let’s start next week,” before Keyes gets a grip on Illinois issues. Or, if Obama figures Keyes won’t wear well with citizens, he could up his earlier proposal from six debates to 12.
Political strategists, of course, would advise Obama to agree to as few debates as possible. But we’re siding with the voters who must select a senator. Voters have never been harmed by having more information about candidates, or more exposure to their platforms, their speaking styles and how they handle the pressure of sometimes piercing, sometimes inane questions.
What’s Obama got to fear? He’s probably won just as many debate club trophies as Keyes. More important, it was Barack Obama who thought voters would most benefit from six debates.
If he’s grown uneasy with his own proposal, Obama might keep in mind what happened after Republican Lincoln debated Democrat Douglas.
The Democrat won.
