Caffeinated Politics

The ticker crawled during the noon news television broadcast about the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association canceling this fall’s debate between the two gubernatorial candidates. I was taken aback and asked James, who was at the computer, to find out the details.

A planned gubernatorial debate hosted by the Wisconsin Broadcasters’ Association is officially canceled.

The debate was planned for October 9th in Milwaukee. But in a statement, the organization says they did not receive confirmation of participation from both Democrat David Crowley and Republican Tom Tiffany.

“Based on legal precedent, for the foundation to air a debate, multiple candidates must participate. Two invitations were sent and both had to be accepted in order to have a debate. That did not happen,” said the WBA in the September 8 release.

The statement did not clarify if one or both candidates declined to participate; Crowley’s campaign manager Garren Randolph said Crowley “was looking forward to participating in this debate and continuing the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association’s more than 30-year tradition of putting candidates directly before voters statewide”. A representative for Tiffany’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

I think it’s fair to say voters across the state understand the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association debate is the Super Bowl of the election-season political conversation. It’s the one event we thought candidates could not hide from. So when the prestigious WBA is denied the agreement from the Republican nominee, the message is unmistakable. Tom Tiffany thinks he can control the narrative and deny voters the conversation they need.

Tiffany comes into this campaign with heavy baggage that he is carrying for Donald Trump. Being an election denier is but the first item on the list. The state Republican Party could have moved behind another candidate a year ago, but chose to link itself to someone who now cannot and will not stand on a stage for a full-out debate.

Hey, Tom, A statewide debate is not a favor to the media. It’s a duty to the public. It’s the moment when every Wisconsinite is on the same page. The retired man from Algoma, the teacher in Hayward, the grocer in Tomah, the farmer in Weston, the police officer in Milwaukee — regardless of ZIP code, income, or internet speed — everyone gets equal access to the same unfiltered information. When that debate is shut down, the electorate must rely on campaign-approved messaging instead of real-time accountability. That’s not democracy, Tom.

If a candidate can’t stand on a stage and defend his ideas, voters deserve to know that. If a campaign believes it can win more by saying less, voters deserve to question why. And if the statewide conversation is silenced, voters deserve to be angry.

Because the truth is simple. Democracy doesn’t need protection from debates. Tom Tiffiny does.