Republican U.S. Senate challenger Tom Cotton on Sunday challenged incumbent Democrat Mark Pryor to five unmoderated debates to be held in different regions of Arkansas.
Cotton announced his challenge in a brief news conference at the Arkansas Republican headquarters in Little Rock on Sunday afternoon. The freshman U.S. representative from Arkansas’ 4th Congressional District said the unmoderated format would allow the candidates to “talk directly to voters” instead of working through the filter of a moderator or panel.
“Arkansans should be able to travel a short distance, see us in person, hear from us directly and hear us appeal for their votes,” Cotton said. “I’m proposing, and this is the most important part of my proposal, that Sen. Pryor and I debate each other directly with no moderators, no reporters, no panel of questioners - just a timekeeper to make sure that it’s fair and square.”
Pryor’s campaign issued a statement Sunday afternoon saying it is considering the various proposals that already have been made to participate in a debate that would reach the largest number of people statewide. The statement does not commit to or turn down Cotton’s challenge.
“Mark looks forward to debating Congressman Cotton at the appropriate time and in a format where voters statewide can finally hear Mr. Cotton’s explanation for recklessly voting to turn Medicare over to insurance companies, cut benefits and raise the age to 70 for Social Security and Medicare,” Pryor for Senate spokesman Erik Dorey wrote.
Cotton started off the news conference Sunday with a similar statement.
“Arkansans face a critical choice in this race for Senate … Do we support the Obama agenda or do we oppose it?” he said, pointing out Pryor’s support for President Barack Obama’s health-care law and Cotton’s intention to work to repeal it.
The aggressive statements called into question whether the opponents would end up in a disorderly argument without a moderator, interrupting each other and finding it hard to have a discussion.
For his part, Cotton said two candidates running for the “world’s most deliberative body” should be able to respect those limits.
“These debates, in my opinion, are the most mature and responsible way to give Arkansans the debate they want to hear from the two candidates who are going to represent them in the U.S. Senate,” he said. “I think the dignified, respectful thing when you’re competing against someone for a race as important as U.S. Senate is to respect those kinds of very simple limits.”
Cotton said he would compromise on limited aspects of his debate challenge, but having a moderator was not on the table. He said he would negotiate the time for responses, format for responses and allow for a timekeeper.
“There used to be a time in our politics when voters could look the two candidates in the eye and hear from them directly - that’s what I’m inviting Sen. Pryor to participate in today,” said Cotton, mentioning the Lincoln-Douglas debates as an example of what he wants.
During the Lincoln-Douglas debates, Republican challenger Abraham Lincoln and Sen. Stephen Douglas, the Democratic Party candidate, debated each other for the 1858 Illinois Senate election. During those seven debates, one candidate spoke for 60 minutes followed by the opponent’s 90-minute rebuttal and a 30-minute rejoinder from the first candidate.
Cotton said he hoped the two candidates could agree to the format, set response times and begin scheduling the debates - the first of which he said could take place in just a few weeks.
“We don’t need a lot of planning. We don’t need a venue. I’m happy to do this on a flatbed truck with two bales of hay. I’ll even provide the hay,” he said.
Arkansas, Pages 7 on 04/14/2014