Brown Vs. Doolittle: Finally, A Debate

It's been about time! John Doolittle comes out of hiding and agreed to debate Charlie Brown, though on very short notice and for a very limited audience. The Brown for Congress press release:

ROCKLIN: Fourth District Congressional Candidate Charlie Brown has announced that he will square off in his first debate with incumbent Rep. John Doolittle Wednesday night, at Starstream Communications studios in Rocklin ( 4120 Citrus Ave , Rocklin CA 95677 ).

The event will be moderated by Gerry Lyons, and will be aired live from 7:30 p.m.-9:30 p.m. for Starstream’s cable subscribers in Placer County ---which includes residents of Rocklin, Granite Bay , Penryn, Newcastle , Loomis, Lincoln , Auburn , Colfax, Pinebrook, and Lakeside.

David Whitney of McClatchy Newspapers, General Manager Deric Rothe of Gold Country Media, and Mike Raffety, Editor of the Mountain Democrat, will each serve as panelists.

The format for the debate will include candidates directly responding to questions from panelists followed by a moderated discussion, as well as a segment where candidates will respond to call-in questions from viewers watching at home.

“I have repeatedly stated that I will debate John Doolittle any time, any place,” said Lt. Col. Charlie Brown. “While I’m disappointed that more 4^th CD voters will not be able to watch this event live, I’m eager to highlight the stark differences between me and my ethics challenged opponent for the people of Placer County.”

This morning’s announcement comes more than 3 months after Doolittle first accepted Brown’s invitation for a series of debates back in early July, and repeated offers from area radio/tv stations, newspapers, non-partisan community groups, and even schools who were willing to host. The Sacramento Bee and Auburn Journal had both written editorials requesting a debate schedule, and Brown had sent Doolittle 3 follow up letters offering a selection of available dates.

The Brown/Doolittle race has become one of the nation’s most closely watched Congressional races. Doolittle, who is an 8 term incumbent, has been weakened by his ties to both Congressional bribery scandals, disgraced former Rep. Mark Foley, and the highly unusual practice of paying his wife a 15% commission on contributions to his political committees. A recent poll shows the race to be a statistical dead heat.

“One debate is a start – but just a start,” Brown added. “Given the high stakes of this election, I hope Congressman Doolittle will work with us to schedule a series of town hall meetings and other forums around the district to give all voters the opportunity to hear from the candidates, and participate in the democratic process.”

To me it seems like a test balloon. Doolittle's not quite sure if he can actually take on Charlie. If he feels he can he will be confident and agree to further debates, if not he can say that he has debated Charlie even if hardly anyone in the district was able to see it.

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