SMRs and AMRs

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

Why is Gutknecht choosing to debate this time around?

Campaign notebook

By Mark Fischenich
Mankato Free Press, 8/16/06

Debate in Owatonna

The Steele County Farmers Union has organized an honest-to-goodness debate between [DFL congressional candidate Tim] Walz and [MN 1st CD Rep. Gil] Gutknecht for Saturday [August 19], although the event at the Steele County Free Fair in Owatonna will also include at least one U.S. Senate candidate.

Walz, Gutknecht and Independence Party Senate candidate Robert Fitzgerald have confirmed they will be on hand. Scheduled to last from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., the debate will involve a panel posing questions and candidates given a chance to rebut comments made by the others.

A recent forum at Farmfest included nine candidates from districts around the state and no opportunity for rebuttal. Saturday's debate is likely to have a heavy agricultural focus with representatives of the Farmers Union, the Farm Bureau and two farm commodities groups asking the questions.

What's so important about a debate? In 2004, I was the DFL (Democratic Party) candidate in the 1st Congressional District of Minnesota. There were at least half a dozen opportunities when both Rep. Gutknecht and I were invited to debate. Though I was available for all of them (or so I remember), he only showed up to one, and that was for a TV appearance set up by a producer friend of his four days before the election.

That Mr. Gutknecht showed up to be on the same dais with Tim Walz at Farmfest was an important gesture. That he's choosing to do so again in Owatonna is similarly out of character. Perhaps it's because agriculture is Mr. Gutknecht's strong suit, and he actually has supported several issues that are beneficial to the majority of farmers in his district, including voting against CAFTA and promoting ethanol and biodiesel production.

Although I won't be able to attend this debate, we'll see how the press reacts to it. And we'll also have to see if and when Rep. Gutknecht chooses to debate Mr. Walz in the future. (My understanding that the Walz campaign is willing to debate at anytime, anyplace.)

LP

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home