Jon Ossoff debated an empty podium on Sunday after a fearful Sen. David Perdue refused to debate at all. Perdue had suddenly refused to participate in the last debate scheduled before the general election—notably, after Ossoff had a dominant and viral performance in their previous debate—and then extended that refusal to the entire runoff campaign. But the sponsors of this runoff debate did the right thing: They held the debate without Perdue.
Moderator Russ Spencer opened the debate by noting that Perdue “declined to participate in this debate and so is represented by an empty podium.” That podium was an excellent foil for Ossoff, who has consistently emphasized Perdue’s absence in Georgia, including his lack of public town hall events as senator. Ossoff didn’t skip many opportunities to point to the empty podium.
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“Where is Sen. Perdue?” Or: “Our senator has been absent. Is absent.”
It’s not that Ossoff got to monologue throughout. He faced questions from moderators with 90-second limits on his answers, just as he would have if Perdue had been there. He showed his willingness to take those questions, from the environment to COVID-19 relief to criminal justice reform.
Imagine how scared Perdue must be to have given Ossoff the opportunity not only to get the earned media exposure of a debate all to himself, but give him the opportunity to slam Perdue for his absence. Can you imagine being a U.S. senator in a close race and being that scared of your opponent?
He gave Ossoff space for this: