Carl Sheeler is the underdog RI Seante candidate (
also my preferred candidate), running in a Democrat primary against Sheldon Whitehouse. A debate between the two candidates has yet to take place, which is a cause of frustration among some watching the race. That frustration is summed up neatly in
this letter published in the
Providence Journal last Sunday:
Stop hiding from debate, Mr. Whitehouse
If Sheldon Whitehouse continues to refuse to debate Carl Sheeler in the Democratic senatorial primary race in Rhode Island, he will continue to shortchange Rhode Islanders. It may be smart politics, but it is bad policy -- very bad policy.
Good public policy and selection of the most qualified leaders to develop and enact sound public policy can emerge only from full and unfettered exchange of ideas. The marketplace of ideas demands free exchange and the wisdom that comes from unrestrained and transparent dialogue, discussion, and debate.
Mr. Whitehouse is the front-runner, but how can Rhode Islanders be confident he is the best candidate if he refuses to debate Mr. Sheeler on the crucial issues of the day, such as Iraq, national security, and energy policy?
This is not about the candidates. It is about the right of the people to be fully informed. Rhode Islanders deserve better: a series of debates on the most important national and local issues of the day.
Speaking as a blogger who has exchange emails with Sheeler but is a complete outsider to the Whitehouse campaign, I don't know if Whitehouse has "refused" to debate Sheeler. I can tell you what I do know.
On June 13, 2006, Sheeler sent a "personally delivered letter" to Whitehouse challenging him to "a series of 1 ½ hour debate forums over the next 90 days leading to their primary on September 12, 2006."
Last week, I popped in at Whitehouse's Campaign HQ in Cranston and spoke with their Communications Director, Alex Swartsel, about the debate issue. Swartsel told me that Whitehouse is open to debates but does not know if there have been talks between Whitehouse's campaign scheduler and the Sheeler campaign to setup a series of debates between the two candidates. She also could not confirm that Whitehouse received the letter Sheeler sent on June 13.
After my visit to the Whitehouse HQ, I emailed the Sheeler campaign for a comment. Sheeler replied and informed me that there hasn't been any communication between the two campaigns to setup a series of debates. There are also sentiments in the Sheeler camp that Whitehouse is avoiding a debate because he thinks it could be politically damaging.
Judging from what both sides have told me, there's no way that I can confirm that Whitehouse refuses to debate Sheeler. But I can definitely see why such sentiment exists. Speaking as a voter who's biased towards Sheeler, I'm not sure how much weight my thoughts on the matter have, but in the interests of our democracy and having informed and enlightened voters enter the booths for this September's Democrat primary, it is my hope that Whitehouse and Sheeler participate in a series of debates. After all, how can I trust a candidate to fight the Republicans if I haven't seen them take heat from a primary opponent?
The Sheeler campaign has made overtures to the Whitehouse campaign to have a series of debates setup, so the decision is now upto Whitehouse. I hope he responds in kind.