Rossi Ready To Grill Patty Murray

U.S. Senate candidate Dino Rossi recently challenged 18-year incumbent Patty Murray to a series of debates. Murray responded to the Rossi campaign by offering to debate only two times, and only in late October, just prior to the election.

Rossi has suggested that they have a total of six debates, to cover all the major media markets in Washington, with an additional debate in Seattle and also on national TV. Murray is refusing to go around the state to discuss issues with Rossi, despite this being the fourth time she is running a Senate race.

This Patty Is Done

Putting Patty Murray on a stage with Dino Rossi is probably the last thing her campaign wants to do. They know that Patty will be cooked, if she has to actually think about what she is saying without consultants providing a script for her.

In a letter of response to Murray, Dino Rossi's Campaign Manager Pat Shortridge states:

I can understand the Senator’s reluctance to debate, given her record over the past several years on spending, taxing, and failing to get the economy growing; but I think she owes it to the people of Washington to come out from behind the consultants and negative ads, throw away the usual playbook of agreeing to 2 debates in late October, and instead, engage Dino and the voters.

After all, Senator Murray is an 18-year incumbent. She’s a senior member of the Senate Democrat Leadership. This is her fourth time running in a US Senate race. This is still a blue state that went overwhelmingly for President Obama. Yet, she can’t – or won’t - go before the voters and make the case for the votes she’s cast, discuss what she views as her accomplishments, and lay out her ideas for solving the problems we face more than twice? That seems to be quite a personal repudiation of her own record.

Shortridge concluded his letter by reiterating that Rossi is willing to be flexible on times, locations, and other challenges the Senator may have relative to the Senate schedule.

Related Articles

• Rossi Proposes 6 Debates With Murray (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Murray: Just two debates with Rossi (seattlepi.com)