O’Donnell Refuses to Debate (Updated)
UPDATE to visitors from Andrew Sullivan (waving at Sully): Palin…er ah O’Donnell did show up at the JCC event last night, and no, there was no way for her to get the questions in advance as the questions were all from the audience. I was there, and the questions were collected about a half an hour defore the debate started, and reviewed by the moderator from WILM. So I doubt she had the opportunity to see them. However, she read several responses to the questions directly from canned campaign messages. Her eyes were down, never making contact with the audience.
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The first candidate forum of the 2010 general election campaign is tonight at the Siegel Jewish Community Center, located at 101 Garden of Eden Rd., off Concord Pike in the Brandywine Hundred. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., with the debate starting at 7. The forum is sponsored by the Wilmington Chapter of Hadassah and the Jewish Community Relations Committee of the Jewish Federation of Delaware.
Expected to participate are all the candidates for the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House seats, as well as the state-wide races for Auditor and Treasurer. However, Christine O’Donnell’s spokesman Evan Quietsch went on the Rick Jensen Show yesterday afternoon on WDEL, and said that O’Donnell will not show up unless she was provided all the questions to be asked of the candidates before hand. Jensen, a right wing conservative radio host, was absolultey shocked and said that has never been done before at any debate that he attended or moderated.
Now, Evan’s cowardly demand on behalf of his parrot of a candidate is not at all surprising. Christine knows nothing of details on the issues, and has no plans for bringing jobs to Delaware, but she is good at memorizing talking points and then regurgating them on Fox News. So, of course, Christine needs the questions beforehand so she can prepare canned responses rather than actually thinking on her feet.
But, if I remember correctly, most of the questions at past JCC debates have been asked by the audience, making it naturally impossible to give questions to O’Donnell beforehand. Further, if I also remember correctly, Christine O’Donnell attacked Joe Biden in 2008 at the very same JCC forum for not showing up to debate her. How ironic and hypocritical it will be for O’Donnell to back out in 2010.
Perhaps she does not want to explain to the Jewish Community Center audience her stance on refusing to lie to the Nazis and handing Jews over to the them to be killed.
Comedian Eddie Izzard pressed her on just how far she would take her anti-lying beliefs. Izzard asked O’Donnell whether or not she would lie to Nazis who showed up at her door during WWII and demanded to know if she were hiding any Jewish people in her house. O’Donnell refused to even entertain the notion of concealing the truth from Nazis in that scenario because “you never have to practice deception”:
O’DONNELL: A lie, whether it be a lie or an exaggeration, is disrespect to whoever you’re exaggerating or lying to, because it’s not respecting reality.
MAHER: Quite the opposite, it can be respect.
IZZARD: What if someone comes to you in the middle of the Second World War and says, ‘do you have any Jewish people in your house?’ and you do have them. That would be a lie. That would be disrespectful to Hitler.
O’DONNELL: I believe if I were in that situation, God would provide a way to do the right thing righteously. I believe that!
MAHER: God is not there. Hitler’s there and you’re there.
O’DONNELL: You never have to practice deception. God always provides a way out.
She also attacked Castle for not debating her. I think she’s acting as if she’s the overwhelming favorite. Of course, she’s following the Palin/Paul/Angle policy of not getting in front of the media.
Will she get away with ducking debates? I know her supporters will give a pass.
Has she officially said she won’t be attending tonight?
Haven’t we already learned – there’s always an excuse for what she does as long as she mouths the correct rightwing platitudes.
Evan’s statement to Rick Jensen is the last word from the O’Donnell campaign on the matter.
She needs to put her man pants on.
Does anyone else get the feeling that her real goal is a Fox News gig? She’s campaigning for role as national Republican anger spokeswoman.
My bet is that she doesn’t show up, citing “exhaustion.” But this will be another nail in coffin. I think that even some of her more educated supporters will see through this BS of hers.
Why does she need the questions? Her answers are all the same anyway.
Interesting that when you go to her website, you only get a donation page and request to sign up for her emails.
She scrubbed her bio from the website. No matter, the truth is out there.
I wonder if she’s planning to do the scheduled debate at the University in October…
Hopefully someone has screen shots or a mirror of the website.
Mike didn’t debate, Velda didn’t debate … is she smart enough to recognize the pattern?
So, according to O’Donnell, you can lie about “winning” two Delaware counties against Joe Biden in a senatorial race, but you can’t lie to save a person’s (a Jew’s) life during a time of genocide. In short, you can lie when it serves the interests of Christine O’Donnell but not when it serves anyone else.
She really went after Biden in 2008 at the same forum and the same debate for not being their to debate her. Biden’s sister went instead of Joe. Anyone have that on tape or Twitter feed?
Christine says it’s not a lie if you have had a long day and are tired. The Jews crouched in her attic better hope the SS comes late in the day.
She was exhausted, Dana, and just misspoke. Give her a break! She was also exhausted and misspoke when Gaffney interviewed her and she said that she tied.
It’s all because Tom Ross and Mike Castle were following her home and hiding in her bushes. She couldn’t get a good night’s sleep during this whole campaign!
Yeah, Dana, you can see why she may want to avoid answering questions.
Google does appear to have the site still cached.
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:9o85rGdLuRwJ:christine2010.com/meet-christine/+christine2010.com&cd=2&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
I’ll grab a copy 😉
If she gets tired so easily, how is she going to filibuster?
I think she wants the questions so she can get her victim on about being asked about her college and her financial issues and “winning two counties.” If she does show up and does get asked those questions, just watch and see the canned poutrage.
Question #2:
“Government is too big, isn’t it?”
I call FAIL on her website. In the past half-hour, they claim to have gone from 93% to 96% of their $1 million goal. More BS from Lyin O’Whackamole.
why not? the Koch brothers have a million dollars in floating around in their car. funnel that through some “patriots” and bam. grade-A astro-turf.
Well, she needs to report everything to the Dept of Elections and the FEC. So it will be interesting to see where all of this new money is coming from. And they’re now up to 98%.
It will be even more interesting to see who gives to Coons. Delaware is about to become a vortex of money.
The ad buys will be interesting. Given the results of the primary, downstate will almost certainly not see the same ads as upstate.
Queitsch just told Rick Jensen that O’Donnell will be at the JCC candidate forum. Does anyone know if this event is televised or podcast?
It’s a little ridiculous to have a debate 2 days after a primary…
Does anyone know if this will be streamed or broadcast?
Someone should ask her if she’d lie to authorities about a hiding abused woman accused of adultery in Iran.
I don’t see what the big deal is here. She makes a great point!
In the World War II scenario, God provides a very obvious and guilt-free way out- rat out the Jewish refugees in your care, because “give to Caesar what is Caesar’s”.
Well folks, I guess either this blog or Evan Quietsch were wrong. Just to make a point, as an old gal who managed quite a few campaigns in the past (happily retired because it does become exhausting), any number of candidates request the questions in advance. Usually they are Democrat candidates, as I recall. However questions from the audience are seldom refused. I think you may see some polished professionals who now make themselves available to Ms. O’Donnell. 12 points behind is not insurmountable, especially when the Senate Leader himself identifies Coons as his “pet.” I wouldn’t be too smug at this stage if I were a liberal Democrat. I didn’t support O’Donnell’s primary run, but I do support her general election. I’ll take her to a self-proclaimed “bearded Marxist” like Coons. Already have a Marxist fan in the White House.
I was surprised the Tea Party supported her with so many negatives. A former aid of hers said she lived off of campaign funds and was not concerned with conservative causes.
Krauthammer is giving her a 10 to 1 chance of winning the election.
I think she is showing her lack of experience by demanding the questions in advance.
I know the Tea Party is thumbing their noses at the Republican insiders but I think they may be losing sight of the big picture. If we hope to gain the house and senate we need to select candidates that are electable. We must be willing to approach these races in a strategic manner.
The endorsement by Palin was reckless and impulsive.
i hope she does debate just to see what catch phrases her and palin come up with:
“How bouts it”
“Whooop de doo pi”
“You gots it chief”
“Whats mine is mine and you can’t touch it and neither will I”
She is no different than Palin, VPJ and KWS…she is looking for a meal ticket and knows being an elected gov’t official is the best way to do it. No experience. No brains. And hides behind everyone.
Votes should be decided on the issues. I’m not interested in any more “gossip” attacks. Which candidate supports tax increases? Which candidate can articulate a real plan for job creation in the most likely to produce jobs sector in Delaware? Which candidate will vote for what they promised if they are elected? Which candidate is aligned with the agenda that is failing? Politics is a messy business but voters know how to think and choose what will be good for their community.
“Which candidate is aligned with the agenda that is failing?”
That would be O’Donnell. I’m pretty sure the private sector — the one she claims to revere while having never worked in it — is the one that failed, leaving us with the bill.
Joan, it’s funny as I don’t recall seeing a Marxist or Socialist party listed on the ballot in Delaware. Maybe when your side stops with calling the President a Kenyan-born Marxist-Socialist and comparing him to Hitler, we can have a serious discussion. Until then, you should go O’Donnell yourself.