To Debate or Not To Debate, That is the Question

I think one of the least-surprising, ridiculous and also (yes) fascist pronouncements last week was when the Republican National Committee announced that they would be pulling out of the presidential debates for 2024.

It’s not terribly surprising, given that the few things the Republican Party has been making an issue of are Mr. Potato Head, Dr. Seuss, the Muppets and now Mickey Mouse.  It’s pretty hard to stand out a debate stage and make that the foundation of your party and ask people to vote for you.  Unless the “party is for seven-year-olds.  Further, if you debate, you lay yourself open to defending your position that the 2020 election was stolen, despite zero evidence and losing 60 court cases – all the while explaining why the presidential race should be thrown out…but not all the other races on the same ballots that Republicans won.  And you also have to defend the RNC position that the January 6 insurrection, which most Americans watched lived on television, was “legitimate political discourse.”  Further, related to that, you know that the House January 6 Select Committee is going to be holding public hearings on television, there are already a few hundred people found guilty, it’s probably that the Justice Department will be indicting high-ranking members of the Trump administration and (though unlikely) may even indict Trump.  So, debating all that is a losing proposition.  As is four years of Trump saying he trusts the Russian war criminal butcher Putin more than U.S. intelligence and how Putin’s plan to attack Ukraine is genius.

There are only two semi-serious issues remaining for Republicans:  COVID-19 and inflation. And while both are understandable concerns to bring up, they’re much easier to shout about on TV news, in ads and in fundraising letters.  If you bring COVID up in a debate, you leave yourself open to the other side pointing out that it’s Republicans who are the most un-vaccinated segment of the country and most angrily-vociferous against safety protocols which is what’s kept the pandemic active.  Not to mention Trump pushing hydroxychloroquine, bleach and UV rays.  As for inflation, not only do you know the other side will balance the economic problems caused by Republicans, cutting taxes while raising spending, massively increasing both the budget deficit and national debt and letting the supply chain collapse – but there’s the risk that inflation will be under control by 2024.  And even if by some chance not, having only one talking point in your favor over multiple debates and everything else in the world of reality so heavily-weighted against you is no way to head into a series of debates.  Far, far, far better to not debate and have to answer challenges based on facts, the truth and reality – and instead stand on your soap box alone and cry bloody murder as Fox “News,” OANN and Newsmax echo it around the atmosphere.

And this holds true for all debates for all mid-term races and 2024.  Maybe the RNC statement only holds for the presidential debate commission, but the hurdle is the same for almost all debates, whatever the race.  And the RNC has given all Republican candidates to back out of their debates, as well.  Depriving the public of hearing a discussion of the issues between the candidates who will represent them.

So, saying you won’t debate does not come as a shock.  Especially because it’s fits into your Republican Party fascist agenda.  To be clear, everyone who says they won't debate is not doing so for fascist reasons.  There are perfectly good reasons not to debate.  But given the GOP's foundation today, their reason is fascist.  That is not hyperbole or name-calling, but literal, by its book definition.  One of the tenets of fascism, after all, is to undermine the other centers of power and authority.  Undermine facts to the point of confusion where as many people as possible can’t sure what actually is the truth (unless they read and watch actual news, of course).  And finally throw yourself to the populace as the only voice they can trust.  The only voice they should listen to – not the courts, not the police, not the intelligence services, not the press, not the other side, not debates.  You can’t even trust debates, when other people are contradicting us with what they say are facts, when others are telling you something different than what we told you.  You can’t trust them, you can’t trust anyone else.  Just us.  “I alone can fix it.”  So, of course you say your won’t debate.  And if in the end, you do decide to debate, you’ve spent two years undermining their effectiveness, two years complaining about how unfair they are, two year trying to convince the public that debates are meaningless.

And this holds true for all debates for all mid-term races and 2024.  Maybe the RNC statement only holds for the presidential debate commission, but the hurdle is the same for almost all debates, whatever the race.  And the RNC has given all Republican candidates to back out of their debates, as well.  Depriving the public of hearing a discussion of the issues between the candidates who will represent them.

And the thing is, all of this why I think this from the RNC is ridiculous, just a scam.  Trying to game the system, change the rules as much as possible so that if you do have presidential debates, you’ve been able to make them as much in your favor as you can.  Because I suspect there will be debates.

Consider: 

Let’s assume for the moment that Republicans stick to what the RNC insists is their position, that debates are unfair, and they refuse to participate.  But if the Republican presidential candidate is behind late in the race, I think you can be sure that the Republican candidate will belatedly call for debates, after the fact.  And the RNC will be just fine with that, no problem, never mind what we said before about insisting we won’t agree to debates.  And if the Democratic candidate rightly insists it’s too late, their schedule and plans have long been made, Republicans will likely try to make it a last-second issue about the Democrat being the one not willing to debate.

Moreover, regardless of what the RNC says, you know that if the Republican candidate –- whoever it is -- wants to debate…then the RNC will be just fine with that, no problem, never mind what we said before about insisting we won’t agree to debates.

A friend of mine raised the point that if the GOP nominee is Trump, everyone on his team will do everything possible to discourage him from debating.  Which I have no doubt is true.  But what I replied was – “And how has ‘everyone on his team will do everything possible to discourage him from...’ [fill in the blank]" worked out so far?   But again, that's a separate issue from my initial point -- that the RNC Proclamation “We Shall Not Debate!” may indeed hold, but it is completely meaningless right now, just an attempt to get ahead of things and game the rules.

It is also not remotely surprising.

And, given how we’ve seen today’s GOP operate for the past five years, fascist. 

And this holds true for all debates for all mid-term races and 2024.  Maybe the RNC statement only holds for the presidential debate commission, but the hurdle is the same for almost all debates, whatever the race.  And the RNC has given all Republican candidates to back out of their debates, as well.  Depriving the public of hearing a discussion of the issues between the candidates who will represent them.

The downside of the RNC declaiming they will not participate in presidential debates (and  any Republican saying the same for their race) is that it opens the door for the charge of cowardice and what do you have to hide?  And you can be assured Democrats will be pounding at that, relentlessly.  What I would love -- for all debates, but at least for the presidential debate -- is that if the Republican doesn't show up, the commission putting on the debate holds it anyway, just with an empty podium.  If it turns into a challenging Q&A for the one candidate, so be it.  I don't think this will happen (though it just sort of did in a Georgia GOP primary debate for the U.S. Senate, where Herschel Walker didn't show up, but an empty podium amid the other candidates did) -- but I'd love to see it.

Presidential debates have been an accepted part of the campaign process for 60 years. 

A presidential candidate releasing his tax returns has been an accepted part of the campaign process for half a century.

But Republicans, once again, try to game the rules, move the goal post, so that what was once in the center can be decried as radical far-left.  And what was once considered authoritarian fascist can now be called conservative and “patriotic.”  Where a war criminal butcher can be called a “genius.”  Where, once again, the rules don't apply for us.  Liberty for me, but not for thee.

And so this RNC proclamation not to debate, like their last proclaims calling the Insurrection to overthrow the government “legitimate political discourse,” is meaningless, not surprising and fascist.  Because that’s who today’s Republican Party is.