I have to give credit to Philadelphia’s favorite only broadsheet, the Philadelphia Inquirer, for calling in a Tuesday editorial for Democratic mayoral candidate Cherelle Parker to debate Republican David Oh.
David Oh will get to debate Cherelle Parker. (Photo: Billy Penn)
Within hours, Parker, who had been dodging demands requests for debates, agreed to one hosted by KYW NewsRadio at 8 a.m. on Thursday Oct. 26.
8 a.m. is an unusual time for a debate, but morning drive does have the most ears listening to radio.
I suspect Parker would not have agreed to the debate without the shove from the Inquirer’s editorial board.
Four years ago, shiftless and cowardly incumbent Jim Kenney refused to debate Republican Billy Ciancaglini on some trumped-up story that he was associated with the Proud Boys. His “proof”? Someone had a photograph of a street demonstration with Ciancaglini and a couple of the white supremacist morons in the same frame.
That’s proof of shared beliefs? I have pictures of me and that Woke knucklehead Kenney together.
In case you missed it, we are not together. I have been his only most consistent press critic for more than a decade.
He became the first and only mayoral candidate in memory to refuse to debate his opponent in a general election.
Other incumbent mayors — and other politicians — have declined to debate in primary elections.
Joe Biden won’t debate whatever dregs are challenging him in the primary, and Donald J. Trump won’t appear on the same stage as the collection of dwarfs running against him.
In the last mayoral cycle, Kenney’s smear was deliberate, and it was BS. The Democrat-complacent Philadelphia media let him skate, rather than campaigning to shame him into a debate. The vaunted Inquirer did print an op-ed (from a conservative journalist ) criticizing Kenney, but took no editorial position that I could find.
This time it found its voice, saying, “Before casting their ballots in November, Philadelphians deserve to hear from the woman who will likely run City Hall for the next four years. To see her ideas tested and challenged, and to hear how she plans to move a deeply challenged city forward.”
Absolutely correct.
Now, in terms of realpolitik, candidates with a big lead usually don’t want to debate, figuring they can win without debating and something bad might happen during the debate.
That is exactly Trump’s thinking, as was Kenney’s.
But just think of how gutless Kenney, with a 7-1 registration edge, was to not face Ciancaglini. Kenney could have taken the opportunity to verbally thrash the alleged Proud Boy wannabe.
Chicken Cherelle wanted to use the same recipe, but the Inquirer forced her hand.
Before leaving this subject, the Inquirer graciously offered its services as host, saying each candidate could “choose a moderator of their choice from among our diverse team of columnists, editors, and editorial writers?” Diverse team? 😃
Sorry, I didn’t mean to laugh.
I still give Inky credit for getting the ball rolling
Now they ought to push for two more debates.
The whole debate thing has become weird. Debates used to be an essential way for us to understand what a candidate was about and/or what they have done in the past to deserve our votes. But nowadays, they have become simply an opportunity for candidates to make accusations and shout each other down. Maybe it’s a sign of the times, but if so, you can keep the times. There needs to be more decorum in these things, and every candidate should have the opportunity to have their say without a lot of childish behavior. Of course, that becomes virtually impossible when you let a child like Trump on the stage. And therein lays the real problem: stop nominating assholes and children to public office. That would solve a LOT of problems. Good for the Inky for pushing this debate. I hope it is done amicably, and that the people of Philly can learn something from it.
I hope so, too. Neither Oh nor Parker are childish.
I feel Parker has too much negative baggage. As of right now my vote goes to David Oh. I will be paying attention to the debate but based on what I know about Parker my vote will remain with Oh.
Part of fhe reason parker was able to beat gym was because of the neighborhood debate forums like the one in Kensington. Without them i tnink gym would have won as black and minority voters had no idea how ridiculous her progressive policy proposals were .
In the Kensington mayoral debate/ forum gym came up with her ” city jobs for drug dealers proposal ” and parker sencing an opportunity slamed her fist on the table and yelled ” you cant hug the dealers out of this nightmare helen ” and every black and hispanic person in the room cheered ( now the small no of white progressives from w Kensington all were silent ) . Once blacks and hispanics saw gym for what she trully is ie a menace to Philadelphia, she was finished, getting only 10 % of rhe black vote but witb no debates black and hispanic voters may never have found out who gym really was and enough black voters may have voted for gym for her to win.
Since she benefited from debating she really should debate oh
The Stinquirer doesn’t haven’t enough guts to ask you to moderate the debate.
Well, I am no longer an employee. But if they asked nice, I would do it for no money.
Just an apology for defaming me. I won’t hold my breath.