Republican Rep. Mike Rogers stated he did not consent to Tuesday’s televised debate against his Michigan Senate rival, Democrat Abdul El-Sayed, characterizing the potential format as an unfair two-on-one arrangement.
El-Sayed proceeded to speak for approximately an hour next to an empty podium on Fox 2 Detroit, shortly after Rogers announced he would not attend the event.
In an interview with CBS News Detroit reporter Heath Kalb, Rogers reiterated his position that the debate structure was problematic, emphasizing that he had never agreed to participate under the proposed conditions.
I’d pay money to see Rogers’ face when he hears his own justification for skipping. ‘2-on-1’ is a stretch when one seat is empty.
Rogers is right about consent, but skipping entirely looks cowardly. You can’t just ignore the race and expect to win it.
Was this actually organized by the networks or just El-Sayed showing up unannounced? Feels like a publicity stunt to me.
An empty podium and an hour of speech? That’s not a debate, that’s performance art. Wild tactic by El-Sayed.