No debate about it: Attorney General Tish James shouldn’t have ducked debating her opponent
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State Attorney General Tish James, running for her second term, will not be debating her Republican challenger Michael Henry tonight on NY1, having refused the cable channel’s invitation. She is wrong to duck what would have been the only face-off of this campaign. The voters of New York deserve much better.
James’ ticket mates — Gov. Hochul, Comptroller Tom DiNapoli and Sen. Chuck Schumer — have all met their GOP rivals on TV for an hour, making the AG the only fraidy cat in the bunch.
Her campaign says that Henry lies when he calls her responsible for the increase in violent crime on our streets, a falsehood they don’t want to let him broadcast. The excuse doesn’t fly. If he’s being dishonest, Ms. Attorney General, go on the tube and set the record straight — just as Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden did when facing the falsehood-spewing volcano named Donald Trump.
It’s true that James is the chief legal officer of New York State, not a prosecutor, so she only bears a tenuous relationship to crime trends. What Henry is probably talking about are the changes in the state’s bail laws enacted by the governor and Legislature. James didn’t have much to do with those reforms, but she has supported them, at least until recently, when she suggested she might not entirely.
In any event, she should engage — and let voters hear her position clearly.
We know that James, who is ahead in polls and in money raised, thinks she has nothing to gain and lots to lose. But answering questions from moderators and rebutting her opponent is part of the process in a healthy democracy. Even heavily favored Schumer and DiNapoli understood by receiving slings and arrows from their longshot rivals, it shows a modicum of respect for voters.
There’s still time for a debate before next Tuesday. James should take it. She’s not elevating her rival. She’s giving the voters a once-every-four-years chance to see her in an unscripted setting against a political rival.
