Collegiate Times

The Virginia state Senate debate between Dave Nutter and John Edwards that was slated for Nov. 2 has devolved into a question and answer session with Senator Edwards. Nutter, his opponent, has chosen to not accept the invitation. A week from the election, this is an unfortunate outcome for the 21st District, but the blame is difficult to pinpoint.

The obvious choice would seem to be Nutter, who actually chose not to participate. Makes sense — at least at first. But many have argued the debate was sponsored mostly by organizations that are politically aligned with Edwards, implicitly or explicitly.

While the Libertarian Club, which is often linked with the Republican Party, is a listed sponsor of the debate, so are the LGBTA and Beyond Coal. Both organizations explicitly lean to the left of the political spectrum. Likewise, Virginia21, though non-partisan, lobbies for higher education benefits and therefore may be more aligned with Edwards than Nutter.

To Nutter’s campaign manager, this all sets a dangerous stage for the Republican. He may not be able to prove any intended malice, but a week before the election, he is not going to risk letting his candidate get caught off guard by a question.

More importantly, Nutter would be taking a risk by taking questions from groups he does not claim to support. As he desperately tries to defend his position on an issue, he will have to be compared to his opponent, who merely has to agree and vow to use the office to support the cause.

Of course, none of this should be construed as imputing excessive partisanship or bias upon any of the sponsoring organizations, at least beyond the extent to which they accept such charges. But even if Beyond Coal and the LGBTA sincerely desired a fair debate, Nutter would still be foolish to participate. Unless these organizations forego the questions that are of central importance to their members and mission statements, Nutter will always be on the defensive. Furthermore, if the organizations did forego such questions, they would be doing a disservice to their own members.

Lastly, consider the one organization whose politics are definitively aligned with Nutter — the Libertarian Club. This is something of an oddball, since the club’s views do not fit nicely within Nutter’s Republican Party allegiance. Even here, Nutter would have to expect some ideological and policy pushback if he were to participate.

In hindsight, the groups that organized the debate should have done a better job ensuring a better balance of sponsoring organizations. Because they did not, Virginia Tech misses out on hosting an important debate in the run-up to the election. However, hopefully voters on both sides of the aisle will be in attendance to talk with Edwards. This organizing mishap should not deter Tech students from using this as an opportunity to involve themselves in civil discourse and local politics.

- the editorial board consists of sean simons and scott masselli 

A version of this article appeared in the Nov 3 issue of the Collegiate Times.