Have we seen the last Bachmann-Wetterling debate? If we have, what would Patty Wetterling’s reluctance to debate Sen. Bachmann tell us about her command of the issues and the appeal of her policies? We wouldn’t be asking these questions if Patty Wetterling hadn’t broken her commitment to Tuesday’s debate at the St. Cloud Chamber of Commerce. As Larry Schumacher points out, this isn’t the first time she’s skipped a Chamber of Commerce-sponsored debate:

Bachmann mentioned Wetterling’s absence from several debates this campaign, most of which have been sponsored by chamber of commerce organizations. She appears to be conceding this territory in the campaign.

The easiest answer to why she’s skipping Chamber of Commerce debates is because her ‘tax the rich’ policies don’t play well with small business owners. Her tax increases would hurt the job creation engines of America that the Chambers of Commerce represent. I’d further predict that we’ve seen the last Bachmann-Wetterling debate if the rest are Chamber-sponsored events.

Binkowski mentioned that he and Bachmann were the only two at another chamber-sponsored debate in Elk River this morning as well. The reason given for her absence was that she was campaigning on the other side of the district and could not make it back in time.

Observers of the 2004 campaign will recall that she didn’t attend the St. Cloud Area Chamber’s debate then, either. That time, she said it was because her daughter was getting married and she was helping with the preparations.

As Larry observes, Ms. Wetterling seems to be ceding that section of the vote, meaning that she can’t win. Central Minnesota’s Republicans still need to work hard to maximize the vote in the district but Wetterling’s ceding of this crucial vote is the equivalent of her throwing in the towel on this race.

Ms. Wetterling doesn’t stand a chance of attracting significant support from the sizeable pro life constituency in this district. Now she’s essentially saying that she’s written off the ’small business’ vote.

Technorati Tags: Election 2006, Patty Wetterling, Small Business, Chamber of Commerce

Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog

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