Earlier this month, Republican Senate candidate Darryl Glenn said he wouldn't participate in the U.S. Senate debate traditionally hosted by the Denver Post.
Now Sen. Michael Bennet, the Democratic incumbent, says he won't participate in a Senate debate that was to be hosted by CBS 4, KOA News Radio and Colorado Public Television.
“Darryl Glenn never engaged with our campaign to have a substantive conversation about debates and has instead blacklisted Colorado news reporters and become the first Senate candidate this millennium to refuse to do the traditional Denver Post debate," Bennet spokesman Andrew Zucker said in an email.
"At this point we are moving forward with our campaign schedule and look forward to the remaining televised debate and joint appearances that have already been scheduled."
The Denver Post debate would have been co-hosted with ABC 7.
Those remaining joint appearances are an Oct. 11 debate co-hosted by 9 News and the Denver Business Journal and an Oct. 17 forum hosted by the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce. The latter event is not a debate.
Bennet and Glenn debated at Club 20 in Grand Junction, but that event was not broadcasted.
Glenn is not talking to the Denver Post because he doesn't like how the newspaper reported on an arrest that occurred when he was 18 and that he initially claimed did not happen. That boycott extends to participating in any debate hosted by the Denver Post.
Both parties agree that the other party's candidate is depriving the people of Colorado of an opportunity to make an informed decision.
Here's the Colorado Democratic Party statement on Glenn's refusal to participate in the Post debate: "Perhaps Darryl Glenn is finally realizing that his extreme policies won't resonate with Colorado voters, but by refusing to attend the Denver Post/Denver7 debate, he is depriving Coloradans an important opportunity to hear from the two candidates."
And here's the Colorado Republican Party on Bennet declining the CBS 4 debate: "After Bennet's lackluster defense of his extremely partisan record in Grand Junction, his campaign has clearly calculated they need to limit Bennet's exposure before Coloradans. It's a shame Michael Bennet has robbed the people of Colorado of what should be a fair opportunity to hear from both candidates at a critical juncture in the Senate race."
What a beautiful display of bipartisanship.
