Thank God for Alabama.
If there’s one thing that the 2018 governor’s race to our state to the east can teach us, it’s that debates are necessary when you are selecting your state’s top leader.
Incumbent governor Kay Ivey declined debate after debate. She didn’t talk with the media time after time. She was tightlipped about her campaign. And there’s a reason for that.
During our neighbor’s legislative session this year, the state passed a huge gas tax hike that took voters by surprise.
Ivey was smart. She realized that she didn’t have to debate the issues. She was a shoe-in to be the governor over the competition she faced. She had no serious contender, and because of that, she realized that she could keep her mouth shut and everyone would vote for her again.
During last year’s election cycle, Ivey took that mandate. She and her Republican leaders vetted the state representatives and senators to make sure they would pass the gas tax hike. If they did, they’d get support. If not, they wouldn’t and would likely lose the election.
So in the first few days of the session, a new gas tax was passed with little discussion. Before the opposition could get their act together, it was too late. The tax was in the books, and voters were left holding the bill.
This year, we have an election cycle for governor, and frontrunner Tate Reeves is starting to use the same philosophy as Ivey in his election campaign. The first opportunity to debate is April 2, and he has already turned down the chance to debate his Republican challengers.
From a political standpoint, he doesn’t have anything to gain from debating, but the voters have everything to lose.
We need Reeves to debate because the people need to know who they are voting for before the election. Let’s make sure Reeves knows that he needs to show up for the debate so we know where he stands on the issues.
