Candidates set to face the music during debate
|
The candidate forum, to be held at 5 p.m. Monday at the Warren County Administrative Offices on Locust Street, will be simulcast live by WAKI 1230 AM and WCPI 91.3 FM, with follow-up coverage in the Wednesday edition of the Southern Standard.
Along with the issues at hand, much of the attention regarding the upcoming debate has focused on who will not be there. Democratic nominee Kenneth Rogers has declined an invitation to appear alongside his two opponents. Rogers lost to Hamblen four years ago by a mere 20 votes.
Rogers, who organizers say is still welcome to participate should he appear Monday, has come under fire for his refusal to take part in the highly covered event.
“You’ve got to be able to answer questions on the spur of the moment,” Hamblen said regarding Rogers’ declining of the debate invitation. “It’s part of the job. Over the past four years, I’ve had to answer questions and speak on numerous occasions without warning. You have to be able to think on your feet.”
Warren was also somewhat surprised by Rogers’ planned no-show.
“I guess one of the biggest boosts my campaign has had thus far is his (Rogers) turning down the invitation to appear,” Warren said, noting he does not wish to talk negatively of Rogers. “We need to be able to talk about what we’re going to do, not about other people or what other people have done.”
Warren said he intends to discuss job issues in Warren County.
“Over the last four years, Warren County has taken one of the worst licks since the depression,” he said. “We’ve lost businesses and there’s nothing coming back as far as I know to replace the ones that have left.”
Hamblen said she welcomes questions about her four years in office. Hamblen said she will also be interested to hear how her opponent, or opponents should Rogers show up, plan to fix the job situation.
“It’s easy to say they are going to bring more jobs, but I’ll be interested to hear how they plan to do this,” Hamblen said.