Connelly: Will Sen. Maria Cantwell debate underdog foe, and when?

Senator Maria Cantwell speaks to crowds during the "March for Our Lives" demonstration at Cal Anderson Park, Saturday, March 24, 2018, one of surprisingly few public appearances in her super-low key reelection campaign. less Senator Maria Cantwell speaks to crowds during the "March for Our Lives" demonstration at Cal Anderson Park, Saturday, March 24, 2018, one of surprisingly few public appearances in her super-low key reelection ... more Photo: GENNA MARTIN, SEATTLEPI.COM Photo: GENNA MARTIN, SEATTLEPI.COM Image 1 of / 9 Caption Close Connelly: Will Sen. Maria Cantwell debate underdog foe, and when? 1 / 9 Back to Gallery

The Washington State Debate Coalition began negotiating possible fall debate dates with the office of Sen. Maria Cantwell back in June, but three months later has found itself unable to pin down the Senator as the date for mailing ballots grows ever closer.

The coalition vented its frustration with a letter on Tuesday.

"You are the first and only candidate to decline participation in the Coalition's debates," wrote the group, which includes 80 media partners and 40 colleges, school districts and chambers of commerce.

A campaign spokesman responded Tuesday afternoon: "Sen. Cantwell wants to debate. She will debate." But he could not give details of when.

Cantwell has run a highly unusual, minimum-contact campaign for a senator seeking her fourth term. She held no reelection announcement or tour. She publishes no schedules. She holds few media events.

Instead, while she had $5.2 million in the bank at the last Federal Reelection Commission reporting deadline, she continues relentlessly to raise money, at locations ranging from Mazama in Okanogan County to the Tacoma Convention Center. The senator's Women of Valor fundraising luncheon is on Friday.

She debated her 2012 Republican challenger, State Sen. Michael Baumgartner, just once in a TV studio. Cantwell is heavily favored to defeat ex-Washington State Republican Chairman Susan Hutchison in this year's race.

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The debate commission gave an account, beginning with a June 21 meeting, of proposing an October 6 debate at Pacific Lutheran University, followed by two proposed dates for a Spokane debate in late October.

Cantwell asked for a delay until after the August primary. Followed by silence. "Your campaign then wavered on your commitment to participate and provided no reply to the Coalition's repeated requests for confirmation of participation and proposed dates over the next several weeks," it wrote.

Being fair to Cantwell, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell nixed part of the Senate's summer recess and has slated an October session. The reason: He wants to put Democratic senators in tough reelection races at a disadvantage.

"We are sort of at the whim of Mitch McConnell as he plays games with the Senate schedule," a Cantwell aide said.

The Cantwell campaign did propose changing the Oct. 6 PLU debate to Oct. 8th, a Monday. The Coalition, charged with making arrangements, agreed to the date.

"We completely appreciate and respect that confirmation of debate dates is difficult because you don't dictate the Senate schedule and may be needed for votes," the Coalition wrote.

"However, we initially chose these debate dates and offered alternatives -- including the one you requested -- to accommodate the Senate schedule. We chose October 30 for the Spokane debate because it follows the conclusion of the Senate session."

But the Cantwell campaign discovered a new wrinkle.

"Until last week, your campaign never advised that you would not do a debate after ballots were mailed. It is important to note that U.S. Senate incumbents in five other states are moving forward with scheduled debates including some on the same dates we've already scheduled."

The Associated Students of Pacific Lutheran have "strongly" urged Cantwell to do the debate. saying: "Pierce County has traditionally had a very low voter turnout and this event can stimulate interest in politics and elections beyond the PLU campus."

Cantwell has begun to use her big war chest, airing a 30-second health care TV spot in an ad campaign that begins today.

She is out of step with how Senate predecessors treated campaign season.

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The late Sen. Henry Jackson traveled with reporters, memorably lecturing a journalist on the dangers of marijuana all the way from Bellingham to Everett. Scoop had been heckled at Western Washington University.

Sen. Warren Magnuson had scribes along in his 1974 and 1980 campaigns, even though Maggie's vodka consumption was up there. (The staff arranged for Magnuson to be served vodka in a water glass at lunch in Moses Lake. The ruse broke down when Maggie asked the traveling reporter to go to the bar and get him another.)

Even GOP Sen. Slade Gorton allowed along not one, but two Seattle Post-Intelligencer correspondents, at a time when he was feuding with the newspaper.

The voters of Washington are likely to reelect Cantwell, and may well applaud her defense of health coverage for those with pre-existing conditions, and fierce resistance to the anti-environmental extremism of the Trump administration.

But don't voters deserve a little more contact than 30-second TV commercials, events where you don't have to pay to get in, and more than one face off between foes?.

After all, Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas established the tradition 160 years ago.