Republican U.S. Rep. Bill Cassidy is skipping the latest TV debate in Louisiana’s U.S. Senate race. As The Associated Press reports, Cassidy’s absence tonight gives Democratic incumbent Mary Landrieu and Republican tea party favorite Rob Maness the opportunity to criticize him to a statewide television audience without him on stage to defend himself.
The debate will be held in New Orleans and aired in most media markets around Louisiana, with a week remaining before the Nov. 4 election.
Before early voting Monday in Baton Rouge, Cassidy says preparing for today’s debate would have kept him from his efforts to meet as many voters as possible. He notes he’ll be participating Wednesday in a debate against Landrieu and Maness. That debate will take place at the LSU Manship School of Mass Communication and it will be the final televised debate before the election. The debate will take place in the Holliday Forum of the Journalism Building from 7 to 8 p.m. Tonight’s debate will be broadcast on WBTR, cable channel 19, from 7 to 8 p.m.
