AG Schmitt a no-show at Missouri U.S. Senate forum | Elections

LAKE OZARK – Candidates for the U.S. Senate race in Missouri were at the Lake of the Ozarks Friday for a forum, but one of the candidates was visibly missing. 

The Missouri Press Association (MPA) hosted the untelevised candidate forum at its annual convention.

Only three of the four U.S. Senate candidates appeared: Democrat Trudy Busch Valentine, Libertarian Jonathan Dine, and Constitution Party Paul Venable. The Republican frontrunner and Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt left his podium empty and declined the invitation to the forum.

His campaign team told KOMU 8 that Missourians “deserve a primetime debate with the two major candidates on the same stage.” His team says Busch Valentine has not agreed to that. 

In a campaign email, Schmitt said he accepted Nexstar’s primetime debate on Sept. 6, but that Busch Valentine has “refused” to accept the debate.

Statement on Trudy Busch Valentine’s Refusal to Debate in Prime-time: pic.twitter.com/BjIFK8VW7z

— Team Schmitt for US Senate (@Schmitt4Senate) September 16, 2022

One organizer of the forum said this is the first time a candidate has been a no show at a forum in 20 years.

“I responded or sent emails to them and made phone calls and no one ever responded to me,” Mark Maassen, MPA executive director said. “We heard a member of our team here, the moderator David Lieb, did get a text from someone in his staff, but I tried to contact the Schmitt campaign several times over the past several months and have received no reply whatsoever.”

Busch Valentine’s campaign team sent out an email after the forum, saying Schmitt “couldn’t be bothered to attend the forum.”

“Career politician Eric Schmitt only seems to want to communicate through frivolous lawsuits and behind podiums in safe spaces like FOX,” Jacob Long, communications director for Busch Valentine’s campaign, said in part.

Lieb served as moderator, while three press members asked the attending candidates for their thoughts on state issues, but also federal ones, like the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

“I believe that women deserve and need the healthcare they need and that should only, that choice should be between a woman and her doctor. And nobody else, not a mandate by the government, not by any politician,” Busch Valentine said.

“So the same thing with, I don’t want states to be able to criminalize pregnancy, I don’t want states to criminalize reproductive rights. I think that you should be able to make those choices with your own conscience with your doctor. Without fear of reprisal from the government,” Dine said.

“So the same thing with, I don’t want states to be able to criminalize pregnancy. I don’t want states to criminalize reproductive rights. I think that you should be able to make those choices with your own conscience with your doctor, without fear of reprisal from the government,” Venable said.

Schmitt received the Republican nomination after beating out former governor Eric Greitens and U.S. Rep. for Missouri Vicky Hartzler in Missouri’s primary election in August. Busch Valentine beat out former Marine Lucas Kunce and nine other Democratic candidates.

The three Missouri state auditor candidates: Republican State Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick, Democrat Alan Green, and Libertarian John Hartwig also answered questions after the Senate forum.