Sep 24, 2022 5 min read

The Observer-Reporter recently reprinted an editorial from the Tribune-Review discussing the need for both candidates running for U.S. Senate, Lt. Gov. John Fetterman and celebrity doctor Mehment Oz, to have a debate. To date, both candidates have agreed to at least one debate to allow the voters to hear firsthand the ideas and stances from the candidates without hiding behind commercials and social media filters.

While the Fetterman-Oz debate is a welcome sign for voters trying to make an informed decision this fall, it seems that one debate is one too many for Republican gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano to have with his opponent, Attorney General Josh Shapiro. Mastriano’s unwillingness to debate is a disservice to all voters in this state, but we really should not be surprised.

Since he won the Republican primary in May, Mastriano has refused media interviews, refused to answer questions from reporters, barred news outlets from his events and turned down numerous debate invitations from civic groups, news organizations and other neutral parties. He first used the excuse that these groups were biased and would not treat him fairly because of their supposed “left-wing” leanings. But what is interesting is that he has also not committed to debate Shapiro in front of conservative groups either, such as the upcoming annual meeting of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry, which is one of the most conservative business groups in the state and which overwhelmingly supports Republican candidates. It is also odd that fellow Republican Mehmet Oz seems to be fine with media questions and debates from the same groups that Mastriano calls unfair and biased.

After these delays did not work with the public, Mastriano then offered to debate Shapiro but only with moderators selected by the candidates, not independent journalists or even a non-partisan organization. Mastriano announced that his moderator would be a conservative political commentator who works for the Conservative Political Action Committee Foundation, worked for Republican presidents, and advised Trump’s 2020 campaign. With all of Mastriano’s talk of fairness as a condition for debates, it appears that he actually does not want a fair debate: He wants a stacked deck.

With all his stunts, delays, and double standards, Mastriano clearly does not want to debate because it will allow the voters to hear his extremist agenda for Pennsylvania. He is afraid that we will learn how he wants to make abortion illegal in Pennsylvania with no exceptions for rape, incest or the life of the mother. He is afraid that we will learn that he intends to appoint a secretary of state who will overturn Pennsylvania election results and deregister millions of Pennsylvania voters. He is afraid we will learn about his plan to defund public education by reducing education spending from $19,000 per student to $9,000 per student, a plan that will devastate the public education system in Pennsylvania, especially in rural communities. He is afraid that we will learn about how he participated in the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and how he defied law enforcement that day by crossing police barricades. He is afraid that we will learn that he is against marriage equality and believes LGBTQ couples should not be allowed to adopt. He is afraid we will learn how he paid to recruit supporters from far-right social media platform Gab, referred to as a haven for white supremacists. He is afraid that we will learn the truth: that Doug Mastriano is a dangerous, radical extremist.

Furthermore, Mastriano is afraid of what we will learn about Shapiro. We might learn how Shapiro has a long record of fighting to protect Pennsylvanians against anyone, no matter how powerful, who breaks the law. Shapiro exposed the Catholic Church’s decades-long cover-up of child sexual abuse; he took on powerful pharmaceutical manufacturers who perpetrated the opioid crisis; he negotiated an agreement between UPMC and Highmark to protect health care access for nearly 2 million people in Western Pennsylvania, and he prosecuted a corporation that stole $20 million from its employees in the largest criminal prevailing wage case in U.S. history.

We might also learn about Shapiro’s plans as governor in debate. We might learn how Shapiro will protect a woman’s right to choose; how he has a plan to create good-paying, union jobs by investing in infrastructure; how he will fully fund education; how he plans to support and invest in small businesses, and how he’ll continue to protect every citizen’s right to vote.

It is clear why Mastriano would not want to debate Shapiro. He is afraid of what we will learn. The differences between the two gubernatorial candidates could not be more stark. The future of Pennsylvanians’ voting rights, reproductive rights, our right to organize and others are all on the ballot this November.

Christina Proctor is chair of the Washington County Democratic Committee.