FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 5, 2024
CONTACT:
Coby Eiss
[email protected]
WILL ROLLINS CHALLENGES KEN CALVERT TO THREE GENERAL ELECTION DEBATES
Calvert was too scared to debate Rollins even once during the 2022 midterms
CORONA, C.A. — Today, Will Rollins, the Democratic nominee in California’s 41st District, is challenging GOP incumbent Ken Calvert to three general election debates. Rollins believes that voters deserve to hear directly from the candidates on the driving issues of the day in Riverside County, including cost of living, crime and law enforcement, and immigration. Rollins has already accepted a televised debate with KTLA – no matter if Calvert agrees to face Will and the voters – and looks forward to accepting two more.
“How many small business owners would rehire employees who refused to show up for job performance reviews? Zero,” said Rollins. “That’s what a debate is. No matter what party you belong to, voters shouldn’t rehire a congressman who refuses to show up for a debate.
“In the midterms, Calvert ran on crime and inflation, and when he went back to Washington — what did he do? Calvert voted to defund local law enforcement and border security, voted to cut green energy jobs, and voted to cut critical child care and food assistance programs that would have raised costs on working families. Calvert can’t run from the voters this election, and that’s why I’m calling for three debates – so both of us can speak directly to Riverside County voters this fall and speak to their needs. That’s what public service – not self-service – is all about.”
In the 2022 midterms, Ken Calvert refused to participate in any debate with Will Rollins. As for 2024, first, when asked by KESQ in November 2023 about debating during this election, Calvert said, “we’ll make that decision as we get closer to that date.” Then, in a more recent interview with KESQ in July, Calvert said, “maybe, I mean, we’ll see how he handles himself,” dodging the question.
The Rollins campaign is eager to receive debate invitations from any of the following print, radio, and broadcast media outlets, and will consider others upon request. The campaign is also open to collaborative debate formats between TV, print, and radio outlets.
- Los Angeles TV outlets:
- KTTV
- KCAL-TV
- KABC
- KNBC
- KTLA
- Palm Springs TV outlets:
- KESQ
- KMIR
- Radio outlets:
- KVCR
- Print outlets:
- LA Times
- Politico
- Press-Enterprise
- Desert Sun
- Coachella Valley Independent
To ensure a fair exchange of ideas, the Rollins campaign asks that all outlets proposing debates make it explicitly clear to all parties the parameters of the debate, including question format, audience presence, live filming vs pre-taping, and plans for distribution.
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Will Rollins is a Palm Springs resident and Southern California native. A former federal prosecutor and counterterrorism law attorney, he is now the Democratic nominee for Congress in California’s 41st Congressional District. California’s 41st District is shaping up to be a key 2024 matchup that will help decide the House majority. Punchbowl News called it the #2 most critical race in the battle for control of the House, and the National Journal ranked it as one of its 15 seats most likely to flip this November.
