Published by Political Pundit “Omar Dyer”
The key question going into the election cycle in the year 2020, is can Kentucky return to the glory days of being a democratic state, and can Amy McGrath beat incumbent Senator Mitch McConnell? The answer to that question is “Yes”. Anyone with a good amount of resources, campaign money and a solid agenda can beat an incumbent. Amy McGrath will be taking on Senator Mitch McConnell in a classic showdown debate.
On October 12, 2020 at 7pm hosted by Gray Television Network which is Channel 27 “WKYT” will be a political debate between incumbent senator of Kentucky Mitch McConnell taking on the democratic challenger in Amy McGrath. The debate will air on WKYT Channel 27’s airwaves and it will take place under the direction of the Student Government of the University of Kentucky.
Keys to a Great Debate Performance for Amy McGrath
For Amy McGrath to win this debate in her must win showcase and first impression on the grand stage, is to do the complete opposite of what she did in her performance in the congressional race.
Rule 1: Stay away from making this about gender
Amy McGrath must not get into a male versus female debate with Mitch McConnell, since Amy McGrath will not be the first female he has debated. And with my help hopefully, she will be the last. But making this about women, will tip the debate in Mitch’s favor — since he is a master debater. And to beat a master debater you have to place them on the defense, and a gender debate doesn’t place Mitch McConnell on the defense because that’s what he wants. Avoid making it battle of the sexes, avoid making it about her inexperience in the senate. Answer the question briefly and use a one liner to pivot the conversation back to McConnell, with a detailed political statement. She must target Mitch McConnell on his electioneering of Kentucky’s problems during election years.
Mitch McConnell has problems with Election Security, and as the current leader of the Senate, she must place Mitch McConnell on the defense with hard facts about the Fair and Clean Elections Amendment. She must also speak directly to the voters in Kentucky on how she will help keep American elections safe. Then she must throw a charge that’s on record, of Mitch McConnell not taking action on national elections, and why the Speaker of the Senate must pass those measures.
On questions of abortion, Amy McGrath should take the lead by not saying she is for or against, and stay away from her personal health issues. Instead, she should direct those concerns to her constituents, example: “As senator of Kentucky, on this issue, I will follow in the direction of the entire state when it comes to abortion, but I can’t deny a woman their basic rights for healthcare and pre-existing conditions.” Doing that will keep her from being labeled a socialist by her peers. Then she should use a one liner, and pivot the conversation to Covid-19, and how the republican party has failed to protect Americans from this pandemic. And use Mitch McConnell’s own words against him.
Rule 2: Don’t allow Mitch McConnell to control the debate
Amy McGrath cannot and I repeat cannot allow Mitch McConnell to control the debate. She has to get him out of his confront zone with placement interruptions and objections. She has to thread the needle on how to interrupt Mitch, but do it will enough that he loses his point of view. And she must force him to make it about his lack of a record as Speaker of the Senate. Key points: no major legislation from congress since 2011. Most end of sessions in Senate history under his tenure, and most importantly congress has an approval rating of 30% which is the lowest in Modern American History.
If Amy McGrath can keep Mitch McConnell on the defense about his record as Speaker of the Senate, and show the voters of Kentucky that she will have their best interest. And if she can show and prove that Mitch McConnell is a master at electioneering, with hard core facts, that can keep Mitch McConnell on his toes. She has a great chance of shocking people in this debate. She must not make it personal because the state of Kentucky outside of her congressional district doesn’t know who she is, and she should avoid making political statements about issues that are deeply divided in her community.
Finally, she has to find a way to soak up the most time in the debate, win the one liners. And how she does that is a skill of mastering a debate; where she can simply interrupt her challenger’s point of view; or throw a charge that is factual at Mitch McConnell to a point where he has to respond. And while he is responding to her claim, direct him off his points by making it about him and his lack of leadership in the senate. And she must know Mitch McConnell is going to do three things, soak up time, attack her gender, and roll out her experience in the senate. Her best move is to get the target off her, and place it directly on Mitch McConnell since he is the incumbent.
Omar Dyer was a political candidate in 2010, and has been a political pundit and debate expert for congressional candidates and some senatorial candidates. Omar Dyer as a member of Organizing For America’s Grassroot Campaign Committee has worked and campaigned in state of Indiana for Senator Barack Obama in 2009, help turning that state purple. He writes this political view for his efforts and pledge to Keep American Elections Safe. Omar Dyer is also the co-founder of this blog, and is a member of the National Black Journalist Association; he is also a former beat writer for News Corp and Time Warner. This blog stands by the political and professional views of Omar Dyer, who has written 4 political books.
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