Eric Schmitt's criticism of Trudy Busch Valentine over U.S. Senate debate called 'nonsense'

An accusation by Eric Schmitt's U.S. Senate campaign of his opponent refusing to participate in a televised debate was refuted by Trudy Busch Valentine's campaign Tuesday evening.

The attorney general's campaign claimed on social media Tuesday afternoon that his Democratic opponent was "refusing to debate" in a televised forum hosted by Nexstar Media Group ahead of the November general election. But in a statement released shortly after, a staffer for Busch Valentine said she had not rejected any offers to debate.

"Missourians will not be surprised that The Heiress Valentine is refusing to debate because they know her extreme positions only connect with a small inner circle of liberal elites, and not Missouri families statewide who are struggling under the disastrous Biden-Schumer economic policies she supports," Schmitt said.

In response, Busch Valentine's campaign spokesperson Jacob Long said "as usual, what Eric Schmitt is saying is nonsense."

“We fully expect and look forward to an opportunity to debate Eric Schmitt on the issues that matter most to Missourians," Long said in a statement. "We've received a number of debate invitations and are actively reviewing all of them. That includes ongoing discussions with other potential debate hosts which Schmitt has not yet accepted. We have rejected no debate invitations."

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FOX 4 in Kansas City, which is one of several Nexstar-operated stations in Missouri, said Tuesday that Schmitt had accepted their invitation to debate and they were still awaiting a definite answer from Busch Valentine. The hourlong televised debate is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Oct. 4, moderated by FOX4's John Holt and KTVI's Jasmine Huda from St. Louis. The station urged viewers to submit questions for the debate.

Other Nexstar stations in Missouri on which the debate will air include KOLR 10 in Springfield, KSNF in Joplin, KPLR in St. Louis and WDAF in Kansas City.

Press association forum set for next weekend

Only one of the two major candidates' campaigns has formally accepted an invitation to a separate candidate forum scheduled for next weekend as part of the Missouri Press Association's annual convention in Lake Ozark.

Long said Wednesday that Busch Valentine plans to attend the forum.

"We plan to participate in the MPA debate and have every reason to expect Eric Schmitt to join us in this traditional Senate debate," Long said.

Mark Maassen, executive director of the press association, confirmed her attendance and said the campaign had earlier said she was "inclined to participate" but had not formally accepted. He said he has not yet spoken to the spokesperson for Schmitt's campaign, but that other representatives of the association had communicated with the attorney general's campaign and confirmed they had received details about the event.

Schmitt's campaign did not respond to a request for comment on the forum. On Wednesday morning, it doubled down on its earlier claim about the Nexstar debate, sending a 20-second video to media of Busch Valentine in a July interview committing to a debate.

"We've been doing these forums every two years since 1988, and I can't remember if we've ever not had a candidate participate," Maassen said.

The press association's weekend-long convention and trade show brings together approximately 350 newspaper and media services members from across the state.

Third-party candidates Paul Venable, the Libertarian Party nominee, and Jonathan Dine, the Constitution Party nominee, will be at the forum. State auditor candidates Scott Fitzpatrick and Alan Green have also confirmed their attendance.

Debate drama continues from primaries

The back-and-forth between Schmitt and Busch Valentine marks the latest installment of politicking and criticism around debates in the U.S. Senate race. On both sides of the aisle prior to primary elections, candidates criticized their opponents for not agreeing to appear at certain debates.

In the Democratic primary, Busch Valentine's campaign did not respond to multiple requests to participate in a debate with her opponent Lucas Kunce, the news director for St. Louis station KMOV-TV said in a statement in July.

On the Republican side, U.S. Rep. Vicky Hartzler's campaign criticized Schmitt and former Gov. Eric Greitens for not committing to a GOP debate from Gray Television in Springfield. Schmitt's campaign took aim at Greitens, calling on him to debate the AG. By the time the primary ended, all of the most prominent candidates had not appeared on stage together. U.S. Rep. Billy Long, Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz and attorney Mark McCloskey appeared at a forum in Springfield in June.

Galen Bacharier covers Missouri politics & government for the News-Leader. Contact him at gbacharier@news-leader.com, (573) 219-7440 or on Twitter @galenbacharier.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Schmitt's debate criticism of Busch Valentine called 'nonsense'