Jan Brewer, Arizona's Republican governor, announced on Thursday that she will not participate in any future debates with her Democratic rival, Terry Goddard, following what many consider an overwhelmingly embarrassing performance at a debate on Wednesday night.
"I don't believe that things come out in proper context in an adversarial atmosphere," Brewer told the Arizona Daily Star, adding that the only reason she agreed to the first debate was in order to qualify for $1.7 million in public funds for her campaign.
Now that that hurdle has been cleared, however awkwardly, Brewer, who is heavily favored to win the governor's race (thanks in no small part to her tough stance on illegal immigrants) says she will not allow Goddard to get any further traction in the race.
"Why would I want to give Terry a chance to redefine himself?" Brewer asked.
But Goddard's gains as a result of the first debate came in no small part due to Brewer rhetorically shooting herself in the foot, gaffing hard and giving evasive answers to reporters afterward. Specifically, when pressed on her claims that Arizona police had found headless victims of Mexican drug violence in the dessert, Brewer stonewalled.
On Thursday, she offered the following explanation.
"All you guys were doing and talking were beheadings, beheadings, beheadings," Brewer said. "That is something that has stuck with you all for so long, and I just felt we needed to move on."
In addition, Brewer said that she had never specifically claimed that police had found beheaded bodies in the Arizona desert. But July interviews clearly showed that while Brewer never actually said the word "Arizona" herself, her assertion was that the bodies had indeed been found there:
In a statement, Terry Goddard blasted the governor for her decision to bypass future debates.
"It is our responsibility to give Arizonans clear information that will allow them to exercise their fundamental right to make an informed decision about who should lead our state into the future. Arizonans deserve more than a single discussion of the issues we face."
Either way -- debate or no debate -- Arizonans will be deciding for themselves just who, and what, they deserve come November.
Read more at the Arizona Daily Star.