RENO, Nev. — Seven Republicans vying for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate in Nevada circled the familiar talking points of Republican politics during a debate Thursday, while also taking shots at the frontrunner for making an apparently strategic decision not to attend.
The debate in a Reno casino ballroom focused on increased border security, anti-abortion positions and cuts in government spending and size, but the candidates also criticized retired Army Captain Sam Brown, whose support in Washington DC and formidable 2022 campaign made him a made a great leader. fundraising juggernaut above the crowded primary field.
Nearly every candidate called out Brown for his absence, describing him as an establishment candidate unwilling to face voters, a belligerent signal from a group of lesser-known Republicans trying to gain ground in an otherwise cordial debate.
‘Don’t vote for Sam Brown. Look at any of these candidates here,” said Bill Conrad, a retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel and former deputy mayor of Modesto, California, who co-founded Redmove, the conservative group that hosted the debate.
Brown’s campaign said the decision to skip the debate reflected his comfortable lead in resources and grassroots support. The no-engagement strategy has been adopted by other front-runners in the campaign, most notably former President Donald Trump.
“The numbers say it all: Sam Brown is the only candidate in this race with the resources, support and grassroots energy to take on Jacky Rosen,” Brown’s campaign said in a statement. “Nevada Republicans are rallying behind Donald Trump and Sam Brown because they are the only conservative champions who can beat Biden and Rosen in November.”
Former U.S. Ambassador to Iceland Jeff Gunter was also not on stage after withdrawing at the last minute, which his campaign did not explain in a statement after the debate.
“I will debate Scam Brown at any time,” Gunter said in the statement, using a nickname he often uses to discredit Brown.
The other candidates on stage included Jim Marchant, a former candidate for Nevada Secretary of State and an outspoken election denier; Tony Grady, an Air Force veteran and former candidate for lieutenant governor; Stephanie Phillips, a real estate agent; and Ronda Kennedy, an attorney.
Former President Donald Trump has skipped all Republican primary debates in the current presidential campaign, opting to hold rallies or appear on rival television networks in a strategy that has robbed the events of viewers and media attention while he remains the dominant front-runner. The Republican Party’s final primary debate between Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley drew fewer than 2.6 million viewers.
Brown, a Purple Heart recipient, was a heavily recruited candidate for Washington Republicans seeking to avoid a repeat of their lackluster performance in the 2022 midterm elections, when flawed Republican candidates helped Democrats win races and gain majority control. to retain the Senate.
Two years ago, Brown was a Senate candidate who criticized Republican front-runner Adam Laxalt for only agreeing to a pre-recorded debate instead of a live prime-time broadcast.
“He should feel safe in a closed studio at 8 o’clock on a Monday morning, where working-class Nevadans can’t challenge him,” Brown said of the former Nevada attorney general, who enjoyed the support of the nation’s most influential figures Republican Party. , from former President Donald Trump to then-Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell.
Laxalt won that primary handily, but narrowly lost in the general election to incumbent Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto.
This cycle, Brown has often sidestepped questions about his top opponents to focus attacks on incumbent Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen. He said the crowded field was a product of Rosen’s leadership, not his.
But Rosen was rarely mentioned Thursday as Brown withstood his opponents’ attacks.
“I hope you remember the one who’s not here,” Kennedy said.
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Stern is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a program that places journalists in local newsrooms. Follow Stern on X, formerly Twitter: @gabestern326.
