U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky, did not appear at a live televised debate on Monday night against his Democratic opponent Charles Booker, opting instead to attack with an online video.
In a Tweet, Booker called Paul a “coward” for not attending the debate on Monday. Paul, in a video, said Booker embraces “political violence.”
“The people of Kentucky deserve a leader who will show up, who will make the case for why they will be representing our commonwealth in Washington,” Booker said. “Rand Paul is not here. … Everyone should be disappointed that Rand Paul does not care enough to be here.”
The “debate” was the second and likely last time in the campaign for U.S. Senate where the two could have crossed paths on the same state. Paul was in Washington D.C. in August at the annual Fancy Farm picnic and sent his wife Kelley Paul in his stead.
Paul was in Owensboro at a rally on Monday evening as his campaign released a video and a statement on his behalf. The video titled “Language of Violence” is the harshest criticism for Booker that Paul has so far unleashed.
“Civil debate is an admired quality in a Republic but justifying, mocking, or celebrating violence, as documented in this video of Booker and his allies, should be rejected,” said Dr. Paul.
