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Whitnum's Israel Comments Ignite Sparks At Democratic Senate Debate
Whitnum's Israel Comments Ignite Sparks At Democratic Senate Debate
By DANIELA ALTIMARI, altimari@courant.com
The Hartford Courant
10:42 PM EDT, April 5, 2012
WEST HARTFORD ?
Political debates are generally polite affairs, opportunities for candidates to spar gently over policy points while rehashing their positions and honing their images.
Thursday night's televised debate at NBC Connecticut among the five Democrats running for an open U.S. Senate seat was the exception. The hour-long session featured a fiery exchange between one of the lesser-known candidates, a former software engineer from Greenwich named Lee Whitnum, and U.S. Rep. Chris Murphy, the frontrunner in most public opinion polls.
The two sparred over aide to Israel, one of the central themes of Whitnum's campaign. At one point, she called Murphy a "whore" and saying he has his "head in the sand."
"Elect somebody who is not pro-Israel," Whitnum said. "I'm pro American. Elect somebody who doesn't drink the [American Israel Public Affairs Committee] Kool-Aid."
Murphy called Whitnum's anti-Israel rant "out-of-bounds."
"Israel needs friends today more now than ever," he said. "Israel is our ally, Israel is our strategic partner. We need to stand with them today and there's not going to be anything that makes me apologize for that."
When another candidate, state Rep. William Tong, came to Murphy's defense, Whitnum lashed out at him too.
Whitnum, who believes the U.S. should stop all aid to Israel, said after the debate that "I probably came on a little strong." But she said it is important for "politicians [to] speak to us honestly."
Murphy was taken aback by Whitnum's harsh language. "I had advocated for all of the candidates to be a part of these debates," he said during his closing remarks. "I'd like to think twice about that with kind of awful language being used on the airwaves."
This is the first debate that featured Whitnum. She sued the organizers of a similar forum in Norwich last month after she was prevented from participating.
Both Tong and Susan Bysiewicz said the debate organizers ought to think twice about inviting Whitnum to future debates.
But Murphy, Tong and Bysiewicz all agreed that another lesser-known candidate, East Hartford's Matthew Oakes, added a great deal to the discussion and should have a place in future debates.
Oakes told of facing the threat of foreclosure on his families home, being forced to leave college because he couldn't afford it and other tales of hardship. "If you are poor, if you are disabled ... then I'm your guy," he said. "If you have a neighbor that you really enjoy talking to and having a beer with, then I'm your guy."
