Voter League Blames Wilson for Collapse of Plans for Debate

Laying the blame at the feet of U.S. Sen. Pete Wilson, the League of Women Voters announced Friday that its efforts to sponsor a televised debate between Wilson and his Democratic rival, Lt. Gov. Leo T. McCarthy, have collapsed.

Wilson, however, leading McCarthy by a substantial margin in the polls, called for the two candidates to jointly sponsor their own debate on public television--a plan likely to reach a smaller viewing audience than under the league’s proposal.

The League of Women Voters had been negotiating for months with the two Senate candidates to arrange a debate that would be aired on commercial television throughout California, ultimately settling on either Oct. 11 or 13.

Wilson, however, rejected those dates after he learned that the Senate may not recess for the year until Oct. 15. The Republican senator also turned down a proposal that the entire debate be moved to Washington and held at 11 p.m. Eastern time so that he could more easily attend.

“Although KCBS, the league and Lt. Gov. McCarthy were prepared to accommodate Sen. Wilson’s schedule by holding the debate in either Washington or Los Angeles, Sen. Wilson claimed that he would not be able to prepare for the debate because of the press of Senate business,” the league announced in a statement issued to the press.

Otto Bos, Wilson’s campaign manager, said his candidate would be too busy at the end of the Senate session to properly prepare for a debate even if it were to be held in Washington at 11 p.m.

“We have gone the extra mile in offering to debate, but we don’t think it should be at the expense of the Senate’s business,” Bos said. “It is not feasible, given the Senate’s schedule and the uncertainty of events, to properly plan for it.”

Draws Criticism

Wilson’s refusal to join in the league-sponsored debate drew harsh criticism from McCarthy campaign aides, who charged that as recently as last Friday Wilson missed two votes on the Senate floor so he could attend his own fund-raiser in San Diego.

“It’s time the Wilson campaign stopped playing games with California’s voters,” McCarthy campaign manager Darry Sragow charged in a letter to Bos. “If you and Pete’s other handlers want to keep Wilson in a closet, that’s your business. We think California voters deserve better. . . . “

Sragow said the McCarthy campaign would be willing to discuss arrangements for a possible debate on public television on Oct. 17. But, given the collapse of the league-sponsored debate, he questioned the sincerity of the Wilson camp’s proposal.

“Frankly, Otto, we can’t believe anything you say about debates,” Sragow said in the letter to Bos.

Carol Federighi, president of the league’s California organization, said McCarthy had agreed to debate on either of the two days that the CBS network in California was willing to carry the debate, with the broadcast originating at KCBS.