Savannah Mayor’s Intriguing Questions for Presidential Candidates
Savannah’s Mayor, Van Johnson, shared his thoughts on the upcoming highly anticipated Presidential debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, due to take place on Thursday evening on CNN. The weekly meeting with local media provided a platform for Mayor Johnson to express his unfiltered views on prevailing local and national issues.
Unexpected Questions
If given the opportunity to moderate the debate, Mayor Johnson stated the provocative and unusual questions that he will pose to the presidential candidates. Rather than focusing on controversies and dissimilarities, he suggested asking the candidates to find common ground. His questions would invite the contenders to identify policies implemented by each other that they appreciated and found beneficial for the country.
Mayor’s Vision for Positive Debate Culture
“I don’t think anybody wants it to be a ‘nasty fest.’ It should be comparing and contrasting different ideas and different directions. I don’t think this has to be either/or. There should be shades of grey, and it should be that, hopefully, you have two candidates that agree on something, and this doesn’t devolve into back and forth,” remarked Mayor Johnson.
Against Negative Campaigning
Mayor Johnson further lambasted negative campaigning, underlining that electoral victories should not rely on exposing an opponent’s flaws. Instead, he encouraged each candidate to discuss their policies, their visions for the country, and how they would directly benefit the residents of Savannah.
“I have been in a bunch of elections myself and I have never won by talking about what my opponent’s issues are. I mean, if that’s the way you have to win — be it President Biden’s age or whether it’s President Trump’s criminal convictions — no, talk about what you’re going to do. Forecast your vision for the country. I believe that’s what most people want to hear.” stated the Mayor.
Savannah at the Center of Debate Interest
Mayor Johnson affirmed his primary interest in the debate is to evaluate how each candidate’s visions and policies would directly impact Savannah. Considering the packed agenda that he and the Savannah City Council have on the debate day, particularly with the fate of Savannah’s Civic Center expected to hinge on their meeting, the Mayor remains uncertain about his attendance at the debate in Atlanta.
