Democrat candidates around the country are using the same "playbook" and refusing debates just like Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro is doing in the state's race for governor, his GOP challenger Doug Mastriano said on Newsmax Tuesday, while declaring a challenge for him.
"Hey Josh, bring Donna Brazile," Mastriano, a state senator, told Newsmax's "National Report." "She could feed you the questions ahead of time like she did with Hillary Clinton in 2016, and I'll still smoke you."
But Shapiro "is hiding," adding Pennsylvania to the list of other states where Democrats are refusing to debate, said Mastriano.
"They're not debating in Arizona," he said. "They're not debating in Maryland. We see the same threat here when you have these elite Democrat types. He was born with a silver foot in his mouth, and in his case wanted for nothing. He was groomed for the job but when he's called out the stand before a retired army colonel who has debated hard issues in front of presidents and prime ministers and generals, he can't stand it. He's hiding from me."
Mastriano also accused Shapiro's campaign of being "terrified" after they saw him debate during the primary, and because they know about his background.
"I stood before leaders of entire nations, you know, discussing and debating hard issues before members of the U.N., even traveling the world in Afghanistan and elsewhere, and it's going to be really difficult for him to stand before me," said Mastriano. "He's never faced anyone who has not been a politician, like me."
Meanwhile, Shapiro has been attacking Mastriano, claiming that he appeals to extremists, and Mastriano told Newsmax that's typical of Democrats.
"He's been the attorney general for six years, and his record is abysmal on his watch," said Mastriano. "Crime has gone up 40%. We've had 946 carjackings or attempted carjackings in Philadelphia alone this year. We're on track for a record number of homicides in Philadelphia, pushing 600. We're the fourth highest of fentanyl [overdoses]."
But instead of Shapiro talking about his record, Mastriano said, he knows "I'll run circles around him because he's got it abysmal record. So what do the Democrats default to when you don't have an argument? You devolved to ad attacks. That's a logical fallacy."
Mastriano also pointed out that he's a retired Army colonel who served for 30 years and has been "vetted by the government, investigated over and over…this is an insult on every veteran and every veteran's family out there."
He also commented that Democrats and independents are "flocking to me" even though Shapiro has spent millions on advertising
"It's not working," said Mastriano. "If there's anything extreme about me, let me lay it out here. I'll answer him. Josh, wake up, brother. I'm extreme on the Constitution. I love our country and Constitutions so much that I wore a uniform for 30 years unlike you, Josh, and was willing to lay down my life.
He also slammed a New York Times report saying he's behind in the race as being "just hilarious."
"We've been almost all 67 counties since May," said Mastriano, pointing out the high numbers of people who have been turning out to see him.
"The New York Times doesn't care about the truth," he said. "Sadly, they're not letting the facts get in the way of having a good story, and they're just deceitful individuals. We're gonna win big. All the polls have us neck-and-neck with Josh Shapiro and we had not even run ads. Yet. The ads are coming in a couple of days."
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Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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