De-escalation: Acton refuses to debate Ramaswamy

Amy Acton said she will not debate Vivek Ramaswamy before November. Her campaign manager said she will not give a stage to someone she says spreads lies, including AI-fabricated claims about her having a substance abuse problem and attacks tied to her childhood sexual abuse, and that she will spend the time talking directly with voters.

Ramaswamy had accepted invitations for two televised debates, one proposed by CNN and another by Cincinnati’s WLWT, and challenged Acton to join him. He called debates the equivalent of a job interview, accused her of avoiding scrutiny while pointing to police reports and her departure as state health director, and highlighted a 2014 remark by her running mate David Pepper criticizing candidates who refuse to debate.

Acton’s refusal makes a head-to-head debate in the governor’s race unlikely despite the CNN and WLWT offers. That shuts down what would have been Ohio’s first gubernatorial debates since 2018.

AI-synthesized from multiple reported sources