The candidates for the presidency of the Republicans will be decided during an internal vote of the members of the party on December 3 and 4.
Will they debate in the media, even if it means taking the risk of exposing Republican divisions? This is suggested by Aurélien Pradié, currently secretary general of the party and himself a candidate. In a letter to his two main opponents, Éric Ciotti and Bruno Retailleau, the deputy for Lot invites them to “bring the debate of ideas to life as widely as possible“, accepting invitations from television channels that “wish to organize special programs with the candidates who will have obtained their sponsorships“. Asked about this, the teams of Éric Ciotti and Bruno Retailleau nevertheless affirm that they intend to participate in these televised debates.
No reluctance from candidates
“For my part, I responded favorably to these invitations“, writes Aurélien Pradié in his letter. Believing that “running away from debate is always a weakness“, the candidate adds that”political courage requires the courage to defend one’s convictions“. Éric Ciotti’s team specifies, however, that the deputy of the Alpes-Maritimes has been and remains “totally in favor of the televised debatebetween the contenders for the party presidency, and even underlines a “incomprehension» as for the open letter of Aurélien Pradié. Éric Ciotti quickly reacted to Twitterrecalling that he will participate “enthusiastically to all the debates organized“, as he also announced “for several weeks on the news channels“.
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Same story with Bruno Retailleau, whose entourage says he will participate in these exchanges. In recent weeks, the senator and his campaign team have however been reserved about the organization of such debates, to avoid publicly displaying the divisions of a weakened party and forcing the line between lines that are sometimes quite close. His team specifies Figaro that it will be necessary to find “the best formatto approach this deadline, possibly negotiating with the television channels.
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