Budd, Beasley make NC Senate debate a referendum on Biden, Trump and each other

Both Cheri Beasley and Ted Budd walked away claiming victory in Friday night’s U.S. Senate debate, but neither one really earned a “rubber stamp” of approval for their performance.

It was the first — and likely the only — opportunity for North Carolinians to see the candidates debate one another in what has become an extremely close race. Instead of making a strong case for themselves, however, Budd and Beasley largely treated the debate as a referendum on each other.

Beasley painted Budd as a weak legislator whose views are out of touch with voters, while Budd, as usual, equated his Democratic opponent with the current president and his “failed” agenda.

“Joe Biden is on the ballot on November 8 and he goes by the name this year of Cheri Beasley,” Budd said in his closing statement. (We lost count of how many times Budd said Beasley would be a “rubber stamp” for Biden’s policies.) Biden’s approval rating in North Carolina is at 43%, according to a recent WRAL poll.

Beasley, for her part, pointed out Budd’s embrace of former President Donald Trump, saying Budd “has aligned himself with somebody who is truly extremist in this race, and that’s a reflection on him.”

But if voters were hoping for clarity, they didn’t quite get it, at least not on Friday. Both candidates came across as evasive on tough questions, forcing moderator Tim Boyum to press for direct responses that never really came.

Beasley, for example, squirmed when asked if she’d campaign alongside Biden in North Carolina, and avoided the question of whether he should seek re-election in 2024. Budd similarly declined to say whether Donald Trump should run again, and gave a muddled explanation of his stance on abortion that did little to refute Beasley’s assertion that he supports a complete ban. He also insisted that Beasley supports abortion “up until the moment of birth,” which is disingenuous.

Still, the “spirited conversation,” as Budd put it, was a reminder that North Carolinians have two very different candidates to choose from in November, with very different views about the future of our country and state.

Budd, when asked about his vote against certifying the results of the 2020 election, said he stood by that vote and believed it helped inspire “healthy” debate.

“He is the president, and unfortunately he is destroying our country,” Budd, who has long tiptoed around Biden’s victory, said.

It was on somewhat lower-profile issues that Budd and Beasley offered the clearest responses, drawing a sharp contrast. Beasley voiced her support for legalizing marijuana and eliminating the filibuster; Budd opposes both.

While the debate did deliver a few public sparks in what has otherwise been a quiet race, it ultimately didn’t feel like much of a difference maker. Neither candidate really stumbled, but they didn’t quite shine, either. We didn’t really learn anything new. For the most part, it felt like Budd and Beasley were trying to mobilize their own supporters, not trying to court new ones. In a race that, at present, is locked in a statistical tie, that might be the best strategy.

“The choice is clear,” the North Carolina Democratic Party wrote on Twitter after the debate. “Crystal clear!” the NCGOP said in its own tweet.

In the end, the debate demonstrated exactly why this race is tied: both candidates have managed to hold their own in a state that is almost evenly divided politically. In a midterm year as dynamic as 2022, in which Republicans have an edge over Democrats, that’s largely a testament to Beasley and her campaign. It makes sense, then, that Budd and Beasley might want to make their lone debate about each other — this is a race that will be decided by whose voters actually show up at the polls.

This story was originally published October 8, 2022 at 12:32 PM with the headline "Budd, Beasley make NC Senate debate a referendum on Biden, Trump and each other."