After Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Ohio) refused to debate her primary challenger, state Rep. Bob McEwen, in front of a Cincinnati-area Republican club, the club invited comedian Rachel Dratch of NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” to stand in for Schmidt at the event.
Dratch portrayed the controversial congresswoman on the show last fall after Schmidt’s infamous “cut and run” comment about Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) on the House floor.
The Anderson Township Republican Club scheduled the debate for April 19. According to club spokesman Duffy Beischel, Schmidt had agreed to a debate, but her campaign later notified the club that she would not be taking part.
Lest the event become a “McEwen monologue,” said a release, the club started looking for alternatives.
“Some of our club members suggested to me that we invite ‘Saturday Night Live’s’ Rachel Dratch to take Mrs. Schmidt’s part in the debate,” said Beischel. “I thought that was a great idea, so invitations were sent” to Dratch and producer Lorne Michaels.
“If Ms. Dratch is able to accept our invitation, she would articulate the positions as submitted in the response Mrs. Schmidt gave on a questionnaire the club prepared for all candidates prior to the last primary debate,” said club President Russ Jackson.
Beischel said yesterday that he exchanged e-mails with Marc Liepis, the show’s press flack. Beischel told him that the club is prepared to pay Dratch’s travel expenses and asked him to take the offer seriously. He said Liepis told him he would, although it isn’t the type of thing cast members normally do.
Liepis yesterday would only confirm that he had recieved a fax.
Schmidt campaign manager Allen Freeman said, “We never agreed to attend their event,” and that the past week’s events have played out his fears that it would turn into “a circus".
