Pat Roberts Had Three Big Points in Kansas Debate

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — Embattled Sen. Pat Roberts doesn’t need voters to like him. On Wednesday, the three-term incumbent made the message he wants voters to take with them to the ballot box next month clear.
Roberts is being challenged by independent Greg Orman, and most recent polls show the three-term senator behind.
“A vote for Greg Orman is a vote to hand over the future of Kansas to [Senate Majority Leader Harry] Reid and [President Barack] Obama,” Roberts said in his opening statement at the Wednesday debate.
“A vote for Pat Roberts,” he said later, “is a vote for a Republican majority.”
Roberts has struggled mightily in his re-election campaign. He trailed Orman by 5 points or 10 points in previous public polling , although a new CNN poll showed him up 49 percent to 48 percent. Whether that’s an outlier or a sign of a rejuvenated campaign remains unclear.

The incumbent has been dogged by questions about whether he still lives in the Sunflower State. What’s more, he was unprepared for the sudden competitive nature of the race and forced to completely remake his campaign team for the final two months. The senator reiterated three points during the hour-long debate before the crowd of about 300. He said he was endorsed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Federation of Independent Business. He said his opponent is “a liberal Democrat.” And he said Kansas could determine control of the Senate, and he was the only candidate who would guarantee a vote for Republican control. Roberts hammered that home throughout the debate, bringing every single question back to that trio of talking points. Orman has been criticized for refusing to give specifics on his positions on certain issues — most notably, which party he would caucus with if elected. (His allegiance could decide control of the Senate.) But in this debate, Roberts was the worse offender in that regard. Roberts often rambled, trailing off in his rush to get back to his point on Orman’s liberal leanings. “We have to solve that one,” Roberts said on Social Security. “I think we have enough time to come up with real good tax reform first. If we get the economy going, and we get the pro-job and pro-growth policies that Republicans stand for and that we will do, we will not be boxed up with regards to Harry Reid.” Then he hastily switched gears. “May I just repeat that the reason that the Senate is in gridlock … is in one person’s hands: Harry Reid,” he said, before launching into his attacks on Orman.
