Rep. Calvert Mum on Debating Will Rollins

Congressman Ken Calvert Remains Quiet on Debating Will Rollins

CORONA — Will Rollins, the Democratic nominee in California’s 41st District, is challenging GOP incumbent Ken Calvert to three general election debates, but so far Calvert is not responding. Uken Report reached out three times to Calvert’s campaign but did not receive a response.

Rollins, of Palm Springs, is a Southern California native. A former federal prosecutor and counterterrorism law attorney, he is now the Democratic nominee for Congress in California’s 41st Congressional District. California’s 41st District is shaping up to be a key 2024 matchup that will help decide the House majority. Punchbowl News called it the No. 2 most critical race in the battle for control of the House, and the National Journal ranked it as one of its 15 seats most likely to flip this November.

Rollins said he believes that voters deserve to hear directly from the candidates on the driving issues of the day in Riverside County, including cost of living, crime and law enforcement, and immigration. Rollins said he has already accepted a televised debate with KTLA – no matter if Calvert agrees to face Will and the voters – and looks forward to accepting two more.

“How many small business owners would rehire employees who refused to show up for job performance reviews? Zero,” Rollins said in a   statement. “That’s what a debate is. No matter what party you belong to, voters shouldn’t rehire a congressman who refuses to show up for a debate.

“In the midterms, Calvert ran on crime and inflation, and when he went back to Washington — what did he do? Calvert voted to defund local law enforcement and border security, voted to cut green energy jobs, and voted to cut critical childcare and food assistance programs that would have raised costs on working families. Calvert can’t run from the voters this election, and that’s why I’m calling for three debates – so both of us can speak directly to Riverside County voters this fall and speak to their needs. That’s what public service – not self-service – is all about.”

In the 2022 midterms, Ken Calvert refused to participate in any debate with Rollins.

The call for at least one debate intensifies as political action committee has filed an ethics complaint against Calvert, R-Corona, alleging the Inland Empire’s longest serving congressmember failed to disclose real estate investments near areas that benefit from federal funds he steered.

End Citizens United filed the complaint Tuesday, Aug. 6, with the nonpartisan Office of Congressional Ethics. In it, the group alleged Calvert, who represents part of Riverside County, broke federal law by omitting information about his real estate holdings on financial disclosure reports.