Lt. gov. candidates spar over debates

CHICAGO | Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor Sheila Simon accused her Republican opponent of repeatedly failing to meet her face-to-face after he skipped a Chicago debate on Thursday, but Jason Plummer insisted he's ready to debate when the timing's right.

Simon and independent candidate Baxter Swilley debated at WMAQ-TV in Chicago beside an empty chair placed where Plummer would have been. The 20-minute debate was made available online.

A debate scheduled for Monday at Chicago TV station WTTW will mark  the first time Simon and Plummer appear together in a public setting. They've attended the same political events, but those events have been closed to the media.

Simon said voters who want to make a side-by-side comparison of the candidates haven't been able to do so.

"I think it's a fundamental disrespect for the democratic process," she said. "We ought to demand an ability to learn more about him in this process."

But Plummer counters that he's been to events where he thought Simon was going to show and she hasn't. He said he's been too busy campaigning to attend every candidate forum or debate he's invited to.

"It's in my very best interest to show up as often as possible," he said. "Only I can win (the WTTW) debate."

Simon, 49, a one-term city council member from Carbondale, is a former prosecutor and has taught law at Southern Illinois University for 10 years. She served on a state ethics panel after former Gov. Rod Blagojevich was ousted from office.

She's chiefly known statewide as the daughter of U.S. Sen. Paul Simon.

Plummer, 28, is vice president in the family business, RP Lumber, and is a government novice. He's an intelligence officer with the U.S. Navy Reserves.

Throughout the campaign, he's been dogged by questions about his youth and whether his experience has prepared him to be a heartbeat away from the top office in the state.

Both candidates have insisted they're ready to lead if the need arises.