MAGA Sen. Marsha Blackburn suffered an awkward moment as she repeatedly tried to evade a reporter’s questions while desperately waiting for an elevator door to open.
The Tennessee Republican is the frontrunner in the GOP primary race to become the state’s next governor.
However, Blackburn is refusing to debate her Republican opponents and has not been giving media interviews to promote her campaign.
The team at Tennessee news outlet NewsChannel 5 approached Blackburn after she spoke at an event to try to get her to answer some basic questions about her run for governor.
However, Blackburn essentially stonewalled every question, repeatedly replying, “We’re talking to Tennesseans every single day,” as she waited to escape in an elevator.
After being approached by NewsChannel 5’s Ben Hall and videographer Bryan Staples, one of Blackburn’s aides suggested she did “have time right now” to respond to questions about her gubernatorial bid.
Blackburn then added, “We were doing a federal event, but thank you very much.”
“Well, we were told you were going to answer some questions. Why don’t you have time to talk? Shouldn’t you talk to voters about what you plan to do as governor?” Hall responded.
Blackburn then replied that while she is not doing media interviews, she is letting voters know her plans “every single day.”
Hall continued pressing her outside the elevator.
“You are refusing to debate your Republican opponents. Why won’t you debate your Republican opponents?”
“We’re talking to Tennesseans every single day, every single day,” Blackburn replied.
“Do voters have a right to hear from you?” an undeterred Hall asked.
“We are talking to individuals every single day,” she responded again.
The farce continued until the elevator doors finally opened. Once inside, Blackburn also dodged a question about why she changed her mind and voted to certify the 2020 election results in favor of Joe Biden after originally saying she would object before the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.
Steve Gill, a veteran conservative political commentator, told NewsChannel 5 that Blackburn appears to be “running out the clock” in her primary campaign, knowing she is the overwhelming favorite to win.
“I’m not sure it’s a policy strategy. And she may pay a price for it down the road because voters won’t know what she really stands for,” Gill said.
The Tennessee GOP primary is on Aug. 6, with early voting beginning July 17.
Whoever wins the GOP primary is widely expected to become the state’s next governor, given Tennessee’s strong Republican lean.
The Daily Beast has contacted Blackburn’s office for comment.
