Georgia Democratic candidate for governor Jason Carter, left, speaks as Republican candidate Gov. Nathan Deal, right, looks on during a debate Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2014, in Perry, Ga.PERRY, Ga. – Republican Nathan Deal accused Democrat Jason Carter of being inexperienced and unproven, while Carter zoned in on ethics complaints against the incumbent and Georgia’s uneven economic recovery Tuesday, as the candidates sharpened their messages during their first head-to-head debate.
The two and Libertarian Andrew Hunt sparred before a raucous crowd at the Georgia National State Fair. Deal, a 72-year-old former state senator and congressman elected to the governor’s office in 2010, swung early and accused Carter of lacking leadership during his four-year-term in the state senate.
After calling Carter “young and inexperienced,” Deal questioned why the 39-year-old state senator from Atlanta didn’t propose bills or budget amendments to address the problems he now talks about on the campaign trail.
“You’ve never passed a bill, you’ve never been put in a position of leadership … within the DeKalb delegation, you’ve never been elected to a position within the Democrat caucus of the state Senate,” Deal said. “Why would anybody decide you have the leadership skills to lead this state?”
Carter accused Deal of passing blame for the state’s economic status, returning to a focus on the state’s unemployment rate he has hammered since Georgia’s 8.1 percent rate for August was announced.