Mike McIntyre has an obligation to debate his opponent each election regardless of whether he is a front runner or not! He does not want to get pinned down in a public forum where he has no control over the issues. He is a career politician , who has no intentions of stepping down from public office. He has grown accustomed to life inside the beltway and has no interest in practicing law. He took a knee after his first term in office! He hopes an uninformed electorate continues to vote him into office.