No peer, no debate

Václav Klaus doesn't have an official challenger yet, but his opponents are already criticizing him for not agreeing to a presidential debate with possible candidate Jan Švejnar. Klaus's motives are variously attributed to fear, monarch-like tendencies and arrogance. Klaus himself told MFD that no clear challenger exists who could be considered a prototypical future president. Pavel Bém, speaking to F1 radio, put it more bluntly: He said he doesn't consider Švejnar a relevant challenger. And herein lies the real reason Klaus won't debate Švejnar. It would give Švejnar legitimacy that he is otherwise having trouble gaining on his own. Saying No is the equivalent to the way Klaus puts people in their place by asking, "And just who are you?" This said, we should add that Klaus's tactic in refusing to debate Švejnar is absolutely correct from a competitive standpoint. There would be no upside in it for him.