Sen. Alexander says Gordon Ball 'isn't running a serious campaign'

photo From left, Democratic Senate candidate Gordon Ball, the Chicken and former U.S. Rep. Lincoln Davis share a moment before Ball kicked off a "No Show Lamar" bus tour.

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NASHVILLE -- Republican U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander is defending his decision not to take part in a Senate debate later this afternoon with a blast at his Democratic rival, Gordon Ball, who is.

"A man who runs around with a chicken isn't running a serious campaign, though the chicken does look pretty good in plaid," Alexander said in a statement.

That's a reference to Ball's bus tour, which features a man in a chicken costume wearing a red-and-black plaid shirt, alluding to the shirt Alexander has often worn in campaigns.

Ball unveiled the man in a chicken suit on Wednesday to underscore his complaint that Alexander is afraid to debate him.

The Alexander campaign says last Thursday's campaign forum with the Tennessee Farm Bureau in Cookeville constitutes a debate.

Ball and six independent candidates are scheduled to hold a debate in Nashville at 1:30 p.m. (CDT).

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