There was supposed to be a U.S. Senate candidates debate last night on the Time-Warner Cable News show “Capital Tonight.” But it turned into an hour-long “conversation” with only one candidate, Republican Thom Tillis, speaker of the state House. Democrat Kay Hagan, the incumbent, declined to participate, and Libertarian Sean Haugh wasn't invited.

The debate was organized by TWC, the News and Observer, and the Charlotte Observer. However, when TWC Cable decided to place an empty chair to represent Hagan's absence, the two newspapers refused to have their reporters take part in the questioning. So it was left to TWC's Tim Boyum and Loretta Boniti to ask the questions.

Haugh was not invited to participate because he failed to met the 15 percent polling threshold set by the organizers. However, Haugh watched the debate in the studio, and TWC aired his five-minute response after the program.

Read the News & Observer story here.