Joe Lhota Done Debating Democrats: "They Really Need to Debate Each Other."

The Republican mayoral hopeful, Joe Lhota, has declined an invitation to participate in an April 9 forum hosted by the Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance, telling The Insider that he won't participate in debates with the Democratic candidates until after the September primary. 

"So long as it's a multi-question, multi-issue forum—not single purpose like public safety and things that the Daily News and Metro IAF did—I'm not going to be in a debate with Democrats," Mr. Lhota said. "I'm only going to debates with Republicans until such time as we get through the primary process." 

"I'm the only Republican that they invited to the Alliance [event]," he told Andrew Hawkins. "And all the Democrats do nothing but crap all over me. And they really need to be in debate with each other, because the voters deserve this type of debate. It masks over the whole issue." 

"I've never seen in the history of this country the merger of Republican- and Democrat-type questions," he said. "Where else have you seen this?" 

Lhota also took credit for the split structure of the March 21 mayoral debate hosted by the Observer Media Group and the 92Y, in which the three Republican candidates—John Catsimatidis, George McDonald and Mr. Lhota—debated for an hour, followed by the five Democrats—Sal Albanese, Christine Quinn, John Liu, Bill Thompson and Bill de Blasio.