Thursday, April 26, 2007

Who won the Democratic debate?

(see the Republicans debate next Thursday, May 3 on MSNBC)

My comments
Clinton: Held her own as a front runner. Didn't sound angry. Mentioned finding bin Laden. Mentioned "the Clinton Administration" when appropriate. Sounded presidential?

Obama: Disappointing? Not as good as he is on the stump? He answered two questions really well (the first when Williams asked him a tough follow-up question). He shouldn't have gotten into it with Kucinich. Has he come down to the level of the other candidates because of this debate? Or is his level so high right now that if he doesn't juggle fire it's a let down?

Gravel: Wow.

Biden: Best answer of the entire debate: "Yes." Paraphrasing: he answered the question of whether he could assure the American people that he wouldn't be too verbose on the world stage. I clapped for that answer!

Gravel: Again, wow. Somebody afterward said he stole Kucinich's thunder.

Kucinich: He's probably right on a lot, but he won't be president or vice-president. How is that possible? The same reason communism doesn't work? Great theory, but the reality is. . .

17 comments:

Mr. Bretzmann said...

Edwards: Helped himself. He looked presidential, thoughtful, and at peace with himself. His answers were measured, clear, and thorough.

Richardson: 1. He numbered every answer 2. What was his answer about the Gonzales question? 3. He looked confused sometimes.

Dodd: A solid Democratic performance, but not mainstream enough.

BrandonK said...

I believe that Edwards seemed to come out in front tonight. He sounded good and in my opinion I think he answered questions better than most of the candidates. I would not be surprised to see his support rise, even though most people were focused on Barack and Hilary. I think that over the next few weeks and until the next debate his numbers and money will continue to rise. The way he acted and sounded tonight made him seem just as strong a candidate as Hilary and Barack also. I think Edwards will be able to hold his own on the campaign trail.

Megan B said...

If we are going for point on craziness…obviously, Gravel. But, otherwise, I was a little disappointed that all of the others seemed lack luster, there were some good responses, but overall boring.

Edwards seemed to do slightly, better than the others, he used his own past ties to average citizens, showing that he is “ in touch” with them. Edwards seemed to have a “home field” advantage. He was able to effectively tell about growing up poor in the Carolinas.

I agree that the numbering all the questions by Richardson was annoying and overtook the focus on the quality of his answers.

Kucinich seem kind of strange, but was out shined in the strange “you’ve gone completely insane” category by Gravel, who appears to think that Hillary and Obama want to Nuke Iran. Not to mention he appears to think that Biden wants to tell the Iraqis how to run their country. Maybe he is in favor of “fixing Mexico?”

Hillary: Why bring up universal health care, again? It was a miserable failure; I don’t think it was smart to bring it up again.

Obama: My view of his performance can be described by the word, blah. Also shocking he wants women who are considering abortion to consult with their clergy, I thought that was Republicans.

Hopefully, the upcoming Republican debate will be more exciting and substantive.

justinbel said...

I think Hillary, Obama, and Edwards all did a fine job. Hillary didnt start yelling like she usually does, Obama did fine But i think his expectations are higher than the others, and Edwards has already been through this before(2004) so he should have done decently.

tonileep said...

I watched bits and pieces of the Democractic debate and from what I saw I think that John Edwards looked the most presidental and his answers were well thought out. I didn't think Barack was too impressive and maybe people got their hopes up too high. Hilary did okay, but I agree with Megan. Hilary should not have mentioned Universal health care. Gravel of course was entertaining.

treheinguy said...

At the risk of offending some people, I felt that Hillary actually won the debate. She succeeded in doing what Obama has been so good at thus far which is keeping a clear head and staying above petty politics and focusing on issues rather than people. As much as I wanted Obama to dominate his competition, he did not. He sunk to Gravel’s level, which was quite obviously as low as one can go. Also, his answers seemed more forced and deliberate than usual. He had certain weariness to him it was as though he was overanalyzing the questions and this detracted greatly from his power as a “articulate speaker”. So between the two front runners I feel that Hillary gave a more powerful showing.

MikeM said...

I don't think anyone really came out on top. Despite the high expectations for Obama he did not take control of the debate like many expected. Hilary seemed to hold her own throughout the debate and Edwards sounded good and probably did better than most expected but I still don't think anyone came out on top. No one really stood out as the dominate candidate in the debate.

Megan B said...

Sorry, everybody I’m not feeling very creative today, so the question is a little dull. Opinion: What questions should we have the moderator / referee ask at the Iraq “debate / forum” day on the 24th?

Since we already know how they feel about the Iraq war, if it is okay to call it a war, I think the questions should get at WHY that person feels the way they do about the situation on the ground in Iraq. It would also be interesting to hear what they think are supportive “reasons” for their feelings. Therefore I would submit the question / topic to speak upon:

Using detailed reasons, please explain why you are for or against this current dilemma in Iraq.

I also would find it interesting to hear each argument as to what to do next in Iraq, since to any sane person it is undeniable that there are issues that need to still be solved in Iraq, and the surrounding regions. Based on this and other thoughts my question list would look like the following, with the addition of the one question above:

In what way do you think the administration should proceed in maintaining foreign relations in the region?

Do you think that talks with Syria and Iran should take place? What “doors” might these talks open? What benefits would each side receive if this was done? Would they be merely intrinsic?

Do think Congress will pass a war funding bill that will not be vetoed, for setting a timetable, benchmarks, or whatever you want to call them? If so, when? And how much variance will it have from what the President has requested?

What message do you feel that the newly elected Iraqi Congress is sending to, A) their own people B) the U.S. government C) the U.S. people and D) the world, by even considering a summer break?

Name two or three things that you feel would define a mission complete status in Iraq.

What will, if any, the significance of the Iraq conflict have in keeping major act of terrorism away from the United States be?

Mr. Bretzmann said...

Good questions. I'll add them to my list. I started it this morning during the morning talk shows. There are a lot of questions to ask.
JB

tonileep said...

I think we should ask them obviously their opinion and why they feel that way and what we should have done instead. Also, we should ask them when we should pull out and how that should go about and ask their opinion about the war funding bill President Bush veto. As well, I am curious as to how they think Bush handled the war and who would have done a better job if they disagree with him.

KerryW said...

I just watched a few tidbits of the debate myself and I would have to agree with the few people who said Hilary. She sounded to me the most presidential. She seemed poised and sure of herself.

JahirD said...

are we still supposed to blog every week? I'm not sure so i will just in case :) Just some random thoughts.

The Democratic debate = good

The Republican debate = good

The AP Test = good

The rest of the year = PARTY!!!

*woot woot*

and on that happy note... I shall bid everyone adieu.

-Adieu

Megan B said...

Next question: Why does there seem to be a shortage of questions? I think some of the lack can be described by the word: senioritis. Just an observation, the more junior members of the class complete this homework on a more regular basis.

But now to get a little more serious, and not have a Jahir like, post. The real question I have for this week is another simple one. The question is: What will the Oprah impact be on the democratic nominees for the ’08 race, particularly with Obama possibly being able to gain an advantage over Hillary?

In my opinion Oprah will greatly help Obama’s numbers, once she returns for her hiatus. Oprah has tons of loyal viewers, many of whom find her a role model to take cues from; possibly they will now extend to political cues. Oprah, whose show generally appeals to women, will be able to aide Obama in this crucial category where he currently trails behind Hillary. Also this will further tie Obama to the African-American community, with a team of two prominent and successful African-Americans campaign for one common goal, getting Obama elected President. Overall the support from Oprah will not hurt Obama, but Hillary is not to be under-estimated, she does have Bill. Some consider Bill the first black president, but it is hard to say if Bill’s connections will give Hillary, the unfavorable Washington insider, corrupt government stigma or not.

Also just I was looking at the calendar, and would like to wish you all a Happy Armed Forces Day! If you need another question, please describe your Armed Forces Day celebrations, I will be celebrating with the greatly loved homework! You should really include an MRE’s, marching, saluting, and protests, in your celebrations.

KimK said...

I did not watch the Democratic debate, so I really don't have a comment to this question; however, since there are no new questions, I will make a suggestion: can we have a question NOT about the election sometime before the end of the year? Global warming is an interesting topic...finding cures for diseases is even better...stem cells are fascinating...the war as we are discussing that on Thursday...just about anything but the election would be awesome.

tonileep said...

I agree with Kim, I would like a question that does not deal with the election. Obviously, it is extremely important but it seems that all the questions deal with it and something else would be a nice change. I think topics such as global warming, stem cell, abortion, and the death penalty are interesting and it would be interesting to read what people's opinions are. Also, to answer Megan's question, I really don't think Oprah will have that big of an impact on the democractic nominees especially Obama. Yes,
she does have loyal viewers but that does not mean they have the same values as she does.I don't believe that Oprah will help Obama very much, the only way I think she would help him is by giving him money for his campagin.

JahirD said...

hello! its me again! your friendly neighborhood blogger.

i personally don't see anything wrong with talking about the election. That's what all the major news channels are discussing, so why shouldn't we? In addition, if my sweeties, Kimberly and Tonilee, would like a different question, I'm sure that they'd be welcome to post one themselves. But until then, let the election coverage continue!

Dain said...

Agreed. I'm all for continuing to keep the election in mind. It is a pretty big source of news.

If we intend to pursue an alternate question, how about reaction to the supreme court's latest rulings or opinions about thursday's forum?