Two Parties - One Dance (The Democrats)

What could be better than holding two proms at the same locale on one night? How about two presidential debates?

That’s exactly what ABC and sponsor, Facebook did, and they should be congratulated for holding the Saturday night presentation, a program that featured two separate presidential debates on the campus of Saint Anselm’s College in New Hampshire. The debates were well moderated and briskly paced, with ample opportunity for the candidates of each party to mix it up with one another, and both debates provided voters with sharper views of the distinctions between the candidates.

Candidate “spin” aside, voters who watched the debates were the clear winners.

Obama didn’t disappoint, Hillary made her points, Edwards showed his conviction and Richardson kept tapping the podium, even though he managed the night’s best zinger.

Let’s start with Richardson and work our way up in the Democratic polls. Bill’s entire performance was overshadowed by the irritating habit he had of tapping his fingers on the podium while he was speaking. The microphone picked up the continual tapping and it was hard to pay attention to what he was saying. Richard made a good point when he asked rhetorically, “What’s wrong with experience? Is it suddenly akin to being a leper?” Of course, having executive experience is a quality he’s touting as important because he’s been a state governor and that’s a point in his favor, but I sometimes wonder why anybody would claim to have the necessary experience when nobody, except an incumbent President seeking re-election, really has “prior experience”. And every time Bill says, “I’m the only one who balanced a budget” I cringe. That’s because a couple hundred million Americans have done it too. Perhaps another candidate will one day think of it too.

Edwards wasted no time going on the attack, labeling Hillary Clinton as the “status quo” candidate, a charge that provoked a fierce return barrage from Clinton, but one Edwards withstood and proved that, if nothing else, Edwards was truly committed and passionate about his desire to battle for the middle class. It’s hard to look at Edwards though and not wonder how much he paid for his current haircut. Edwards missed a chance to erase some of that image when asked what gaffe he made during the campaign that he’d like to erase, if he had the opportunity to do so. I can’t recall his answer, except that it had nothing to do with the haircut and it should have. People do care about how a President will handle the public purse, and the wasteful haircut was just the kind of thing that would cause folks to overlook John’s other good ideas.

Hillary Clinton handled herself well in the debate and confirmed, at least in my mind, that she has the intellectual capacity, the iron resolve and the passion necessary to be a good President. She’s match or better Margaret Thatcher’s steel will. Hillary’s comments regarding the capacity to translate talk into action and feelings into reality were well-reasoned arguments meant to position her as an agent for change and to negate some of the momentum Barack Obama gained by garnering that mantel. Unfortunately, Hillary is still saddled with Bill’s negative moral image and the “calculating and cruel” image of her that the right-wing stalwarts have so effectively painted of her over the years. She may very well be an, ‘agent of change’ in the role of President, but even left-wingers like myself have a difficult time formulating the picture. Nevertheless, Hillary did a fine job of articulating her points and positions.

The pundits said that Barack Obama needed to avoid making a big gaffe, and he accomplished that feat, and much more. He demonstrated in a firm, but calm manner that he was equipped to handle the rigors of the Oval office and possessed the intellectual capacity and wisdom necessary to perform the job properly. Obama was right when he said that words do matter and that words empower people. Words matter because people need to know that their voices are being heard and people need to know that those they elect truly understand the issues being faced in everyday life by ordinary Americans. Words also matter because the job of bringing true change to America will entail a collective discussion between folks of many different backgrounds. For too long our leaders have acted and talked at, but no to Americans. Obama’s decision to change course is a welcomed start to change.