Friday, April 18, 2008

The Great Debate

My print column on the big debate is up.

Swarthmore professor Mark Kuperberg is a good guest and a good sport. (Correction: It's "curriculum vitae," and his is impressive.)

But his complaints about the debate questions are, I think, less so. Both Charlie Gibson and George Stephanopoulos asked tough ones, not so much policy based, but ones based on the candidates own statements, misstatements gaffes and questionable relationships.

Stephanopoulous asked a very interesting question Barack's relationship with Bill Ayers, the former 60's radical who says he still not sorry for planting bombs back during his days in the Weather Underground.

Obama tried to deflect the question by saying he can't be to blame for something somebody else did 40 years ago, when he was 8 years old. Furthermore, he suggested an equivalence between what Ayers DID and remains proud of and what his "friendly" acquaintance Sen. Tom Coburn SAID about believing that some abortionists should get the death penalty.

Pretty big difference there.

When Hillary jumped on Ayers being brought up and mentioned his statment to the NYT that appeared on Sept. 11, 2001, about not being sorry about his bombing days, Obama suggested she had no room to talk since her husband pardoned two members of the Weather Underground.

Hillary could have said it is one thing to pardon a criminal, it is another thing to go to their home for a political gathering and for them to throw you a coming-out party.

Obama fans are furious about the question and blame Stephanopoulos for even asking it. But some in the press have been trying to get Obama to answer it for some time. And he has refused.

Obama has complained that these sort of "guilt by association" questions are unfair. But his campaign and the Democrats in general, have played that game to the hilt. (How many times have they linked George Bush and Dick Cheney to the evil oil industry?)

I say if you want to know the candidates' policy positions go to their websites. But if you wanted to see how they handled tough questions about their judgement, mistakes and misstatements, Wednesday's debate was both informative and interesting.

6 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Poor B. Hussein Obama, always the victim...

April 18, 2008 at 9:52 AM 
Blogger steve mcdonald said...

the true victim was the viewing public. I don't care who was in the debate, it was painful to watch...

April 18, 2008 at 11:13 AM 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Why is it that when a white or a male or a Repub makes a minor gaff it’s considered a serious matter that needs endless full Page One vetting but when the Black Candidate makes multiple blunders and lapses in judgment -including seriously questionable longtime associations- it is an “attack” on him to point these things out, ask questions and expect answers? And we are expected (scolded) instead to rush to dismiss and ignore these “petty” and “insignificant” things and “move on”?
Just look at the Apologist Lib editorials like the one spun in the DT today to see what I mean.

We are finding that Obama has a lot of serious dirt in his closet. And it all needs to be aired and examined …fully and honestly. Apologist Lib operative protectionists be damned.

The protection Obama has received from the Liberal Media is unprecedented. The rare time he finally gets grilled the Left shrieks about unfair treatment as they attempt to use these rare instances as some proof that the Media has some Right-wing bias (while really they are just deflecting due criticism of the Media’s well documented Left-wing bias of which they fully approve, support and promote), while ensuring his permanent victim status.

And all the while the Racial Sword of Damocles hangs in the offing, ready to be wielded for offense or defense at a moment’s notice at anyone that forgets that as the Affirmative Action Candidate he is to be afforded special Double Standard treatment and certain things are off limits.

"Change"?? It sure seems like the same old Lib/black crap to me.

April 18, 2008 at 11:47 AM 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

You mean that you are gullible enough to claim that Bush and Cheney are NOT linked to the oil industry? Man, you really "drink the Kool-Aid" don't you!

April 18, 2008 at 2:49 PM 
Blogger David Diano said...

This comment has been removed by the author.

April 19, 2008 at 1:18 AM 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

You’re trying to excavate McCain’s minor gaffs into a mountain but all you have is a hole mill.
His little slips pale in comparison to Obama’s troubles. They’re nowhere near comparable, despite your defensive grasping efforts to protect your Affirmative Action Candidate at all cost.

And all you Black Candidate supporters keep trying to spin the debate and make it appear as something having been petty and unfair to your man. Gee, does anyone really think that if McCain had 20 year ties to a white supremacy church that you’d be so quick to dismiss it as a minor non-issue and be urging everyone to ignore it and move on?

You are a liar, Dave. And you possess zero integrity.
How are you gonna blame this on me or Bush?

April 20, 2008 at 12:50 PM 

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