I was probably one of only a handful of people in Canada who watched (and videotaped on my VHS machine at the same time) last night's two-hour 2008 Democratic debate sponsored by CNN / YouTube. I really liked the format of surprise questions by voters via YouTube people. I am obviously not a left-winger, but I have an interest in politics, period. It was an interesting debate, though as with other debates, the thing I could not stand was how candidates would not answer a question and then proceed to use the rest of the time to talk about something else.
Here's some comments on the candidates (that I remember):
John Edwards - kind of too slick for me, with a one trick pony "I will fight big business and insurance companies" line. However, he was the only candidate who sincerely stated that he did not believe in gay marriage to the entire audience, which scored points for me. That took a lot of guts.
Dennis Kucinich - between him and Mike Gravel, I am not sure who was the more pain in the ass candidate for the evening. He acted like a smart ass, trying to distance himself from the other candidates, and oftentimes, would be the only one to state that he believes in x or y, but you can tell by the tone that he was just trying to buy votes. Thankfully, he only got muted applause, even when he tried to show himself as distinct. Kucinich seems like a typical slimy politician. Holy cow, his wife is sooooo young (he's was born in 1947 - 60 years old, I just looked her up and she was born in 1977 - 30 years old). And I thought Fred Thompson (potential Republican candidate) was a cradle robber.... It was funny how at the end of the debate, when each candidate was asked what they liked the most about the person to their left, Joe Biden turned to Kucinich and humourously said, "I like your wife!" Haha...
Barack Obama - seemed fairly genuine, though you can tell he was very polished. Seemed even-keeled and confident. Gave credit and praised his fellow candidates. Seemed very decisive and confident in his answers. However, his lack of experience was evident.
Mike Gravel - not a factor. Tried to lambaste his fellow candidates. Got really pissed off several times that he is not getting questions, and this was, unfortunately very clear on TV. An old fogey who will not go very far - I'm shocked he's in the race. I suspect he'll drop out first.
Chris Dodd - not a factor. Gets off topic. Seems passionate, but didn't really draw any oohs and ahhs.
Joe Biden - not bad, but kind of slick - he seems way too sure of himself, although he did show some humility at times. Was very clearly best versed at the issues of the war and gun control. He seemed to show well, without too many faux pas.
Hillary Clinton - she seemed very rehearsed. She used a lot of one-liners and cliches. Remained even-keeled and did not blow a gasket at any time. Didn't answer some questions directly, although she was definitely able to outline her experience, probably more than any of the other candidates.
Bill Richardson - he seemed probably the most sincere of the candidates. Seemed like he talked the talk but it was a lot of generalizations and theory (ie. "we need to do this" but he did not outline how). I think he made a good impression on the audience. Showed a good sense of humour by saying at the end that everyone would be great in the next government...as his vice-president...
Overall, I found it interesting, even though I staunchly disagreed with many of their responses as standard liberal fare.
Republican version of the debate will take place Sept. 17.
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