The Texas Debate

Posted By: Adam 5 Comments
We recorded the Democratic debate that took place in Austin, TX and just got around to watching it last night. Hoo boy. Going into it, I already didn't like Hillary. Between her recent family history and the fact that she is the first formidable female hopeful, she's got a lot to overcome; and I think that this has made her lose sight of what's important. I don't think she's honestly given much thought to what will happen after the election and instead is just focusing on winning — and doing so by making promises she can't keep. (Specifically, she mentioned that she would address immigration, taxes, health care, and NAFTA all on her first day in office!) Something in particular that she said that caught my interest was that discrimination based on race, religion, and creed are unconstitutional, but that discrimination of the sick is not (and she would change that)… Here's some news for you: Insurer must pay $9 million for canceling policy – Health Net dropped coverage for woman undergoing cancer treatment. How's that for legal precedent? (And without you in office, I might add!) To add insult to injury, throughout the debate she ignored the moderators indications that she was taking too long to respond, she repeatedly and deliberately went off-topic, and the straw that broke this camel's back was the mud-slinging at the end. Immediately after Obama explained the situation behind his alleged "plagiarism" and dismissed it as something silly to discuss, she dove onto the topic as if it was something she had forgotten to bring up herself. To me, that looked childish. It looked like she was grasping at straws. I think that Hillary feels like she's fighting a losing battle, and she's doing whatever she can to win. Kind of a "shoot first, ask questions later" campaign. On the other hand, Obama was calm, cool, and collected throughout the debate. Unlike SOME hopefuls, he didn't raise his voice when he disagreed. He answered every question directly, and still managed to rebut some of the ridiculous off-topic claims Hillary was making in a reasonable amount of time for each response. I think that Obama feels like he's ahead in the race, and went into the debate with a conservative attitude and the intention of not alienating anyone who might be leaning to his side of the fence, rather than trying to convince people to hop the fence. What saddens me is the idea that it's quite possible we could see an Obama-Clinton ticket. I honestly don't want to see Hillary in the White House, but if that's the price we have to pay to get an intelligent, well spoken, proven leader in, I'm willing to pay it.

5 responses to “The Texas Debate”

  1. I'm what's known in Texas as a "yellow dog" Democrat, and I'm backing Hillary as far as she can take it. If she loses to Obama, then I'll vote for him when it's time but not before then. Regardless of which Democrat wins, though, I think McCain's the best possible Republican candidate they could have hoped for. He's conservative enough but not so conservative that liberals will hate him, and he can definitely pick up the votes of those numbskulls who can't see fit to voting for either a woman or a black man. Good luck to the 3 of them. So far, it's been a clean race, and I'm glad to see that for a change!

    Pine

    Pine ~ Aug 4, 2008 at 9:57 PM

  2. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/24/opinion/24rich.html?ref=opinion

    Check out this well written article chronicling Hillary Clinton's fall from front runner. Basically, she felt her lead was so secure in the early going, that she never planned to still be campaigning this late in the primary season.

    Also, I highly doubt Hillary would be the VP to Obama. She's got quite an ego and wouldn't want to play second fiddle come general election season. You're more likely to see John Edwards, Joe Biden or Jim Webb (Senator from VA) to run along with Obama.

    Zach

    Zach ~ Aug 4, 2008 at 9:57 PM

  3. I think I'm going to move to Canada for the next 4-8 years. I'm not happy with any of them. I am a Republican. At least YOU have a viable choice... my guy is out of the race. :-(

    Ed

    Ed ~ Aug 4, 2008 at 9:57 PM

  4. Hillary SCARES me. I'm really glad she's falling behind. Being a true Independent - voting with my head and not with the label Republican or Democrat, I try to make an educated pick an go with that. This time, Obama is my choice. It took me some time to come around, I'll admit. There were things I just had a hard time reconciling about him. The fact of the matter is, while all the other politicians were out politiking, Obama was out in his community, rubbing elbows and working, not talking about working, to make his community a better place. THAT is my kind of president.

    Try working in Washington DC this year. . . as another blogger (Rude Cactus) puts it, aptly, *Monkeytown* is insane. The hype and tension levels are just incredible.

    Not that I want time to pass me by, but November will bring great relief in so many ways!

    MomT

    MomT ~ Aug 4, 2008 at 9:57 PM

  5. @Zach, thanks for the link! Good article indeed. I think I could get behind an Obama-Edwards ticket. I think they would balance each other out pretty well.

    @Ed, I feel bad for you. The Republican front-runner might die before November. (I'm kidding, of course, but a lot of truth is said in jest.) Personally I'm kind of glad that McCain is leading because I don't think he could put up the numbers against Obama like Huckabee could. It's just sad that the republican party as a whole doesn't see this.

    Adam

    Adam ~ Aug 4, 2008 at 9:57 PM