Obama v. McCain Looking over last night’s Presidential Debate
Aside from, in my opinion, this being the most boring Presidential Debate I have ever sat through, it was also one of the least revealing debates to date. Both Barack Obama and John McCain constantly reverted to their stump speeches, reciting the same stretched facts and same spurious accusations. The debate would have been so much better if moderator, Tom Brokaw who chose all the questions, had opened it up a bit. I read Dick Morris’s column today about McCain not swinging hard enough and playing too nice with Obama last night and frankly don’t see how McCain could have mustered up the opportunities to do so with the under-hand lobs that Brokaw was tossing both candidates. We missed the opportunities to delve into who these candidates really are, what forms their world view and how they would act on other issues that mater to many Americans. Even a few open ended questions about their underlying premises on the economy, the constitution, their political heroes and their past associations would have been appropriate and of much more interest to the American voter than the rote stump-speech triggering questions that have all already been answered.
Here are 10 questions I would have liked to see Brokaw ask both candidates:
You can glean some of their answers from their published positions on their websites (OBAMA's Site and McCain's Site). I would advise that one looks at their career voting records as well as the only indication of how they really believe – still old-fashioned and believe that actions are far more indicative of beliefs than words are.
John McCain’s voting record
Barack Obama’s voting record
JUST FOR FUN:
Now if I was moderating the debate not Brokaw here are a few of the questions I would have asked:
Now would you agree that the debate would have been much better had we asked deeper more specific questions and held them to answering them? What would the debates be like if random people on the street where selected instead of a carefully hand-picked audience? I will assert that choosing 30 folks from inner city Detroit would pose an entirely different set of questions than 30 folks from rural Colorado.
Let us demand more from not only our leaders and potential leaders, but form the media as well.
Here are 10 questions I would have liked to see Brokaw ask both candidates:
1. What is your position on gun control as it relates to the second amendment?
2. Do you believe that Roe vs Wade and Doe v. Bolton were decided properly?
3. Do you believe that abortion is a privacy issue or a right to full and equal protection under the law issue?
4. You both have claimed that our current failed energy policy has America sending 700 billion dollars to countries that don’t like us? The price of oil has fallen 40% since that accusation was made reducing the current import number to 420 billion dollars, one third of our imports are from friendly countries such as Canada, Mexico and the UK further reducing that number to just under 278 billion dollars. How does the change in your original figures affect your energy policy?
5. You both have claimed that you will cut spending. What programs specifically are you willing to cut?
6. You both have asserted that the greed on Wall Street has thrust us into our current financial crisis. Who specifically benefited from this greed and what are you going to do to punish them?
7. For Mr. Obama. You claim that your tax plan will provide a tax cut for 95% of Americans. With 40% of Americans not paying any income taxes, how do you arrive at that number?
For Mr. McCain. You claim that you will cut taxes on everyone, with the majority of the cuts favoring the lower and middle income tax brackets. How would that impact revenues and your ability to fund the spending projects you are promising.
8. Please describe how a flat tax is not fair
9. You both claim to be for nuclear power generation in our country. Where would you propose placing the first nuclear power plant?
10. What do you have to say to American’s who find the Patriot Act to be unconstitutional and an invasion of American’s privacy rights?
2. Do you believe that Roe vs Wade and Doe v. Bolton were decided properly?
3. Do you believe that abortion is a privacy issue or a right to full and equal protection under the law issue?
4. You both have claimed that our current failed energy policy has America sending 700 billion dollars to countries that don’t like us? The price of oil has fallen 40% since that accusation was made reducing the current import number to 420 billion dollars, one third of our imports are from friendly countries such as Canada, Mexico and the UK further reducing that number to just under 278 billion dollars. How does the change in your original figures affect your energy policy?
5. You both have claimed that you will cut spending. What programs specifically are you willing to cut?
6. You both have asserted that the greed on Wall Street has thrust us into our current financial crisis. Who specifically benefited from this greed and what are you going to do to punish them?
7. For Mr. Obama. You claim that your tax plan will provide a tax cut for 95% of Americans. With 40% of Americans not paying any income taxes, how do you arrive at that number?
For Mr. McCain. You claim that you will cut taxes on everyone, with the majority of the cuts favoring the lower and middle income tax brackets. How would that impact revenues and your ability to fund the spending projects you are promising.
8. Please describe how a flat tax is not fair
9. You both claim to be for nuclear power generation in our country. Where would you propose placing the first nuclear power plant?
10. What do you have to say to American’s who find the Patriot Act to be unconstitutional and an invasion of American’s privacy rights?
You can glean some of their answers from their published positions on their websites (OBAMA's Site and McCain's Site). I would advise that one looks at their career voting records as well as the only indication of how they really believe – still old-fashioned and believe that actions are far more indicative of beliefs than words are.
John McCain’s voting record
Barack Obama’s voting record
JUST FOR FUN:
Now if I was moderating the debate not Brokaw here are a few of the questions I would have asked:
1. Mr. Obama, who is Saul Alinsky in your opinion and would you consider him a far left radical or a centrist? What if any impact has Alinsky’s work played in the formation of your political philosophies?
2. Mr. McCain, what specifically was your relationship to Charles H. Keating, Jr? Did you personally benefit financially from this relationship?
3. Mr. Obama, you claim that health care is a right. Why is it a right, and what other rights are American’s not currently afforded?
4. Mr. McCain, you claim that your health care plan will cover more people by providing them a refundable tax credit. How will you contain insurance costs over the long haul? Why does your plan, according to the Tax Policy Center increase the deficit by 1.3 trillion over ten years?
5. Mr. Obama, in your now famous speech of October 2, 2002 you did opposed the war in Iraq, but you did not call for action in Afghanistan as you now claim. What is the disconnect?
6. Both Candidates, you frequently talk about fairness. Do you measure fairness by the rules of play or by the outcome?
7. Both Candidates, you are both outspoken about the Reagan years for different reasons. What was Ronald Reagan’s single biggest accomplishment while President of the United States?
8. Both Candidates, you both support capping carbon emissions and both believe that Global Warming is a man-made catastrophe that threatens life on this planet, as we know it. What is the hard scientific evidence that convinced you of this? Do you leave any room in your assumptions that Global Warming may not be a man-made but a normal cyclical occurrence? What effect will capping carbon emission have on atmospheric CO2 particulates over the course of the following decade after achievement of the Carbon Cap goals?
9. Both Candidates: What is your position of right to die for the aged? In your new healthcare proposals do you have proposed cut-of-age for life saving measures? What is your position on treating terminal illnesses such as late stage cancer, cardiopulmonary disease and kidney failure?
10. Both Candidates: What makes you believe that you are qualified to be President of the United States of America and leader of the free world?
Now would you agree that the debate would have been much better had we asked deeper more specific questions and held them to answering them? What would the debates be like if random people on the street where selected instead of a carefully hand-picked audience? I will assert that choosing 30 folks from inner city Detroit would pose an entirely different set of questions than 30 folks from rural Colorado.
Let us demand more from not only our leaders and potential leaders, but form the media as well.
Comments