The first of its kind and a historical event is truly what it was. The CNN & YouTube debate which showcased videos made by ordinary Americans who asked various types of questions lived up to its hype completely. While the debate featured some humorous videos, it actually had a more intellectual and intriguing questions than expected. In fact many of the questions allowed candidates to show their human being side in terms of answering questions such as who was your favorite teacher and why? That type of questions is usually never seen or heard of at a debate but it truly brought about a lot of interesting comments and it gave some insight into the hearts of many of the candidates.
For instance, former Senator Mike Gravel gave a comment about how one of his teachers took the time out to teach him how to speak and it has led him to the opportunity he has tonight on stage. Also Senator Barack Obama gave an insightful comment about how his 5th grade teacher who spent time in Kenya taught him that growing up in another country is not a bad thing but it rather helps one in terms of presenting a different mindset than most. However the most interesting responses came in the question about No Child Left Behind and whether or not the candidates would scrap it all together or revise it. All the candidates said they would scrap it all together and look to improve education by decreasing class sizes, improving teacher training and making sure funding is going to school districts and schools equally and fairly so that all children can learn.
Also the candidates were asked would they be willing to accept minimum wage if they are elected President. Many of the candidates said yes but let’s be real, I don’t think any of the candidates would be willing to serve as President if they were only paid minimum wage. Also Anderson Cooper through an interesting twist in the question and said they would not be paid for overtime either. Therefore I truly felt that the candidates did not really answer the questions truly but rather said what they public wanted to hear.
Questions ranging from the war in Iraq, health care, education, foreign affairs, diplomacy social security, and the environment all were asked. Thus the CNN & YouTube debate really gave a lot of voters’ insight into the passions and sincerity of many candidates as well as how quickly each candidate can think on their feet. Overall I felt that each candidate did well but clearly some stood out more than other in this type of setting. Senator Mike Gravel was very enlightening and passionate in his responses. I felt he really stood out and this setting really helped him but many will not take his candidacy seriously. Senator Gravel spook the truth and did not bit his tongue one bit when he replied too many of the questions.
Now Senator Obama did much better in this type of format and gave more concrete solutions than he had done in the past. While Senator Hillary Clinton continued to show she was the front runner and was here to stay. Senator Clinton was humorous as well as engaging in her responses that showed me she was charismatic. Former Senator John Edwards really gave a lot of concrete and accurate solutions as well as gave some serious insight into many of the things that plague America. So to be more accurate I feel that Senator Edwards was suited for this format and really responded well. Now while the top three Democratic candidates did well in this first of a kind debate format. I must say that Governor Bill Richardson and Senator Joe Biden were good in their responses but they did not really overlap the top three Democratic candidates. However they did well enough to stay above water and gave some good responses to many of the questions. Congressman Dennis Kunich and Senator Chris Dodd did not do well in this format by any means. While at times they gave good responses, they did not really sell me on many of their stances. However I do believe that each of them being in the debate served its purpose in terms of presenting various views on the debate.
Most of all, I do believe that the CNN & YouTube debate was historical and pure brilliant in terms of showing the humor of each candidate as well as giving Presidential debates life. Many political pundits and non-pundits believe that debates are boring and possess no charisma or humor. However this first of a kind debate lived up to his hype was clearly one of the best debates I saw in a long time in terms of really putting the candidates on the spot and allowing the candidates respond as freely as they wanted. While a lot of people were judging and looking at this debate to see who won, clearly Senator Gravel won and was the most open and real about the issues in terms of telling the truth and not just saying what he felt the audience or the people wanted to hear.
Senator Clinton and Senator Obama might be the Democratic frontrunners but they did not show that really understand all the issues clearly because they really did not answer all the questions completely and accurately. While I do feel that Senator Edwards answered the questions great except for the question dealing with gay marriage. Senator Edwards did not avoid the question but he did do a lot of back tracking in his responses which I felt showed that he has not completely made up his mind on the issue and is willing to listen. However Senator Edwards needs to understand that using religion to justify why one does not or does support gay marriage or civil unions is never justifiable no matter how you try to portray it or cut it. However Senator Edwards now understands that and showed that in responding to the issue. Therefore other candidates for future reference need to see what Senator Edwards did and don’t avoid the questions that are controversial to their campaigns.
Simply put the CNN & YouTube debate is here to stay and people should look forward to this type of format to be done in future Presidential, Senatorial, Gubernatorial, Congressional and Mayoral races’.
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