2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumThe Adults Take the Stage The Democratic debate may be boring, but the contrast will be striking
Relative to the two Republican presidential primary debates already behind us, Tuesday night's Democratic primary debate is expected to draw a modest TV audience. Back on January 31, 2008, when candidate Barack Obama was still a political phenom, CNN logged the most-watched presidential primary debate in its history to date, drawing an average of 8.3 million viewers. With the second Republican primary debate last month, the network nearly tripled that.
We surely have Donald Trump to thank for the disparity. Had he sat out the race this year, he would have deprived Fox News and CNN of his singular combination of fame, media savvy, insensitivity, and cringe-inducing combativeness. But even absent Trump, Republican primary debates would probably draw bigger audiences than their Democratic counterparts. It isnt wrong or biased to say that Democrats make comparatively boring television. But that isnt a strike against Democrats, either. Its a reflection of the fact that the Republican Party, unlike the Democratic Party, is dominated by reactionary voters, which makes its candidates prone to saying or doing outrageous things out of a sense of necessity.
http://www.newrepublic.com/article/123085/adults-take-stage
I look forward to the debate and am confident all our stellar candidates will acquit themselves admirably.
We Want Bernie
(45 posts)and ex-Clinton supporters will be flocking to Bernie the day after tomorrow.
oasis
(49,393 posts)DemocratSinceBirth
(99,710 posts)NCTraveler
(30,481 posts)Hortensis
(58,785 posts)higher quality even if smaller than that drawn by Trump and his many wannabees.
NCTraveler
(30,481 posts)Then again, contrary to the beliefs of some, the contrast really is night and day between the two parties so it makes perfect sense to most of us. Really excited to see the next President take the stage tomorrow.
RobertEarl
(13,685 posts)Finally Bernie gets a national stage and from here it will be a grand and glorious ride to the White House, from where Bernie will direct the revolution that puts the past behind us and opens up a new future that makes left progress and ensures the mass of people are helped by government and not hindered.
NCTraveler
(30,481 posts)Keep it up it is a great thing. Just understand, that if the battle isn't won to your liking, there is still a political war to wage. Love the enthusiasm. Go Sanders.
oasis
(49,393 posts)mmonk
(52,589 posts)It won't be on any of the imaginary issues they believe exist.