An analysis of the debate by someone of the "rock the vote" generation

My analysis of the debate.
The debate itself was the best debate I’ve seen. The TV spots interjected here and there were a nice touch! The fact that they were trying to get in touch with a different audience made them looser, and more natural. Seeing what they viewed as “cool” casual clothing was kind of funny. (Am I the only one who though DK looked like a really bad TV villain) DK and Clark both went for the matrix look, while the rest were pretty traditional. On note Edwards looked really good in a midwest/southern kind of way. Overall though I thought Sharpton dressed the best, although I’ve always been partial to vests.
I thought the questions asked by my generation were better/more poignant than the normal debate questions. Gay issues as well as birth control were both addressed, which I think was a really healthy thing.
The candidates that impressed me most were CMB, Clark, and Kerry. Kerry’s killing vs loving a man quote was really good. Clark just seemed more polished than normal, maybe it was wearing all black… CMB felt like a really sincere and caring candidate, I hope she becomes a senator or press secretary or yes, President. Oh, I think Edwards was trying for a Clinton moment at one point, but it didn’t quite fly.
Dean wasn’t bad, I thought he was able to bat away Kerry’s NRA attack really well, but he didn’t seem to do anything other than maintain his Deanness (which probably works when you are the front-runner).
What the heck was up with Lieberman, he wanted to party with that gal who was like 1 year older than I am? Hmmm… I’m a little disturbed.
Sharpton of course kicked some butt, although I’ve come to expect that from him. I hope he becomes press secretary, he’s got a way with words on the fly!
I think that is about it. A good debate, I would like to see more debates like this one, I think if enough people watched this one it may have been the defining debate!

..."maintain his Deanness." I like it! Deanosity got us here, after all, lol. And hey, I'm 19. I'm of the "Rock the Vote" generation, maybe someone can assemble my various comments throughout the debate threads into a "Second View from a Member of the Rock the Vote Generation?" Hehehehe, kiddddddding.

Later.

RJS

I emailed CNN about him. Way better than Judy Woodruff. But then it's not hard to go up from a total zero.

and energy to it...no doubt because of the young people....And Anderson Cooper was very good as moderator.

I think they have went from 80% attack Bush 10% attack each other 10% build up thier own ideas to 40% anti-Bush 5% attacking each other and 55% showing the nation how damn cool the Democratic Party is! I think we witnessed a turning point tonight, we will continue to drowned Bush, but we are also now recusitating ourselves!

Here's my analysis: Dean got slammed and he deserved it.

I missed the first 20 minutes or so of the debate, how did that go? What was at issue?

They are replaying it at 1 AM ET tonight I believe.

He really did a bad job handling it. For one it's just a tough issue to try to even defend (I'm not sure why one would want to?) Edwards and Sharpton both made very good and foreceful attacks on him.

"Democratic presidential hopeful former Gov. Howard Dean (news - web sites) of Vermont, left, clasps hands with Rev. Al Sharpton of New York, right, moments after the televised Rock the Vote Democratic presidential debate at Boston's Faneuil Hall, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2003. The two hopefuls had a heated exchanged during the debate concerning voters who display the Confederate flag."(AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, Pool)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=650235

John Nichols: Rebel flag flap shows media failure

If you want to understand just about everything that is wrong with the way American politics is practiced these days - and especially with the malpractice of the media - consider the absurd controversy about Howard Dean's comment that "I want to be the candidate for guys with Confederate flags in their pickup trucks."
…
What isn't being reported is this reality: Every single presidential candidate who is now expressing concern about Dean's remark has sat in meetings where political operatives, pollsters and consultants have discussed strategies for winning the votes of white working-class males. These voters, whose economic interests would be at least somewhat better served by Democratic policies but who tend to vote Republican for social and cultural reasons, have fueled the rise of the GOP in recent years. And Democrats are obsessed with figuring out how to reach them.

So why has the Dean comment proved to be so controversial? Good question. It has something to do with the desperation of the other candidates, who have had a hard time keeping up with the former Vermont governor's fund-raising juggernaut and highly effective grass-roots campaign. But, in truth, it has a lot more to do with the media.

Too many political reporters practice stenography to power. They simply take down what candidates have to say. This week, the other candidates are trying to paint Dean as the reincarnation of Jefferson Davis, and the media are dutifully reporting it.

More responsible and engaged media would stop to ask the deeper questions: Why do so many white working-class males vote against their own economic interests? Is it because they are racists who really do embrace the Confederacy's legacy? Is it because the Democratic Party has so abandoned populist economic messages that even voters in what were once traditional Democratic constituencies have lost faith in the party and its candidates? The answers to these questions are complicated; but they are at the core of any serious examination of our politics.

Unfortunately, most politicians are unwilling to engage in real discussions about race and economics, let alone the complex zones in which they intersect. And as the current controversy illustrates, most political reporters have lost the inclination, and perhaps even the ability, to demand better of the politicians.
…
http://www.madison.com/captimes/opinion/column/nichols/60451.php

Howard Dean campaigns in Tallahassee

Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean told a Tallahassee audience today that southerners have to quit basing their votes on "race, guns, God and gays."

Dean, making his first campaign foray into North Florida, spoke at a rally in Jacksonville then addressed more than 500 people at a luncheon of the Capital Tiger Bay Club.
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Dean said he hopes to reassemble a coalition of conservative southern voters like President Franklin Roosevelt had in the "solid South" 70 years ago. Although his opposition to the war in Iraq and his criticism of the Bush tax cuts do not score well in polls in the South, Dean said he hopes working families will support his call for improving education and health care.
http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/democrat/7181952.htm
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=108&topic_id=76824

Did these SOUTHERN, BLACK, Baptists have a problem with Dean's remarks?
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=108&topic_id=73335