I know, I know, everyone’s talking about it…but I have to speak about it, too. I mean, it was just the worst, and we ALL have to raise our voices together if we want to see this kind of thing stop.
I’m referring to the debacle that was called by ABC News a Presidential Debate two nights ago. I hope that every one of you already has sent a protest or signed an online petition decrying the horrible, absolutely abominable, performance of the so-called network newsmen who asked the questions of the two candidates.
Those gentlemen–George Stephanopoulos and Charles Gisbon–made a mockery of television journalism by spending the first 45 minutes (and more) or the debate asking inane questions having nothing…literally, nothing…to do with the future of our country or the issues facing Americans every day, and everything to do with trying to embarrass the candidates and goad them into rancorous exchanges.
Barack Obama was not biting–he would just not get into overt criticism, on a personal level, of his opponent in the Democratic primary, Hillary Clinton–and for that he was punished by the debate moderators, who issued a barrage of “gotcha” questions about silly things having no import at all.
Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, missed not a single chance to lob critical comments at her opponent, and I, for one, am getting just a bit sick and tired of her snide, “oh-am-I-not-so-obviously the better-smarter-tougher person” approach to campaigning.
And now, if you even say one word about how stupid the questions in the first half of that debate were, or if you even mention for five seconds how low this campaign has gone, you’re accused of “whining” and told that “if you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.”
But where was all that reaction when Hillary, herself, was complaining four weeks ago about how the media was giving Obama a free pass and how she was being piled on in the debates?
I agree with Obama that this presidential campaign has reduced itself to silly issues and an obsession with nonsensical “I gotcha” questions…like, why don’t you wear an American flag pin on your lapel? Or, do you think your former pastor is as patriotic as you are?
How sad that in this country we’ve brought back McCarthyism, and now call it “the rough and tumble of politics”, in which your past acquaintances are brought up to indict you and find you guilty by association–no matter how distant or incidental the association was.
I’m sickened by all this. I thought we would have a truly inspiring, uplifting presidential primary season, with two wonderful Democratic candidates fighting it out on the issues, the issues, and nothing but the issues. I guess I should have known better. We’re just not capable of that in the United States anymore…