Presidential debate viewed as a success for both parties
A higher interest in the vice presidential debate than ever before is expected.
Sept. 29, 2008
Local supporters of presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain gathered to watch the first debate on Friday. The year's sole vice presidential debate, which is expected to attract more attention than in past elections, is set for Thursday.
The debate was initially supposed to be focused on foreign policy, but the first 40 minutes centered on the turbulent U.S. economy. Both candidates largely stuck to their broader themes, with Obama stressing his change message while McCain emphasized his record of fighting wasteful spending.
"Both candidates did what they needed to do to obtain some victory," communications professor Mitchell McKinney said. "Both candidates' performances were strong enough to where their supporters were able to claim victory, and in some ways the debate could be seen as something of a draw."
McKinney said the debate context was similar to the 1980 general election between incumbent President Jimmy Carter and GOP candidate Ronald Reagan.
"In that context, Ronald Reagan was seen as the outside candidate, the fresh candidate, the new candidate that was questioning the current administration, which at that time was Jimmy Carter," McKinney said. "Jimmy Carter, as the incumbent president, was attempting to call into question Ronald Reagan's ability to be the leader of the country, based on his inexperience and his lack of knowledge of international affairs."
A group of local Obama supporters met at Kayotea in downtown Columbia to watch the debate.
Marvin Rogers, a retired MU political science professor, lauded Obama's judgment while lashing out at McCain's experience.
"It's hard for me to believe that five or six years in a Vietnam prison equips someone with the judgment to be president," Rogers said, referring to McCain's time in a prisoner of war camp during the Vietnam War.
Rogers said he used to be a Republican, but switched in 1956 after frustration with the way the Republican president at the time, Dwight Eisenhower, handled the Hungarian revolution.
"I think the outcome of this election will have a profound effect on the United States," he said. "It will either continue to undermine the way the world sees us or begin to rebuild our relationship with world leadership."
Sophomore Sarah Rappaport said she was particularly impressed that Obama was the first candidate to bring up the situation in Pakistan.
"He has great judgment," Rappaport said.
Across town, McCain supporters gathered at the Republican Party's Boone County headquarters where Frank Donatelli, deputy chairman of the Republican National Committee, made an appearance.
In response to the debate, sophomore Ryan Robinson said McCain had a better grasp of the issues than his Democratic challenger.
"I thought it went very well," Robinson said. "I thought that it seemed like McCain knew his facts and it seemed like Obama was on the defense for most of the time."
Communications professor William Benoit said in a news release that the debate between McCain and Obama was mostly positive. Just 39 percent of the candidates' statements were attacks and 9 percent were defenses against the other candidate.
On Thursday evening, vice presidential nominees Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and Sen. Joe Biden will clash at Washington University in St. Louis. Normally, the interest in the vice presidential debate is fairly low, though, McKinney said this year might be an exception.
"We've seen in this election cycle that there is great interest," McKinney said. "This year could be the exception in that voters are just as interested in the VP debate as they are in the presidential debate. The VP debate may have the ability to have an influence on the race."
- Staff Writer Scott Kanowsky contributed to this report
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