The Hotline - THE DUAL

Thursday, April 17, 2008

ABC NEWS DEBATE

THE DUAL

"Forget the jobless, despairing voters in small towns across" PA, last night in Philly it was ABC News' Dem debate "that was bitter." Barack Obama "was thrown on the defensive about everything from comments" by his ex-pastor to his "friendship" with a member of the "radical Weather Underground" to why "he rarely wears an American flag pin in his lapel." Hillary Clinton "got off a little easier" during the first half, but later she "had to explain why she had mischaracterized being under sniper fire during a trip to Bosnia as" FLOTUS. And it "was a good thing for Clinton that the TV moderators carried the brunt of the attacks on Obama" because she "could not afford to because she is in a tough strategic position, facing a nearly insurmountable deficit in the delegate count and a narrowing lead" in PA (Fitzgerald, Philadelphia Inquirer, 4/17).

Overall, Clinton "sought to sow doubts in the minds of voters about whether Obama understands their problems and will be able to withstand" GOP attacks if he faces John McCain. On the other hand, Obama, after being "forced to defend" some of his past relationships, tried "to reassure voters by calling for an end to the politics of tearing each other down" (Lieberman, Harrisburg Patriot-News, 4/16).

A War Of Words

During this "tense and grim encounter," Obama "seemed on the defensive for much of the conversation about personal vulnerabilities." Here's some of what he said:

•On the topic of wearing flag lapel pins, Obama said: "I have never said that I don't wear flag pins or refuse to wear flag pins. This is the kind of manufactured issue that our politics has become obsessed with."
Asking about his "friendship" with radical William Ayres, Obama said: "So this kind of game, in which anybody who I know, regardless of how flimsy the relationship is, that somehow their ideas could be attributed to me. I think the American people are smarter than that."

•Clinton pressed him for more of a response, saying: "I know Sen. Obama's a good man and I respect him greatly, but I think that this is an issue that certainly the Republicans will be raising." To which Obama replied that Clinton had a problem of her own, because Bill Clinton had "pardoned or commuted the sentences of two members of the Weather Underground, which I think is a slightly more significant act."

•Obama also noted he's "friends with conservative GOP Sen. Tom Coburn" (R-OK) and asked rhetorically if he needs "to apologize" for some of his colleague's "controversial comments" (Haberman, New York Post, 4/17).

•On the matter his "bitter" remarks, Obama "said he could understand why some people might have been insulted by what he said and how he said it." More: "The problem with politics is that you take one person's statement, if it's not properly phrased, and beat it to death. That's the kind of politics we've been accustomed to" (Eichel, Philadelphia Inquirer, 4/17).

Where's The Gray Lady Leaning?

On the front page of the New York Times this a.m.: "The result was arguably one of Mr. Obama's weakest debate performances" (Nagourney/Zeleny, New York Times, 4/17).

MSNBC's Matthews, on the New York Times front page saying it was Obama's weakest performance: "I thought it was so rare that the Times ... would actually say who won or lost the debate right up in the front. They just say it, he lost. That's rare" ("Morning Joe," 4/17).

NBC's Todd, asked if agrees with the New York Times assessment: "Absolutely. ... He didn't handle, I think, the tough questioning very well. He seemed annoyed by it. He seemed put off. And then he let it affect his performance when it went to the issues. ... I think he let folks see him sweat a little bit. ... The one thing they can be happy about is that she doesn't seem to benefit from these things some times, because when it's overly negative, it's like she's got reverse teflon" ("Morning Joe," MSNBC, 4/17).

Morning Spin

Obama strategist David Axelrod, on Obama: "I don't think he was irritated and annoyed other than that, you know, it was 50 minutes before a question on any substantive issue was asked. I mean, there we were in the constitution center, a few steps from where the great debates happened that led to our Republic. I think if the founding fathers had come back and watched this, they would have been scratching their heads, as were people all across Pennsylvania. ... I'm not going to whine about the questions in the debate, but I do think that there are things that are more important to people in that state and across this country" ("Morning Joe," MSNBC, 4/17).

Clinton comm. dir. Howard Wolfson: "I thought it went exceptionally well for Senator Clinton. It did not go particularly well for Senator Obama. I think Senator Clinton was clearly in command of the facts. She was great on the substance. She was poised and relaxed. Senator Obama was clearly very much on his heels, getting asked questions that he did not have good answers for. And it was clear win for us" ("Morning Joe," MSNBC, 4/17).

I'm Not Bitter

While Obama "found himself consistently on the defensive" from Clinton's attacks, with few exceptions "he chose not to go after his rival aggressively, even when he was asked whether voters considered her honest" (New York Times, 4/17).

Getting Hammered

Last night, Clinton "hammered" Obama. There was "no sign of a strategic softening during the somber but sharp-edged two-hour debate" (Thrush, Newsday, 4/16).

Slate's Dickerson, on whether Clinton will benefit from attacking Obama over the bitter remarks: "Well, it doesn't look like she's doing very well this time around either. ... Her negatives have gone up, and there is this question of trust that continues to dog her. She may not be the best messenger for this line of attack" ("American Morning," CNN, 4/17).

HRC supporter Lisa Caputo, on Obama trying to keep things positive and deflecting negative attacks: "At every opportunity when the offensive shots were coming in, either from the journalists or from Senator Clinton, [Obama] really kept trying to pivot off of it and say this is the kind of politics people aren't interested in talking about" ("LKL," CNN, 4/16).

Ex-WH adviser David Gergen, on how Clinton didn't avoid negativity at the debate to improve her image: "I thought, tonight, she might change course some. I thought, frankly, she would move to a lighter place and try to talk more positively about the future. I was surprised that she continued to go negative on him, because I don't see the evidence. They must have internal polls, the only thing I can conceive of" ("AC 360," CNN, 4/16).

Gergen: "I don't think we got much new out of this about Reverend Wright. ... Every time one of these potential criticisms came up, Hillary Clinton wanted to dig it in, and he wanted to get away from these kind of questions" ("AC 360," CNN, 4/16).

But Can He Win?

There was a "brief moment of lightness" when Gibson "asked whether either would endorse a proposal by Mario M. Cuomo" to promise that whoever wins the nod "choose the other as his or her running mate, and that the loser would accept." Gibson: "So I put the question to both of you: Why not?" The lengthening "silence from the two candidates was filled by the laughter of the crowd." Later, when Clinton was asked if she thought Obama could win the general, "it took two answers" before Clinton "answered whether she believed Mr. Obama could win." Clinton: "Yes, yes, yes." Adding: "I think I am better able and better prepared" (New York Times, 4/17).

By agreeing that he could win the general, Clinton undercut "her efforts to deny him" the nod "by suggesting he would lead the party to defeat." Asked if Clinton could win, Obama said: "Absolutely and I've said so before" -- a "not-so-subtle dig at his rival who had previously declined to make a similar statement about him" (Fouhy, AP, 4/17).

Time's Halperin, on Clinton admitting Obama is electable in the general election: "I think, in general, she was in a box tonight. She was forced to say, by the questioning, that she believes Obama is electable in a general election. And her problem is, her main argument, that she's making privately, and the only way she can stop the superdelegates and the delegates from going to Obama is to argue that he's not electable, based on some of these things that came up this evening. That contradiction, acknowledging he's electable, but trying to make an implicit argument that he's not electable, is impossible to do, and again, made more difficult by the fact that she's got her own problems to deal with" ("AC 360," 4/16).

Gergen: "I do think that was one of the most significant statements in the debate, when she was asked, point-blank, is he electable, and she said yes, yes, yes. That's going to come back. I think the big question now is, does she tell anybody else in the future he's not electable? That is when it's going to come back to bite her. She starts making that comment privately, Harold Ickes is out making that argument privately, then there are going to be all sorts of questions about hypocrisy and one thing and another. So, I thought that was a very significant statement tonight" ("AC 360," CNN, 4/16).

Dickerson: "She can never say out loud what she's been saying in private, which is that Obama is fundamentally flawed and can't win in the general election. She can't say that out loud, so she was forced to say, yes, yes, of course he can win. Well, that does undermine her last remaining argument with superdelegates which is he has such big problems that he can't beat McCain" ("American Morning," CNN, 4/17).

Where They Agreed

Clinton and Obama greed that "both have made their share of missteps." Clinton, on her Bosnia comments: "We both have said things that, you know, turned out not to be accurate. You know, that happens when you're talking as much as we have talked." And Obama said: "Sometimes (our) message is going to be imperfectly delivered because we are recorded every minute of every day. And I think Senator Clinton deserves the right to make some errors once in a while. Obviously, I make some as well" (Gilbert, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 4/16).

Dickerson, on whether the issue will go away now that Clinton has apologized for her Bosnia remarks: "No, I don't think the issue goes away. ... Obama will claim, and his advisers certainly claim, that this is a part of the big trust problem for her, and that Americans may forgive this particular slip up, as glaring as it was, but that it points to her fundamental flaw that makes her fundamentally unelectable, and that is she doesn't tell the truth and that voters don't trust her" ("American Morning," CNN, 4/17).

Small Talk Of The War

During the debate, Clinton "reasserted her commitment to begin a pullout within 60 days even if military leaders counseled against it" (Woodward, AP, 4/16).

Gergen, on Clinton's plans for the Iraq war: "Once again, I think Senator Clinton was more rigid on that question, absolutely. In fact, almost any time any public policy came up tonight, she said, this is what I will do, period, end of sentence. She left herself no wiggle room. Barack Obama at least said, listen, this is the mission. I'm going to change the mission, but, of course, I'm going to listen to the commanders on the ground about tactics. That gives him some flexibility about sort of what the -- how it would actually be done over what period of time. It may well be he will have a different general on the ground" ("AC 360," CNN, 4/16).

I'm Doing You A Favor, Buddy

During the debate, Clinton "hit Obama hard." Clinton: "What is important is that we understand exactly the challenges facing us in order to defeat [Republican Sen. John] McCain." Coming back to Ayers, who was quoted by the New York Times as saying "I feel we didn't do enough" when asked if he regretted the group's bombings in the '70s, Clinton said: "This is an issue that certainly the Republicans will be raising" (Lucey/Davies, Philadelphia Daily News, 4/17).

Clinton as essentially pressing the argument that "Obama hasn't been vetted enough to withstand" GOP attacks." Whereas Clinton's been tested, she said: "I have a lot of baggage, and everybody has rummaged through it for years. We know that they're going to be out there, full force." Obama replied: "there is no doubt that the Republicans will attack either one of us." Obama also said: "I can take a punch. I've taken some pretty good ones from Sen. Clinton" (Gillman, Dallas Morning News, 4/17).

I, too, Am Related To A Mill Worker

Clinton, who has "paternal roots" in Scranton "but now lives in an affluent suburb" of NYC, "sharply criticized Obama for his remarks about" small town PA voters. Clinton casted herself as the "granddaughter of a factory worker from Scranton," and said she did not believe "that my grandfather or my father or the many people whom I have had the privilege of knowing and meeting across Pennsylvania over many years cling to religion when Washington is not listening to them." In response, Obama "acknowledged" that his remarks "might have been offensive to some, but said they were misconstrued." Obama: "The problem we have in our politics ... is that you take one person's statement if it is not properly phrased and you just beat it to death, and that has been what Sen. Clinton has been doing over the last four days" (Micek/Drobnyk/Kraus, Allentown Morning Call, 4/17).

Thanks George, You Owed Us One

Washington Post's Shales writes, ABC News anchors Charlie Gibson and George Stephanopoulos "turned in shoddy, despicable performances." For the first 52 minutes of the debate, the moderators "dwelled entirely on specious and gossipy trivia that already has been hashed and rehashed, in the hope of getting the candidates to claw at one another over disputes that are no longer news. Some were barely news to begin with." Gibson "sat there peering down at the candidates over glasses perched on the end of his nose, looking prosecutorial and at times portraying himself as a spokesman for the working class." Whereas the "boyish" Stephanopoulos looked like "an overly ambitious intern helping out at a subcommittee hearing, digging through notes for something smart-alecky and slimy." To Shales, "ABC's coverage seemed slanted against Obama" (4/17).

Clinton "got the kind of debate conditions she wanted:" A heavy focus on Obama's "problem spots. There was even a "twist thrown in when Obama was grilled about his relationship with" Ayers. This was "the ground of Clinton's choosing, a debate as much about the issue of electability as the issues of the day. And Obama withered a bit in the spotlight" ("Horserace," CBSNews.com, 4/17).

Others Saw It Differently

New York Times' Stanley writes, Clinton was "under attack" from her ex-friend/ex-WH aide, Stephanopoulos. It was "weird to see hints of the disgruntled employee/imperious boss dynamic between" Stephanopoulos and Clinton.

Still, there were moments when Clinton and Stephanopoulos "seemed back to their old war room sync." Like when Stephanopoulos asked Obama "about his ties" to Ayers and Clinton "took up where" Stephanopoulos "left off" (4/17).

FNC's Hannity: "All credit finally to ABC News and George Stephanopoulos and Charlie Gibson because they asked them very tough questions. Finally the media asked [Obama] about Bill Ayers. ... He gave a pathetically weak answer. They finally asked him about Reverend Wright and some of the inconsistencies here" ("Hannity & Colmes," 4/17).

CBS' Greenfield: "I actually think it was pretty rough on Obama. I don't think 'Saturday Night Live' is going do a sketch about how in-the-tank these guys were for him. They went after on all the vulnerabilities that emerged in the recent weeks" ("Early Show," 4/17).

Speak For Yourself

Stephanopoulos on his choice of questions:

Stephanopoulos, on asking Clinton whether Obama could win the general: "Her campaign and Senator Clinton herself have been making the argument to superdelegates that Barack Obama can't win. In public, she was caught in a little bit of a bind. On the one hand, she didn't really want to admit that he could win. On the other hand, she calculated. And I think she was right in this calculation that if she didn't say directly yes at some point, Democrats would blame her. They would say she's being too negative, she's not allowing the parties to come together. She had no choice in the end but to say, yes, he can win. And, of course, you saw him do exactly the same thing."

Stephanopoulos, on Obama bringing up Clinton's "elitist" comments in '92: "That was a really interesting moment for Barack Obama. First of all, I think that Senator Clinton was surprised that he brought up tea and cookies, but then used it as a way to set the issue aside. He also passed up an opportunity to question Senator Clinton's credibility and said he didn't want to do that. Now, she did not pass up opportunities to go at his past. ... Now, I just got word from the Obama campaign this morning. They say that some ... prominent Pennsylvania supporters are going to switch sides this morning from Clinton to Obama, because they perceived her as being too negative last night" ("GMA," 4/17).

The Stupid Economy

The most "substantive policy debates" came over Obama's proposal to "nearly double" the capital-gains tax rate from 15%; Clinton "said she would not raise the tax on investors to more than 20%, if she raised it at all." Clinton also "touted her plan to freeze interest rates on subprime mortgages" and "create a moratorium on home foreclosures as a way to stem the housing crisis." Clinton, on taxes, said: "I don't want to raise taxes at all" (Chozick/Timiraos, Wall Street Journal, 4/17).

CNN's Crowley, on how Clinton's and Obama's economic plans will play to voters: "I think it plays very well in the primary. I think their problem is going to be when they get to a general election, whichever one gets there. You will see the Republicans and John McCain going after it, particularly, I think, on Iraq. He will talk again about the calamity that would happen if you pull troops out. I think they will talk about the idea of no new taxes. Now, as far as we know, John McCain, being a Republican, is also for no new taxes. I think one way around this for Clinton and Obama may be the definition of middle class. But I agree that they have really boxed themselves in. All I could think of while listening to this was George Bush 41 and that 'no new taxes,' you know, 'read my lips statement, which pretty much cost him the reelection" ("AC 360," 4/16).

Halperin: "Well, in the case of the taxes, I don't believe that ... either of them has been as explicit as they were asked to be tonight. And, on Iraq, their spokespeople had gone further than they have, in both cases, for being very emphatic about withdrawal from Iraq. In the case of the general election, I think their Iraq statements could be a real problem. And if either of them is elected president, in the Oval Office, they're going to face potentially excruciating choices on those two big issues if circumstances are changed, when they have got to go back on a very clear pledge on Iraq, and then again on the question of whether taxes would be raised on people making less than $250,000 a year" ("AC 360," CNN, 4/16).

Crying Over Spilled Ink

A wrap up of what some newspaper columnists thought about the Dem debate:

•New York Times' Collins writes, Clinton and Obama "tossed personal baggage back and forth like a tennis ball" (4/17).

•Scranton Times-Tribune's Krawczeniuk writes, "They avoided the kind of mistakes that could hurt either in the next five days. ... Mostly they reinforced their followers' belief in them and distaste for their opponent" (4/17).

•Philadelphia Daily News' Bykofsky writes, the debate "wasn't the fiery crash we were expecting ... I'm guessing it came across like a draw and a snore" (4/17).

•Philadelphia Daily News' Baer writes, "But my guess is nothing they said will change the landscape or move voters or have much impact on the outcome of" the PA 4/22 primary (4/17).

•Salon's Shapiro writes, "The problem is that most debates are judged on the basis of their sound bites and searing emotional moments." Last night's debate "flunked both as drama and as intellectual norishment" (4/17).