Hey, John Edwards just mentioned that his dad worked in a mill! I don’t know about you, but I’ve never heard that before.
But I’d rather hear about John Edwards’s daddy’s choice in underwear for twenty minutes than listen to twenty minutes of disappointing “neener, neener, you tie your shoes wrong” exchanges between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
I will admit that this was the first Democratic debate that I have watched. Until this point I have bee a rather passive observer of the nomination process. Before the debate I was leaning towards voting for Edwards. I didn’t think that Clinton would be able to unify the country behind her. I also didn’t think that Obama has the experience necessary to be President. There was little in the debate that changed my mind. I will admit, however, that there was also little in the debate that would change the minds of Clinton or Obama supporters. We’ll have to see how things fall out on Saturday when those of us in SC vote in the Democratic primary.
On a side note, it was interesting to see the report that the Republican SC primary drew fewer people than in 2004. Is this a reflection of the alienation that the Republican party has created within the SC population? If Saturday’s Democratic primary results in an increase in participation then the results in the general election in November are promising for the Democratic party.
I found that Edwards was by far the most civil, which is revealing, given that many times it’s those who are behind that decide to become the most critical. I thought that Clinton was stretching to find things to criticize in Barack Obama, and that Obama did good job responding.
I still haven’t made a choice between the three, though, and I may not end up making one at all.
Edwards was definitely the most civil, almost to the point of being neglected. While Clinton and Obama were having at each other, Edwards was quiet. Whether this was a weakness on his part or simple Southern hospitality remains to be seen. Either way, I think he emerged as the strongest candidate.
I hate it when people talk about “simple Southern hospitality”. I’ve lived in the North, and I’ve lived in the South, and Southerners are no more hospitable than anyone else in the country.