Debate leaves questions

No clear winner among presidential candidates

BARRY COHEN
Editor

Questions remain unanswered following the Democratic presidential debate, televised nationally from the Orpheum Theatre in downtown Phoenix Oct. 9.

Who won and who lost? Who can defeat President George W. Bush? Which candidates, if any, are addressing voters' concerns?

Local opinion is mixed.

"The format of this debate and the number of candidates participating was not conducive to big winners and big losers," said Ron Ober, manager of a local government relations firm who said he's an "unpaid advisor" to Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.)

The nine debate participants were former Ambassador Carol Moseley Braun, retired Gen. Wesley Clark, the Rev. Al Sharpton, Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.), Rep. Dick Gephardt (D-Mo.), Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Gov. Howard Dean (D-Vt.), Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) and Lieberman.

"I thought there was a target on (Clark's) back, and he did not advance his cause," said Ober. "Dean was flat. Gephardt and Kerry did very well. Lieberman was the only one who zeroed in on an Arizona issue," the earned status of immigration, he noted. "The Hispanic leadership took note of that issue."

Earl Katz, a Scottsdale resident, offered a different assessment. "There were losers, but there were no winners," he said.

Kucinich, Sharpton and Braun "are mud-dying the waters and decrease the time (during the debate) where issues can be discussed that register with the general electorate."

The candidates were too "tactical" in their responses, said Natalie Lang, a Scottsdale resident. "It would be more impressive if they would talk about their vision, leadership and strategies," she said. Instead, they were "preoccupied" with criticizing Bush.

"Lieberman was the least effective," added Lang. "He lacks an engaging motivating passion but has an intelligence that runs deep."

Gene Schupak and David Shefrin, both from Scotts-dale, offered different perspectives.

"Of all the candidates, I probably favor Lieberman," said Schupak. "He's probably the only Democrat I would vote for."

Schupak cited Lieberman's political experience, his intelligence, integrity and his fiscal prudence - along with a desire "to pursue terror."

Open to conjecture is whether any of the Democratic presidential candidates could defeat Bush.

"Lieberman is one of the few candidates who can beat Bush," said Shefrin, who worked on Lieberman's campaigns in Connecticut for state senator, attorney general and U.S. Senate. "I think he is mainstream and knows what this country needs."

However, Shefrin did not believe he was at his best in the debate.

"He was very low key and not vocal enough," he said.

Either Lieberman or Kerry could defeat Bush, said Katz, but victory will be contingent upon choosing a vice presidential running mate who can win in the Southern states.

Lieberman is a threat to Bush because he is a centrist and "can cater more to the middle than Bush," said Schupak. "But I think he has little chance of getting the nomination" because he is too much of a centrist to appeal to the Democratic Party faithful, he added.

None of the Democratic candidates is addressing the issues she cares about most, said Lang. Her concerns include strong leadership, human rights, a healthy economy, the Middle East, prescription drug costs and "the haves vs. the have-nots," she explained.

"Maybe with study and homework," Clark can address these problems, she said. "I am concerned with (Gephardt's) overwhelming bureaucratic mentality," she added, "but I think he understands what is needed."

Katz said he is most concerned about the way Bush "has destroyed or is on the road to destroying the middle class." Katz also disapproves of Bush's tax cuts, which have "made it impossible to carry on the many progressive advances that were made from the (Franklin) Roosevelt to the (Bill) Clinton years."

He favors Lieberman because "he would not take away the middle class tax cut but would remove the tax cut from those who make $200,000 or more."

Ober said he too is concerned about how the middle class "has been decimated."

"Lieberman remembers the importance of the middle class and how it made this country great."

Contact the writer at barry_cohen@jewishaz.com.

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