AMERICANS REMAIN SPLIT ON
by Carl P. Leubsdorf
and Wayne Slater
October 04, 2000
Knight-Ridder Tribune
BOSTON--Presidential rivals George W.
Bush and Al Gore challenged each other's
proposals and intentions on issues ranging
from prescription drugs to abortion in an in
tense and wide-ranging presidential debate
Tuesday night.
Mr. Bush accused the vice president of
practicing "old-style Washington politics" and
said his Democratic rival was advocating a
"big, exploding federal government that
wants to speak in your behalf."
"It's time for a fresh start," he said, declar
ing that Mr. Gore was making promises the
Democratic administration had failed to
achieve in the last eight years. "You've had
your chance, vice president -- you've been
there eight years, and nothing has been done,"
he said.
Mr. Gore, zeroing in on the Bush tax plan
from the outset, charged that the Texas gov
ernor "would spend more money on tax cuts
for the wealthiest 1 percent than all of the
new spending he proposes for health care, pre
scription drugs and national defense all com
bined.
"Those are the wrong priorities," Mr. Gore
declared
The two challengers -- in nearly identical
dark suits, white shirts and red ties -- stood at
lecterns just a few feet apart on the carpeted
The debate, the first of three sponsored by
the presidential debate commission, came at
a time when polls were indicating this to be
the closest presidential race in 20 years. The
two men displayed sharp differences on a va
riety of domestic and international issues.
The candidates repeatedly challenged each
other's assertions about the potential effect of
their plans for producing tax cuts, prescrip
tion-drug coverage and energy independence.
One of the sharpest exchanges came toward
the end of the 90-minute encounter when the
moderator, PBS' Jim Lehrer, asked Mr. Bush
whether there were differences in character
between him and the vice president.
"I don't know the man well, but I have been
disappointed about how he and his adminis
tration has conducted the fund-raising affairs
-- you know, going to a Buddhist temple and
then claiming it wasn't a fund-raiser is just
not my view of responsibility," he said.
Mr. Bush, quoting Mr. Gore's comment that
there was "no controlling legal authority" cov
ering his 1996 fund-raising role, said the vice
president should have shown "a better respon
sibility for what was going on in the Oval
Office."
Mr. Gore replied that, "I think we ought to
attack our country's problems, not each other."
Looking at Mr. Bush, he said, "You have at
tacked my character and my credibility, and
I'm not going to respond in kind."
The issue then turned to campaign reform
and, when Mr. Gore repeated his endorsement
of a ban on "soft money" contributions, Mr.
Behrend students debate the debate
by Liz Hayes
news editor
The first presidential debate of the
2000 campaign season took place
Tuesday evening, October 3, between
Vice President Al Gore and Texas
Governor George W. Bush. The
University of Massachusetts at
Boston hosted the debate, and Jim
Lehrer was the moderator.
While the debate was greatly
anticipated, many seemed to have
been left with a sense of
dissatisfaction over the final result.
After months of arguing and
compromise by both parties, many
felt that all the bickering was for
naught.
"What the debate showed is that if
the format rules are too strict, it can
stunt active discussion of an issue.
Jim Lehrer was right to allow the
debate to become more free-flowing
instead of cutting people off when the
clock buzzed," commented Dr. Robert
Speel, associate professor of political
science. "It is funny, however, that
the candidates negotiated these strict
rules, but then felt free to break those
rules on debate night."
PHOTO BY PETE SOUZA/CHICAGO TRIBUNE
Vice President Al Gore and Texas Governor George W. Bush squared off Tuesday, October 3, 2000 during the first 2000
presidential debate at the University of Massachusetts/Boston.
Bush replied, "The man has no credibility on
the issue."
On energy policy, Mr. Bush repeated that
he favored incentives to increase domestic
fuel production, including some drilling in the
Alaska National Wildlife Refuge. Mr. Gore
also called for domestic incentives but said
he favored measures to curb fuel consump
tion and criticized Mr. Bush's plan to drill in
Alaska.
"It's not the right thing," Mr. Gore said
"It is the right thing," Mr. Bush countered.
After the debate, both sides claimed vic-
"Al Gore won the debate on issues," said
Bob Shrum, a Gore strategist. "I do not be
lieve that coming out of this debate that
George Bush gave people a very powerful
reason why they would want to elect him
president.
"And in terms of being presidential and
showing knowledge of the office, Al Gore
won the debate again," Mr. Shrum added.
Stuart Stevens, a Bush strategist, said the
Texas governor succeeded in presenting him
self as a leader.
"If you were a voter watching this, you
WHO WON?
Dr. Colleen Kelley, assistant
professor of speech communication,
agreed: "The time constraints of the
media limited the amount of discourse
possible. I'd like to see a real Lincoln-
Douglas debate, where the candidates
interacted with each other."
Another comment on the quality of
the moderator came from Ryan
Peterson, COMBA 06. "I thought the
moderator sucked he let Gore pretty
much take control."
Aside from remarks on the format
of the debate, comments varied on the
overall quality of the candidates'
performance. These opinions ranged
from Gore won, Bush won, and no
one won
"I was disappointed with the whole
thing. The shouting and sighing [from
Gore] was really entertaining,
though," stated Sarah Orr, COMBA
05. "Probably if I had to pick a
winner, I would choose Al Gore
because he got more of his points
across."
Tyler Weideman, COMBA 09, was
also less than impressed with Bush's
performance: "I thought Bush looked
stupid. His demeanor seemed too
Election s
k
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.
.
Gore, Bush
domestic
folksy. Also, the comment 'fuzzy
math' didn't work for me."
Not everyone saw Gore as the
winner, however. Although he
thought the debate was "pretty even"
in the beginning, Peterson commented
that the tides turned as the night
progressed. "At first I thought Gore
would win, but Bush picked up the
pace in the middle."
Veronica O'Brien, MIS 07, was
critical of Gore's performance. "Gore
should have given Bush ample time
to speak instead of interrupting him
all the time." However, she also had
issues with Bush's presentation:
"Bush kept acting like Texas was its
own little nation to itself, separate
from the rest of us."
The consensus of students
interviewed seems to be fairly evenly
split, though a few more students
seem to feel that Gore came out
looking better than Bush. Almost
everyone polled did have one negative
thing to say about Gore's
performance, however. As Nate
Crawley, MIS 09, put it, "One of
Gore's advisors should have told him
not to sigh into the microphone."
offer
issues
came away much more comfortable with
George Bush," he said. "Bush seemed on cer
tain subjects, particularly like education,
much more passionate. I don't think there was
any subject that he didn't seem equally knowl
edgeable as Gore."
Thomas Mann of the nonpartisan
Brookings Institution said the debate did not
change the essential calculus of the race.
"Both did well in presenting their pitch to a
national audience," he said. "My view is that
it will reinforce the current structure of the
Much of the evening was devoted to ques
tions and disagreements about their various
domestic-policy proposals. Mr. Gore often
detailed the figures in both his and Mr. Bush's
plans, often drawing allegations from Mr.
Bush that he was using "fuzzy math."
"This is a man who has great numbers,"
Mr. Bush said at one point. "I'm beginning to
think that not only did he invent the Internet,
he invented the calculator."
On prescription drugs, Mr. Gore said his
plan would provide coverage for all senior
citizens under Medicare while Mr. Bush
would require all but poor seniors to wait for
rival visions on
in first debate
Lieberman, Cheney likely to point to
top names on ticket in debate
by David Jackson
October 05, 2000
Knight-Ridder *ftilnine
While presidential contenders George
W. Bush and Al Gore rest up, their run
ning mates will climb into the ring
Thursday in Kentucky. But the debate
between Republican Dick Cheney and
Democrat Joe Lieberman will, be more
like shadowboxing, with many of the
peaches aimed at the other guy's presi
&stud patron, analysts said. "Tradi
tionally, they're going after the top of
the ticket rather than each other," said
Alan Schroeder, a Journalism professor
at Northeastern University and author
of "Presidendal Debates: Forty Years of
High-Risk TV."
Aides said that Lieberman plans to
'continue the.conversation" Gore began
during Tuesday's presidential debate,
outing the economic record of the
Clieton-Gore administration. During a
ViSitWednesdaY to a The station in Rich-
four or five years before they get coverage.
"I guess my answer to that is the man is
running on 'Mediscare,"' Mr. Bush replied. "I
want all seniors to have prescription drugs in
Medicare. This administration has failed to
do it."
When Mr. Gore cited the example of a Mil
waukee couple earning $25,000 a year and
said they would not receive coverage under
Mr. Bush's plan, the Texas governor dis
agreed.
"All seniors are covered in the first year,"
Mr. Bush replied.
"Middle-class seniors are not covered," Mr.
Gore shot back.
On abortion, Mr. Bush acknowledged that
he was opposed to abortion rights but rejected
the assertion by Mr. Gore that he would ap
point Supreme Court justices who would
overturn a woman's legal right to have an
abortion.
"I have no litmus test on that issue or any
other issue," he said. But he also said, "I will
not use the bench to write social policy."
Mr. Bush said he would sign a law ban
ning certain late-term abortions, while Mr.
Gore said he would do so too, provided there
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strategy, he ieinnt'eti seileral
what he called Gore's factual lapses ini
the debate, questioning whether he
would "deal straight with the American
people" if elected.
Lielxtrman and Cheney will meet'at
Centre College, a 1,054-student cam
pus about 50 minutes south of Lothig
ton. They will be seated at a table with
a nxximutor, CNN news anchor Bernard
Shaw. In addition to promoting Bush
and Gore, the vice presidential candi
dates have what analysts call one other
major task: Don't make yourself a po
litical issue. "You want to avoid some
thing that drags some brouhaha into the
presidential race," said Stuart
Rothenberg, publisher of a Washington
based political newsletter.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2000
ISSUES
were exceptions protecting the life and health
of the woman.
Mr. Bush said that, while he criticized the
Food and Drug Administration's decision ap
proving the RU-486 abortion pill, he couldn't
overturn it. But Mr. Gore noted that the gov
ernor had said previously that, if elected, he
would have the FDA commissioner review
the decision.
Though the emphasis was heavily on do
mestic issues, the two contenders also clashed
in responding to a question about how they
would deal with the situation in Yugoslavia,
where President Slobodan Milosevic has re
fused to concede defeat in last month's elec
tion and called for a runoff.
Mr. Bush suggested that the United States
enlist Russia's help in forcing his ouster. "This
would be an interesting time for the Russians
to step up," he said. "The Russians have a lot
of sway in that part of the world."
But Mr. Gore replied that, while that might
be a good idea in some circumstances, "I'm
not sure it's right for us to invite the president
of Russia to mediate this dispute there" be
cause Russia has endorsed the runoff. "We
might not like the result," the vice president
said.
The debate took place at the Clark Athletic
Center at the University of Massachusetts-
Boston campus, alongside the John F.
Kennedy Presidential Library. The site was
chosen by the bipartisan Commission on
Presidential Debates to mark the 40th anni
versary of the first televised debates between
Kennedy and Richard Nixon in 1960.
The commission, which has run the debates
since 1988, limited participation to Mr. Bush
and Mr. Gore. The panel's guidelines require
candidates to get at least 15 percent support
in major polls to participate. That left out the
other presidential hopefuls, most notably
Green Party candidate Ralph Nader, whose
support has been about 5 percent, and Reform
Party nominee Pat Buchanan, about 1 percent.
The governor's wife, Laura, sat in the front
row next to a number of Texans, including
state Sen. Teel Bivins, R-Amarillo, Secretary
of State Elton Bomer and former Dallas
County Democratic Party Chairman Sandy
Kress. The governor's siblings Doro Bush
Koch and Marvin Bush also attended.
Tipper Gore was accompanied by family
members and guests including the Rev. Jesse
Jackson, former Treasury Secretary Robert
Rubin and Massachusetts Sens. Edward
Kennedy and John Kerry.
The two remaining presidential debates will
take place Oct. 11 at Wake Forest University
in Winston-Salem, N.C., and on Oct. 17 at
Washington University in St. Louis. On
Thursday, vice presidential nominees Dick
Cheney and Joe Lieberman will meet at Cen
tre College in Danville, Ky.
On Wednesday, the candidates planned to
head to closely contested industrial states. Mr.
Gore was traveling to Youngstown, Ohio, and
Mr. Bush to the Philadelphia suburbs. Polls
show Mr. Bush clinging to a small lead in
Ohio, while Mr. Gore is leading in Pennsyl
vania.
poaches,
Lieberman, the first Jewish member
of a national party ticket, has agent the
week in Kentucky. Since =Mug Sun
day night, he has studied and itattid
pated in mock debates in a white,;col
umned Georgian hour:owned by the
alumni association of Eastern Kentucky
Univeraity. While milling with Eastern
Kentucky students, Lieberman ap
proached the bronze statue of a mus
ket-bearing Daniel Boone, then fol
lowed a college tradition by rubbing the
famed frontiersman's left toe. "Students
rub it to get A's on their finals,"
Lieberman said, *I hope I get an A on
my test Thursday night.*
Chew?' thee tu Kentucky mattues.