No More Debates!!

[NeedleCast]

(I posted this as a reply in another thread but wanted to post it as an OP as well)

21.

That's the number of debates that have already happened.

4.

That's the number of head to head debates between Hillary and Obama.

Between 21 debates and six months of endless campaigning if you STILL don't know where these two candidates stand on the issues it's your fault for not paying attention to the previous debates.

Campaigning, at the end of the day, is 75% strategy, 25% issues. It would be foolish for Obama to go through with more debates at this point because all it can do is hurt him. There have already been an unprecedented number of debates in this primary. Hillary is trailing by a large margin in the amount of money she has on hand (even if she did raise 10 million yesterday, which I think is highly suspect). She can't afford to spend with Obama in any of the remaining states. Agreeing to more debates just gives Hillary free air time. If I were his campaign manager I would tell him he'd be crazy to engage in any more debates. It has nothing to do with "fear" of debating Hillary after the past several debates have changed little in terms of national and state level polling. It has to do with playing a smart strategy, which Obama has done consistently and Hillary, who was leading in national polling by as much as 30% six months ago has basically run a tired, old-style campaign which has taken her from easy front-runner to distant 2nd with no hope of catching up without a huge super-delegate swing.

Why is it that, at this 11th hour, debates have become the number on thing on Hillary's mind? Hell, I'd lose respect for Obama if he agreed to another debate after the hack job that happened in PA. Camp Hillary-biased sources are the only ones that didn't see that debate as a three person attack on Obama and NBC has been soundly criticized for the moderation of that hit-disguised-as-debate. Maybe we can have Rove-Scaiffe as our next moderators? They cry for more debates is just a cry of desperation from Camp Hillary and continues to show that her "kitchen sink" strategy has been a dismal failure as Obama continues to lead in Delegates, Popular vote and national polling.

Where were the cries from camp Hillary for MORE DEBATES OMG!!! before Super-Tuesday? It wasn't until Hillary fell behind that frequent debates became something Camp Hillary was interested in.

Let me say that a few more times, because it's important.

It wasn't until Hillary fell behind that frequent debates became something Camp Hillary was interested in.
It wasn't until Hillary fell behind that frequent debates became something Camp Hillary was interested in.
It wasn't until Hillary fell behind that frequent debates became something Camp Hillary was interested in.

Show me one, JUST ONE, instance where, before Super-Tuesday, Hillary was interested in more debates. Just show me one. Show me once where Hillary can be quoted in a major media outlet saying that she wanted more debates. I'm not talking about Hillary saying she'd agree to more debates, I want to see evidence of Hillary requesting more debates prior to falling behind in this campaign.

I'll wait.

[HereSince1628]

1. I'm not sure any of these joint Q&A's could be called debates.

In a debate there is usually an issue that has 2 sides to be argued.

The networks blew their role, why help them sell advertising?

[NeedleCast]

6. Exactly

[Saturday]

2. Obama is against more debates because he can't win them. nt

[uponit7771]

4. Winning = talking about his formor pastor and shit that happened when he was 8?

[meow mix]

15. these hillary democrats* only care about what freeps think.

pretty sad, and its reflective of the candidate they supposedly "support"

[uponit7771]

3. IF and ONLY IF they debates were moderated by intellectuals that don't care about ratings and

...stupid shit was left out then MAYBE it should be thought about.

[NeedleCast]

7. If I were Obama's Campagin Manager

I *Might* agree to that if the moderator(s) for the debate were chosen from experts in the field of the issue(s) that were going to be debated and the debate was going to be air on PBS.

[Ilsa]

5. I haven't much of anything resembling a debate, and it isn't likely we ever will.

These are all for shameless network promotion. I have better things to do with two hours of my life than listen to catty remarks about pastors and snipers.

[flyarm]

8. so what is obama so afraid of? ...or is it Dean who is afraid he is imploding? eom

[NeedleCast]

10. He's Not Afraid of Debating

As seen by the fact that he's participated in 21 of them already.

Come on Hillbot, answer the question: Where were all these requests for more debates before Obama become the front-runner? Why is that it was only after the weeks leading up to Texas that Hillary suddenly became interested in this once-a-week debate strategy?

Hillary smells like desperation.

[Life Long Dem]

14. Obama is not afraid of debating. He will avoid a debate that is used as an attack on him. n/t

[SoFlaJet]

9. only if the moderators can ask Clinton

about blow jobs in the WH and Vince Foster and Bosnia and Nafta and Travelgate-fair is fair

[MercutioATC]

11. If she wants debates, make them single-issue debates moderated by experts.

Do a debate on healthcare.

Do another debate on foreign policy/Iraq/Afghanistan.

Do another debate on the economy.


These "debates" we've been seeing are worthless because they're moderated my idiot pundits with stupid questions and no issue ever gets dealt with in any depth. I'm not interested in seeing another one of those.

[Life Long Dem]

12. Debates are great!

Unless it's only used as an attack on a candidate like ABC's was. So right now I say no debates. MSM is out to get Obama.

[kentuck]

13. Hillary has asked for debates in OR and NC...?

Coincidentally the two states where she's behind the most.