Texas Dem Debate Nearly Closed to General Public

[babylonsister]

Texas Tiff Over the Dems Debate

By HILARY HYLTON/AUSTIN Fri Feb 15, 4:15 AM ET

When it comes to Texas politics, Austin is the liberal hole in the largely conservative donut, a decidedly Democratic city that relies on politics to fuel the local economy and feed the social ether. So ever since it was announced that Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama would hold a presidential debate on the campus of the University of Texas on February 21, the city has been abuzz with anticipation and excitement. That infectious enthusiasm, however, quickly turned to disappointment after debate organizers announced the event would be closed to the public.

No one had expected the state's primary to mean much when the Texas Legislature declined to join the Super Tuesday lineup a year ago. Lone Star political junkies resigned themselves to the conventional wisdom that the race would be over by the time March 4 rolled around. But with many now arguing that Hillary Clinton's chance at the nomination hangs in the balance, Texas Democrats are enjoying the limelight and energized after years of enduring Republican dominance at the statehouse. The cry for tickets went up within minutes of the announcement on February 11, but organizers initially responded that there would be no general admission seats and tickets would be reserved for the University of Texas, the Texas Democratic Party, the Obama and Clinton campaigns, and debate broadcasters CNN and Spanish language network Univision

The not-so-public debate prompted local media blogs to explode with angry and dismayed postings. A history teacher declared her disappointment since she had hoped her high school students might be able to attend the historic event. A University of Texas student wrote that this was why many young people were estranged from the political process, Obama's huge crowds notwithstanding. Why call it a "public" debate at all, another poster asked?

The debate will be held in the gym of the Recreational Sports Center on the UT campus, one of the university's smaller venues, which only seats between 1,000 and 3,000, according to CNN. By contrast, in September of 2006 Senator Clinton delivered a moving eulogy at Gov. Ann Richards memorial service in the nearby UT Erwin Center, which holds up to 17,000. A spokesman for CNN said the smaller gym offers a more intimate setting that is suitable for television.

But that has not halted the criticism, particularly among Obama's legions of supporters - the Illinois senator attracted a crowd of 22,000 in a downtown rally on his first visit to Austin a year ago, and in November some 3,000 Obama supporters attended a fundraiser at a popular Austin musical venue. For grassroots organizers like Ian Davis with Texans for Obama the issue has become "an absolute nightmare." His phone is ringing all day long as enthusiastic Obama supporters want to know why they cannot attend the debate. "It could have been a golden opportunity, but it's become a colossal headache," Davis said. His friends and counterparts in the Clinton campaign and in student organizations are telling him they share his pain as they also take the heat. "Everyone is getting slammed," Davis said. "This is supposed to be a fair, transparent populist party."

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http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20080215/us_time/atexastiffoverthedemsdebate

[rainman99]

1. How embarrassing. I hate living here.