FOURTH DEMOCRATIC DEBATE MORE VICIOUS THAN USUAL

Cringe-worthy moments, evasion, and animalistic behavior. What’s not to love? 

Presidential debates not only offer some of the best entertainment, but also some insight as to how our candidates handle competition. None of these qualities were lacking at the fourth Democratic debate, held in Ohio on Oct. 15. 

We could spend an entire year discussing each of the four 45–minute parts of the debate hosted by CNN. However, highlights of the debate basically summarize the entire thing. 

One of the best questions of the night would have to be the first one asked. Anderson Cooper kicked off the debate by asking Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, “Shouldn’t voters in the next election decide (President Donald) Trump’s fate, rather than (congressional Democrats) pursuing impeachment?”

To summarize an otherwise lengthy answer, Warren responded that nobody is above the law.  

I would have to agree with her answer. Letting Trump continue his presidency without any sort of consequence for his actions would be actively saying that a president can get away with anything. Not to be dramatic here, but if we allow one president to be above the law, we move a little further away from democracy. 

 What happens when another president breaks the law? The lines would be a little blurry because no one held Trump accountable, so why should they, then, be held accountable? Our action on this will create a chain. The effect of this chain could lead the U.S. to drift farther away from democracy and closer to more authoritarian forms of government. We have to hold steadily to the belief that no one is above the law and our leaders must be held accountable for their actions, just like anyone else. 

Now for my favorite quote of the night. Cooper asked the candidates if impeachment is a distraction from debating the issues that more impact people’s day-to-day lives. Julian Castro, former San Antonio mayor and U.S. Housing Secretary, responded, “Not at all. We can walk and chew gum at the same time.”

While I liked the spirited answer, I don’t quite agree. Obviously, I believe we should be setting consequences for Trump’s actions, but as far as these early debates go, I think they should stop focusing quite so much on impeachment.

We know a lot of these candidates are in Congress and pull some direct weight in the impeachment efforts. So, they should stop wasting so much debate time talking about it and just act on their words.

Finally, we were brought to the “primal instincts” exhibit of the debate. The moderators asked Warren if she would be raising taxes on the middle class to pay for her Medicare-for-all plan. She spent her entire response time evasively dancing around the question and never giving a straight answer. 

 Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, was given the chance to react to Warren’s response, in which he called her out for dancing around the question and said she could never answer a question straight.  

I have to say, I agree with Buttigieg on that note. It is so discouraging when candidates can’t answer a yes or no question in a straightforward manner. However – brace for the animalistic behavior – the debate got a little off-topic when all the other candidates took turns picking at Warren for her evasive answering.  

I don’t think every single one of them needed to say their piece about it. The question became more about Warren than her politics, and after a few minutes, reminded me of vultures picking at a dead subject.

Overall, the debate was extremely long, and the questions were pretty tired. I’m hoping the next debate will pack a little more punch.