Thirty students, many of them first-time voters, gathered in the Los Cerritos Residential Hall to watch and analyze both sides’ arguments on the war and the economy in the 2008 vice presidential debate.
Out of the 30 students in attendence, many smirked and commented on Republican nominee Gov. Sarah Palin’s folksy language and her winking at the camera.
“That’s how she’s going to win votes,” said Jeannine Pearce, a senior sociology major, as she referred to Palin’s charming and playful language.
“I came to get more information before I actually vote,” said Joel Michael, a freshman drawing and painting major. “It’s hard to choose in this election.”
Michael said he likes Palin because “she is a spiritual Christian housewife against abortion.”
Most others waiting to watch the debate, however, were skeptical of Palin, recalling the recent criticism she received in the media.
“I’m interested to see what she is going to say because I don’t know what to think of her yet,” said freshman Rimona Hecht. “I want to know why she might make a good president.”
Pearce said, Palin’s closing statement depicting an America with no freedom was a way for her to use “fear language to try and scare voters into the hands of the McCain Campaign.”
“She did have things memorized well,” Pearce said.
The most controversial points the candidates made rested on taxes.
Biden said he wishes to focus on relieving taxes on the middle class and increasing taxes on those who make over $250,000.
Biden said Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign has a “different value set,” but Palin insisted that increasing taxes is a “backwards way of trying to grow our economy.”
The vice presidential nominees also clashed on views of healthcare and the Iraq War. They did, however, agree on the issue of gay marriage, though Biden and Obama support civil unions.
“They managed to keep the spirit of the debate alive unlike the presidential debate, which seemed really sterile to me,” said Lisa Peterson, a junior political science major.
According to political science professor Lewis Ringel, vice presidential debates are generally not significant in the presidential campaigns.
“I don’t imagine that it makes much of a difference for voters,” Ringel said. “The [vice presidential] debate is not seen traditionally as having an impact on our elections.”
Before the debate, Ringel anticipated not what the vice president nominees would say, but how they would do.
“You never know what that man is going to say,” Ringel said about Biden. After the debate, he said he was surprised Biden was able to stop himself “from being a fool” and keep a calm temperament.
“I think Biden’s strategy reflects that no one wins by attacking the [vice president] nominee,” Ringel said. “That’s what he did. He focused on the presidential nominee.”
As for Palin, Ringel stated he was not surprised she did well. He explained that she served her purpose because she showed voters she could hold her own against a political veteran.
“I suspect that there are voters that only heard she isn’t smart and would walk away from the debate thinking that she is,” Ringel said.
Not many students at the debate-viewing event caught Biden’s mistake when he wrongly stated that the executive powers of the government are found in Article I of the Constitution. Article I actually lays out the legislature and Article II describes the executive.
“I think that they both said things that were factually questionable,” Ringel explained. “Palin said she broke up a monopoly in Alaska. I don’t think as governor she could break up a monopoly.”
1) I would like to say My quote is not exactly how I phrased Palin’s winking . . .
2) The report, while nice, did say she was a Palin supporter after taking our quotes
3) We wanted it noted that we have a CSULB for Obama group that does reach out to Swing State and organizes events on campus. Coming up is a soap Box event.
CSULB4OBAMA@gmail.com
Finally, thank you for covering some election event. . .
1) I would like to say My quote is not exactly how I phrased Palin’s winking.
2) The report, while nice, did say she was a Palin supporter after taking our quotes
3) We wanted it noted that we have a CSULB for Obama group doing
This reads like the reporter is biased for the McCain/Palin ticket. It’s hard to believe everybody at a public university watching the debate was as conservative, with the author even pointing out Biden’s minor factual error, while not noting that Palin was evasive, relying heavily on cutesiness and cornpone. I personally don’t want another person who can’t pronounce ‘nuclear’ sitting with their hand next to the button at 2 a.m. “you betcha.”