What was particularly positive about this forum was that it gave each candidate an opportunity to express his own views one on one with the panel of interviewers. That format also created some distinctions among the candidates: Hillary exuded a great deal more energy and focus, for example, than Richardson, who held some of the same views, but, as one audience member noted "drained the energy from the room when he spoke". Also, a number of the candidates, notably Obama, focused on extolling their own qualities and attributes, in contrast to Clinton who focused on the needs of the audience, who she referred to as "our friends, children, parents and neighbors" and gave specific policies which would improve their lives.
Joan Garry, who watched the Forum with her partner Eileen and her 12-year-old son Ben said "Her big moment watching the forum? When Hillary Clinton singled out former Marine Eric Alva, sitting in the audience, when she spoke of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” quagmire. As Garry puts it: What I will remember is that one of the candidates actually said the name of a real live gay person. Why do I care about this? Because I’m tired of being referred to as an ‘issue.’ I sound like a big problem, don’t I? The gay “issue,” the marriage “issue,” the military “issue.” Well, I am not an issue and I am not abstract. I am real. And the more real stories that are told, the more real support we will build.
According to Garry, is that kind of humane, personal recognition that makes our stories and issues real to the world at large, and gives us hope that politicians might be coming around. http://joangarry.com/index.php/2007/08/15/we-are-all-democratic-hopefuls/
Last edited on Wed Aug 15th, 2007 05:57 pm by advwomen
|
