What would you ask the candidates?
Barack Obama and John McCain will face off in their first debate this Friday, September 26. Hosted by Jim Lehrer of PBS’s NewsHour, it will focus on foreign policy. The debate schedule also includes a town hall-style discussion hosted by NBC’s Tom Brokaw on October 7 and a domestic policy debate moderated by Bob Schieffer of CBS on October 15. Vice presidential candidates Sarah Palin and Joe Biden will debate on October 2, with NewsHour senior correspondent Gwen Ifill hosting.
Given some of the inane questions asked in the primary debates — e.g., George Stephanopolous asking Senator Obama “Do you think Reverend Wright loves America as much as you do?” — I thought it might be a useful exercise for aspiring journalists to propose some questions we’d ask if we were hosting one of the debates.
I’ll throw down my three questions for McCain and Obama and invite all my classmates to suggest their own for any of the four candidates.
First, for Senator Obama. Last year, you pledged to filibuster any bill that gave immunity from lawsuits to the telecommunications companies that participated in the Bush administration’s secret NSA wiretapping program. Yet when such a bill came to the Senate floor, you voted for it. At the Democratic convention in Denver, AT&T sponsored several events, including a party for the Blue Dog Democrats who joined Republicans in driving support for that legislation. Members of both parties have received thousands of dollars in contributions from telecom companies. How do you reconcile your reversal on telecom immunity with your rhetoric on reducing the influence of special interests?
Next, for Senator McCain. When Russia invaded Georgia, a country your foreign policy adviser Randy Scheunemann represented as a lobbyist, you strongly condemned the action and went as far as saying, “Today we are all Georgians.” You have advocated for NATO membership for Georgia, a position that your running mate Sarah Palin acknowledged might require military retaliation against Russia should a similar situation arise in the future. Given that Russia is a nuclear power, and given that our military leaders say their resources are stretched to the brink in Iraq and Afghanistan, can you explain to the American people why you think it’s advisable to take such a belligerent stance against Russia at this time?
For both candidates: Cabinet appointments will serve as an important indicator of your judgment and priorities, should you become president. As we’ve seen with the current administration, appointments such as Donald Rumsfeld and Alberto Gonzales can have a significant impact on the development and implementation of both domestic and foreign policy. Can you name two or three people you’d like to name to your Cabinet, and why you think they would be the best candidates for their respective positions?
September 22nd, 2008 at 1:46 pm
Good questions, nicely framed. I’m sorry you’re not the moderator.
September 23rd, 2008 at 6:06 pm
Hey, great idea for a post. And great questions, too!
I’d also want to know:
1. The last presidential candidate to seemingly have an original, non-reactionary idea for our gov’t may have been Dennis Kucinich with his Dept of Peace. What new institutions, methods or national programs will you bring to the White House over the next 4 years?
2. How should Affirmative Action be retooled for 21st century America?
3. A number of studies have chronicled our nation’s decline of civic participation and community involvement–especially in depressed communities. How would you either of you stimulate a civic renaissance?
September 24th, 2008 at 8:12 pm
Regardless of what is asked of the candidates I am praying that their answers are honest, specific, and clear.
Here is one for both candidates:
What specific changes will you make to The No Child Left Behind Act? Give three specific policy reforms you can make to promote literacy and increase quality science and math education in public schools.