1ST PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES: KAMALA RISING!

JAZZMAN CHRONICLES:  DEFEATING TRUMP.

A LONG AND WINDING ROAD TO THE WHITE HOUSE

FIRST ROUND PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES

Kamala Rising!

By Jack Random

It is often said that presidential debates are not as important as the hype would have them; that a debate at the end of June has no bearing on the end result.  To some extent that may be true but it is also true that candidates are made or broken by the early debates.  It is also true that no other single event has greater significance than a candidate’s first appearance on the presidential debate stage. 

Readers may remember when Rick Perry, then governor of Texas, took himself out of presidential contention by calling for the abolition of three federal agencies but could only recall two of them.  Oops.  In one of the most ironic and revealing moves of the Trump presidency, Perry now serves at the helm of that forgotten agency:  the Department of Energy. 

The pitfalls are many, the rewards are great and the one who prevails will rise to become leader of the free world. 

NIGHT ONE:  WARREN HOLDS FIRM

THE CANDIDATES:  BILL DE BLASIO, TIM RYAN, JULIAN CASTRO, CORY BOOKER, ELIZABETH WARREN, BETO O’ROURKE, AMY KLOBUCHAR, TULSI GABBARD, JAY INSLEE, JOHN DELANEY. 

The first debate in the current season did not produce a Rick Perry moment but they absolutely revealed a great deal about the candidates on stage.  Senator Elizabeth Warren secured her place as a policy guru.  Senator Cory Booker, former Representative Beto O’Rourke and former HUD Secretary Julian Castro competed in the category of Best Foreign Language.  Representative Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii held her ground as the conscience of a party that seems to have forgotten the critical lessons of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Bill de Blasio inserted himself into issues without seeming to play the bully.  Despite a few one-liners Senator Amy Klobuchar failed to capture the kind of attention she needed to gain ground in the polls.  The same holds true for the Green Governor Jay Inslee who seemed determined to emphasize his knowledge outside of protecting the planet. 

To the extent that anyone won the first night of the first round of debates it was Julian Castro.  He pushed hard on immigration and made Beto O’Rourke appear uninformed.  He also won the Spanish speaking debate by virtue of the fact that he is Hispanic. 

Congressman Tim Ryan of Ohio reminded us why Senator Sherrod Brown should be on stage when he talked about the Democrats needing to be the party of the working people.  He lost us when he argued for a continued presence in Afghanistan.  His gaff led to a shining moment by Representative Gabbard who had to remind him that the longest standing war in American history is an absolute disaster.  She had to remind him that the Taliban was not responsible for the 9-11 attack.  Al Qaeda was.  Had she more time she might have reminded the uninformed congressman that the Taliban offered to hand over the Al Qaeda suspects to an impartial tribunal but the Bush administration refused. 

Tulsi Gabbard stood alone through this exchange and that should worry all of us who spent more than a decade fighting the disastrous and ill-conceived wars in the Middle East.  At a time when President Trump is threatening war with Iran every candidate on stage should have rallied to Gabbard’s side instead of remaining politely silently.  Hopefully the candidates who emerge from this process will find their antiwar voices.  If not they will find a great many potential supporters peeling away from the Democratic Party. 

It was patently unfair of the moderators to ask Gabbard to defend her already retracted position on LGBTQ rights.  She has a stronger record on these civil rights issues than Cory Booker who strangely attacked her for not including transsexuals in her response.  She was not asked about transsexuals and Booker should know better.  Too often he seems a voice in search of a cause. 

Nearly every candidate on the stage Wednesday night demonstrated why he or she needed to be there.  Elizabeth Warren is clearly the most knowledgeable candidate not only on economic issues but on all issues.  She is the leading female contender representing the progressive wing of the party.  Castro is the only Hispanic candidate and the strongest voice on immigration.  De Blasio is an uncompromised liberal with nothing to lose.  Inslee is the Green candidate.  Beto has staked ground as the viable alternative to Inslee as the Green candidate and the man who might stand a chance in Texas.  Booker is a powerful voice on criminal justice.  Klobuchar is the reasoned moderate who knows how to talk to Republicans.  Gabbard is a veteran of the Iraq War and the strongest voice against going to war again. 

That leaves only two:  Congressman Tim Ryan and former Congressman John Delaney.  The former distinguished himself as not ready for prime time on foreign policy and the latter wins the Dead Man award (1) as a man who speaks a lot, says nothing.  Delaney interrupted at every opportunity and consistently failed to deliver poignant remarks. 

At this juncture, Ryan and Delaney are out.  Because Beto stumbled, Inslee remains alive but should stick to climate change as much as humanly possible.  De Blasio stays where he was: hanging on by a thread.  Klobuchar and Booker get a pass but they still need to distinguish themselves from the field.  Warren holds strong.  Castro and Gabbard rise in the hearts and minds of their respective constituencies. 

NIGHT TWO: KAMALA RISING

THE CANDIDATES:  MARIANNE WILLIAMSON, JOHN HICKENLOOPER, ANDREW YANG, PETE BUTTIGIEG, JOE BIDEN, BERNIE SANDERS, KAMALA HARRIS, KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND, MICHAEL BENNET AND ERIC SWALWELL

We all want to be charitable.  It is kind to say that former Vice President and frontrunner Joe Biden could not keep up with the competition.  He began his performance with checklist answers delivered at a rapid clip and eventually broke down into a semi-incoherent ramble. 

As the only African American on the stage, Senator Kamala Harris took aim at old Joe’s rationale for working with the Old South’s segregationists and his stern opposition to bussing as a remedy to segregation.  He could not have known that one of the dark skinned children who benefited from bussing was Kamala Harris.  Harris took him down softly but he is unlikely to regain his unbeatable status.          

The rest of the field offered interesting insights and solid rationales for their candidacies but none made a move that will register in next week’s polls.  Bernie was Bernie and I love him for it but he has not evolved and others have caught up to him. 

Marianne Williamson is unlikely to sustain her place among legitimate candidates but we should be grateful for her insight into how the Democrats will beat Donald Trump.  Essentially, Trump operates out of fear and his opposition must counter with love.  It is an oversimplification but there is fundamental truth in it.  The Republicans have long been perceived as the Daddy party and the Democrats are the Mommy party.  Poor old dad has been doing a bum job lately.  It’s time to give mom a try. 

Mayor Pete distinguished himself once again for his sharp mind and speaking ability.  His response to criticism regarding the racial makeup of his police department was however inadequate.  He said simply:  “I didn’t get the job done.”  The mayor needs to take care of business in his own back yard before he moves on to the highest office in the land. 

Andrew Yang demonstrated he is a man of substance.  He deserves a place in the next government and his ideas warrant serious consideration. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand staked ground as the candidate representing women’s issues.  She was forceful, knowledgeable and well spoken.  Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper has assumed the role of attacking Bernie for not cowering when confronted with the dreaded “S” word.  It may do a little damage to Bernie but it will not carry Hickenlooper to the next tier.  Colorado Senator Michael Bennet appeared to be a nice man and a solid Democrat who simply does not have the charisma to advance to the White House.  Representative Eric Swalwell laid claim to represent the next generation, goading old Joe to hand over the torch but he pushed too hard like a rambunctious teenager.  His issue of gun control will stick but he must wait for a better opportunity to advance. 

In the end the only candidate to significantly advance her cause is the junior senator from the state of California.  She has learned on the trail.  She connects.  She has proven to be a determined opponent and Joe Biden felt the sting of her jab.  She broke through the cacophony of white noise while the others drifted. 

Kamala rises.  Now she must sustain her momentum. 

Jazz.

1.  The character Nobody in the 1995 film Dead Man, directed by Jim Jarmusch and starring Johnny Depp. Music by Neil Young. 

JACK RANDOM IS THE AUTHOR OF THE JAZZMAN CHRONICLES AND THE FOUNDER OF CROW DOG PRESS. HIS COMMENTARIES HAVE BEEN PUBLISHED AT DISSIDENT VOICE AND COUNTERPUNCH.