I attended the debate between incumbent Fitzpatrick and Democratic challenger Patrick Murphy in Doylestown today, and am I psyched. My daughter had spent the day canvasing for Murphy in a Republican town in the district, and had ended up with her co-workers at the debate. Their script was to identify themselves, ask if the person had heard of Murphy (too many still have not) and tell them that he is an Iraqi War Vet with a plan to get out troops home. They told me they had a fantastic response, with many self described Republicans taking literature and promising support.
The Debate hall was overflowing, so they didn't get in, but kept circling the building with signs that said "Honk if you support Murphy". They got lots of response.
The debate was interesting, as I had not heard Murphy before, and did not expect him to be an accomplished speaker. However, his answers, which relied heavily on his military background and personal experience in Iraq, were great.
All of the first six questions were about Iraq. It was the issue on everyone's mind. Murphy could convey meaning in his response to questions that Fitzpatrick simply couldn't match. for example, Fitzpatrick takes pride in distancing himself from the Administration, and on Iraq he allows himself to criticize the war to some extent. So when asked whether Rumsfeld had made decisions that were harmful to American troops, he answered that there wasn't enough armor for the troops, and while in Congress he did something about that and the situation was better now. (He apparently has toured the green zone and been shown the new armor). Murphy's response to the question was personal and all the more effective for being sincere and heartfelt. He told the audience that on his first tour in Bagdad, his Hummer didn't even have doors let alone armor. The audience was totally with him as he described the situation. He concluded that Rumsfeld had to go.
After 45 minutes about Iraq, the questions, in the words of the moderator, turned to a "new topic" . . . the war on terror. Even an editor of a pro-republican suburban newspaper doesn't confuse the War in Iraq with the fight on terror. In his responses here Fitzpatrick kept to the party line, while Murphy talked about concentrating on Afganistan and hunting down the person responsible for the attacks on 911, Osama.
Later, when asked how we can avoid future wars, Murphy talked about how America had the greatest military in the world but that we used war only as a last resort, as every soldier knows. Again turning personal, he told us that this is the message he taught future leaders of the army when he served as an instuctor at West Point. Fitzgerald was left to say how we should keep the local air base open, and how he tried to do that (unsuccessfully).
Bottom line was that Murphy's story is compelling. Murphy is confidently telling voters that we need Change to secure this country and that the Republicans are not doing the job.
I came away determined to redouble my efforts. Polls show Murphy trailing, so we've got to work harder than ever.