(Continued from previous post.)
Update 16: Question is on Social Security and whether Reid has raided the so-called trust fund. Reid says absolutely not and that he's fought to protect Social Security and opposes privatizing it. Angle says "Man-up Harry Reid, we have a problem with Social Security." She blames Reid for spending Social Security money on general expenditures. She also again proposes Social Security privatization without using those words.
Update 17: Angle tries to characterize her privatization plan as no big deal, but Reid says Angle wants to get rid of Social Security -- that her idea will destroy Social Security. Angle tries to pretend she's Reagan saying "There you go again" to Reid.
Update 18: Question is regarding Yucca. Reid reiterates his opposition to using Nevada as a nuclear waste dump. Angle says we no longer need a dump in Nevada (which she has previously supported), and argues that we should use Yucca as a site for a nuclear reactor.
Update 19: These guys are all speaking so fast these debate is almost like a blur. Angle may be benefiting from the fact that she sounds like a broken record so at least people can understand what she's saying. It's exhausting liveblogging it! Now they are talking about Iraq.
Update 20: Angle demands an apology from Reid for criticizing the leadership of the Iraq War. Reid responds by saying he has been endorsed by VFW and slams Angle for wanting to privatize the VA.
Update 21: Finally Reid has a moment of strength and clarity, explaining why he fought for health care reform: to help make sure all Americans have access to the kind of health care that he says.
Update 22: On tax cuts, Reid says he opposes tax cuts for billionaires -- but not for middle class. Angle has a brain fart and can't remember the question. The moderator repeats it, and she says she doesn't want to raise taxes on anybody -- including wealthy people. Angle then attacks Reid for being wealthy, implying it was because of corruption. Reid has another strong moment -- getting visibly angry, and saying the reason he has money is because he was a successful lawyer before he entered politics and that she is lying to imply anything else.
Update 23: After another wonky exchange, we move to closing statements. Reid calls himself a fighter, slamming Angle's laissez faire philosophy, and saying that what we need to do is invest in jobs like those in the renewable energy sector. Angle says she's like Ronald Reagan and believes in freedom and that freedom will restore the economy.
Final thoughts: As I said earlier, this debate moved at breakneck speed, too fast at times for me to keep track of every last utterance. I'm sure Angle-land will be happy because their candidate did not trip over her words or find herself getting stumped. And they'll say Reid was too wonky.
I actually think that Angle did do a very good job of explaining what she stands for -- but the problem she has is that what she stands for is not what most Nevadans ultimately want. If I were Reid, what I'd focus on is her statement to him that "Harry Reid, your job is not to create jobs." That pretty much encapsulates her philosophy. She thinks if we just kick back and do nothing that businesses will prosper and create jobs for all our citizens and everybody will be happy. Reid believes -- as I think most Americans do -- that it takes hard work to build a strong economy, and while he was wonky, he demonstrated that he's willing to do the hard work that it takes.
Reid's strongest moment was when he explained why he was fighting for Health Care reform -- to make sure that everybody has the kind of health care that he has access too. His weakest moments were when he spoke too fast and didn't fully explain why Angle's proposals were problematic -- particularly on Social Security. Angle's strongest moments were when she explained her laissez faire approach to government; paradoxically, those were her weakest moments as well, because the impression (accurate) that she left was that she doesn't really want to do anything as a Senator other than stop the Federal government from doing anything.
Ultimately, both sides will claim victory. And the debate may not have any impact. But Angle, in explicitly stating that she doesn't believe her job as a U.S. Senator is to create jobs, did give Reid-land something to focus their post-debate message around. If I were them, i'd be talking about that, and just about nothing else.