I have to say I was pretty stunned by Obama’s lack of preparation for last night’s debate. Given the big deal he and Hillary’s other rivals have been making over the whole Spitzer dust-up, and the fact that Spitzer’s plan was just withdrawn a day or two ago – you’d think all of the candidates would have known they were going to get hit with this question last night. And with that knowledge in hand, you’d THINK they would have prepared for the question nine ways to Sunday. As a candidate for the highest office in the land, he should have made sure he had an answer ready to roll on this question.
Sadly, that notion appears to have eluded camp Obama because he was caught completely flat-footed when the question came up last night. Take a look...
Can you imagine this sort of scene unfolding in the Oval Office? Seriously – this was just a simple question regarding drivers licenses for undocumented immigrants for cryin’ out loud.
Now we all know that a president is only as good as the staff and advisors they surround themselves with, right? So what does that say about Obama’s staff, when they fail so completely to prepare their candidate for such an obvious question?
You might have noticed that Hillary’s taken a lot of heat from Obama and her other rivals over the past 2 weeks for supposedly engaging in "doubletalk". In fact, Obama makes a reference to this right out of the gate when responding to the very first question he was asked. Check it out...
OBAMA: Senator Clinton, I think, is a capable politician and I think that she has run a terrific campaign.
But what the American people are looking for right now is straight answers to tough questions, and that is not what we've seen out of Senator Clinton on a host of issues -- on the issue of drivers' licenses for illegal immigrants.
And after all that bluster and hot air, he can’t give a straight answer to a question he should have known was coming? Within minutes of making the above statement?
Let’s face it - this race is one long test and Senator Obama should have been prepared for that debate just as a student prepares for an exam.
He blew it on this question.
At least that was David Yepsen’s take when he posted something right after the debate on the Des Moines Register’s site. He noted Hillary’s less than stellar performance in the Philadelphia debate, and went on to say the following...
... The evening gave her rivals a chance to trip her up some more.
They blew it. Barack Obama had only an average night, and on a couple of questions he seemed flummoxed. On the question of driver's licenses for immigrants here illegally, his answer was as nuanced and fuzzy as Clinton's was a couple of weeks ago. Moderator Wolf Blitzer underscored Obama's fumbling by reminding him the question "is sort of available for a yes or no answer." By contrast, Clinton gave the answer she should have in the last debate:
"No."
That’s Why The Lady Is a Champ
Dan Balz of the Washinton Post had this to say...
Obama's most significant mistake came on the issue where he should have been most prepared: whether illegal immigrants should be allowed to have driver's licenses. Obama had spent two weeks criticizing Clinton for her inability to answer that question succinctly in Philadelphia -- or since. The day before the debate, one of his spokesman put out a statement ridiculing Clinton on the topic.
When the moment arrived in Las Vegas for Obama to answer the question, his response was halting and confused -- every bit as much of a stumble as when Clinton faltered over the same question in Philadelphia.
Obama first acknowledged that he had supported the idea as a member of the Illinois state senate. Then, he said, "I am not proposing that's what we do." Then he said the driver's license issue is a distraction from the real problem of illegal immigration and started off trying to turn the question in another direction.
Pressed, finally, by CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer to answer the question, Obama said yes, he supports giving driver's licenses to undocumented workers. When Clinton got the opportunity to respond, after clearly enjoying watching Obama on the griddle, she gave a one-word answer: "No."
Now Hillary was prepared for this question. As both commentators point out above, her answer was concise, short & sweet. She said "no". Period. End of story.
You might say "yeah but drivers licenses for undocumented immigrants isn’t exactly a life & death issue."
Ok fine – let’s talk about life & death issues then.
Issues like Iraq & the Kyl / Lieberman vote.
Obama’s built his campaign around that fact that he has sound judgment, unlike Hillary where her vote for the Iraq war resolution is concerned (at least in his mind). He’s spent the last 10 months or more hammering away at her for her "mistake" in voting for that resolution (while as it turns out, ignoring Edwards’ role in that whole thing – but that’s another story entirely). Yet what does he do on the first huge vote that comes up once he gets to the Senate? The one vote that he claims will open the door wide open for Bush to invade yet another country?
He misses the vote.
When the moderators ask him about this important vote we get the following exchange...
BLITZER: Senator, I want to go back to Suzanne Malveaux, but this was an important vote, and you missed that vote. You weren't present in the Senate when that vote occurred.
OBAMA: No, this is true. And it was a mistake. This is one of the hazards of running for president. But what I have consistently said, and I said at the time of the vote, was that we should not take steps that would increase two presences inside Iraq with an eye towards blunting the impact of Iran. I always think that's a mistake.
(emphasis mine)
The rationale for his candidacy is his judgment to make the right calls on the big issues that come before him as Senator (and - he hopes, as President). He just admitted he made a mistake on the Kyl / Lieberman vote by not showing up for the vote, so I really don’t see how he can continue to attack Hillary on this.
The bottom line here for me is this... I’m not taking issue with the substance of his answer on the whole Spitzer thing, but I have a serious problem with his lack of preparation for last night’s debate. It gives us some serious insight as to how he’ll perform should he make it to the Oval Office.
Now I don’t know about you but I’d like to think a candidate takes these debates a little lot more seriously than this. This failure to properly prepare for a debate this close to Iowa’s first in the nation caucus on January 3rd (a make-or-break contest for his campaign) shows me that Obama is clearly not ready for prime time. Give it another 8 years and maybe he’ll have the experience necessary to deal with the uncertainties and challenges he’ll face as our President.
Last night’s debate tells me he’s just not there yet.
Yet.