Remember when no one wanted to take a debate sponsored by some silly bloggers seriously? Take a look at the questions prepared for the Democratic presidential debate at YearlyKos in Chicago last summer. Not all of them were asked because of time or because new questions were improvised, but still compare with the crap last night:
I. DOMESTIC SEGMENT
1. Joan Q to Obama:
What will your Supreme Court look like, and what test will you apply?
(folo: to Richardson, why Whizzer White and what does that say about your court? Kucinich: Did Dems do enough to scuttle Alito?)
2. Joan Q to Clinton:
What lessons did you learn, exactly, from the 1993 health care debacle?
(folo: Obama and Edwards bickering over mandates...is Obama’s plan going to leave too many uninsured?)
3. Matt Q to Richardson:
Do deficits really matter?
(folo: how much of a deficit is acceptable? Once you open that door, how do you keep Congress from spending more and more?)
4. Jeffrey Q to Dodd (from Jason Rosenbaum in audience):
How do you plan to support equal access to broadcast media?
5. Matt Q to Kucinich:
Is there just one government program or agency that you think should be shut down?
(folo: Can anyone else? A lot of government programs are already in place to fight poverty, with mixed results. What have we learned from 40 years of these programs?)
6. Jeffrey Q to Edwards:
How do you propose to restore balance among the three branches?
7. Joan Q to Edwards:
You all talk about lowering gas prices AND energy independence, but isn’t it possible that we actually need a gas tax to make that goal achievable?
(folo: to Gravel, isn’t a national sales tax regressive?
8. Jeffrey Q to Obama:
How will you address the coming crisis of health care for those with disabilities?
II. FOREIGN SEGMENT
1. Joan Q to Edwards:
All these calls for withdrawal from Iraq are fine, but how do you propose to force the president to withdraw troops if he refuses?
(folo from Matt to Edwards: How do we withdraw from Iraq in a way that minimizes the risk of genocide and harm to our soldiers?)
2. Matt Q to Richardson:
Giuliani and Paul had a sharp debate over whether Amerian policy was to blame for the rise of terrorism. Are we in some part to blame?
3. Matt Q to Clinton:
If you all agree that the war on terror is a flawed construct, can you please describe, in a phrase or two, the right way to think about the rise of Islamic terrorism?
4. Jeffrey Q to Obama (from R. Harman in audience):
How do we reconcile the two views of China as menace and trading partner?
5. Joan Q to Gravel:
What’s the first thing you would do to change our policy with regard to Paskistan and Musharraf?
(folo: if you don’t agree with Clinton and Obama on the threat of unilateral force, how do you pressure Musharraf?)
6. Jeffrey Q to Kucinich:
Using Darfur as a real time example, please outline how you would decide when to intervene in another country’s conflict?
7. Joan Q to Dodd:
What should our agenda be in Latin America?
8. Jeffrey Q to Clinton:
Given the administration’s voiding of the ABM treaty and proposal for new weapons systems, would you propose to control nuclear wepons by reinstating old treaties or by doing something new?
III. PHILOSOPHY AND EXPERIENCE SEGMENT
1. Joan Q to all:
Will candidates please commit to visiting all 50 states?
(folo, probably to Clinton or Obama: if not, why not?)
2. Joan Q to Kucinich:
What are we to make of your commitment to the party, given your problem paying dues to the DCCC?
3. Jeffrey Q to all (from John Pontificator):
If elected, will you hire a White House blogger?
4. Matt Q to Senators:
Why do senators lose, and why should you be any different?
5. Jeffrey Q to Edwards:
Was it right to change the structure of government, and did it hurt our civil liberties?
6. Matt Q to Dodd:
Would you nominate a member of the other party to serve in your cabinet, as the last two presidents have?
7. Joan Q to Obama:
Do your comments about it not being a question of one party or the other mean that you intend to chart a middle course rather than a Democratic one?
8. Jeffrey Q to Richardson:
Beyond healthcare and Iraq, please name one bold change you would enact that would reflect your progressive values?