So, tonight we finally got the first debate between the candidates trying to win our votes in New York's 23rd congressional district. As it was only about a mile from my house here in Plattsburgh, I decided to take my bike down and attend the event. I don't have a lot to say here, but I figured I'd make a few observations. Note that this is entirely based on my memory of the events, and as human memories are imperfect, this may not be a completely accurate summary of what went on.
The first and most glaringly obvious observation to make was the absence of Doug Hoffman. There was a podium set up for him that, for whatever reason, was empty. The organizers of the event explained that they repeatedly invited Hoffman to the debate, that he was even in town today, and he declined to come. One of the moderators said he personally ran into Hoffman and asked him why he was not coming, but Hoffman was unable to give an answer. Who knows? In any case, I don't think it was the best move for him to make.
(UPDATE: Apparently Hoffman refused to attend because North Country Public Radio, i.e. the "liberal media", was one of the many sponsors of the event. Whether this was his actual justification for not attending, or a post hoc explanation to please the wingnut base, it was still a dumb move.)
Both Owens and Scozzafava, in my opinion, could have done a lot better. They spent half the time agreeing with each other, mostly on reasonable things like the need for health care reform, investment in infrastructure, and an increased commitment to education. Much of the remaining time was spent on nice-sounding platitudes and on vague non-committal statements that didn't delve deep into policy matters, though I suppose that's to be expected in any political debate. And of course, there were the obligatory partisan buzzwords thrown in: for Owens, it was the "failed Bush economic policies" (probably still a good line of attack), and for Scozzafava, the old Republican mantra of "taxes are too high and there are too many regulations". They also both made a couple jabs at Hoffman, mainly on his refusal to attend the debate.
There was a noticeable difference in temperament. Owens was calm, cool and collected throughout the entire debate, but Scozzafava had a few moments when she raised her voice and came off as rather angry. Although I don't own a television, I can surmise that she isn't getting the media coverage she wants, as she repeatedly complained of "30-second ads" that she felt were full of lies and misinformation, and she mentioned how vastly outspent she was in the campaign.
The issues discussed were mostly economic in nature. Scozzafava, well, she's a Republican so you can probably guess how her answers sounded. She thinks we need tax cuts and fewer regulations, and of course less government spending. She thinks government is getting in the way too much, and that politicians can't create jobs so instead politicians need to make things easier for corporations...in order to create more jobs (don't ask me). On health care, both candidates agreed on the necessity of reform, though neither mentioned the public option. Scozzafava, however, criticized current Democratic plans in Congress as "shifting the costs" and didn't really offer any solutions I could identify besides generically stating that lower health care costs is a good thing. Owens also didn't go into specifics, but stated that we need reform as soon as possible, and that he wants to make it a priority that all Americans get coverage. I get the impression he would certainly vote for the public option if it was a choice between the public option and no reform at all.
Only two social issues came up that I can recall. The first was the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell. Fortunately both candidates who were present agreed that the military needs to treat people equally and it should be repealed. The other was whether or not health care reform should facilitate women's reproductive freedom. Scozzafava didn't address that issue directly, instead opting to speak about health care reform in general, but Owens clearly stated that he is in favor of a woman's right to choose. People say Scozzafava is to the left of Owens on social issues, and though I suppose that's true for marriage equality, overall I don't see a huge difference in their stances on social issues, and Owens comes across as the kind of person who could be swayed to the right (that is, left) side of the gay marriage question with enough pestering.
In any case, I will be voting for Bill Owens on November 3, and I hope my fellow residents of New York's 23rd district do as well. He may not be the most progressive Democrat out there, but I'll take a centrist who caucuses with the Democrats over a centrist who caucuses with the Republicans any day of the week.