live stream here. and live here. i'm live blogging for the heck of it. responses paraphrased or not, depending on how fast i can type.
rev. wright again? omg. we are a sick bunch. this debate is stupid. we are soooo ready to move on. lame media. so far, 29 minutes in, no mention of policy or what the heck we're going to do to fix things.
if not this it's going to be something else, obamas says, still answering questions about rev. wright. clinton says rev. wright needs further exploration. okay. she's officially a monster. she will never get my vote.
sniper fire....... aaaaaaaaaaack. it's 5:34 and clinton is not dumb. that's what she says. when are we getting to the issues!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
obama takes the high road on bosnia lies. yay obama.
omg, are we a stupid or what? why aren't you wearing a flag asks a viewer. but of course, obama has a patient, considerate answer.
he shows patriotism by showing respect to veterans, talking about restoring economic fairness. got that. wearing a flag, flying a flag has zero to do with patriotism. zero. zilch. obama would not be running for president if he hated america.
obama: this is a manufactured issue that distracts from the real issue. people try to clap. george shuts them down.
the weatherman question: this is what i'm talking about. he is a prof of english. i know him but just because i know him doesn't mean his ideas are mine. it doesn't make much sense george. it's official. the media is dim.
clinton: obama served on a board with the weatherman guy. the relationship continued after 9-11. she's got her sorry voice on. ick. she's out.
here she goes. i've been, i've got baggage, experience, able to withstand republicans.
obama: pres clinton pardoned two members of the weather underground, which is more significant if you're gonna count. i can take a punch as well as clinton, he says.
when it comes to november people will ask -- four more years of george and choose obama.
obama is trying to steer the ship toward a legitimate debate question. he says we need to stop pouncing on the gaffes.
clinton speaks well on getting out of the war. obama speaks better
obama on iraq: the commander in chief sets the mission. right now bush is taking cues from the ground. the president sets the mission. hello george bush. that felt good to hear.
obama on iran: prevent iranians from developing nuclear weapons. that includes talking to them. we can offer carrots and sticks. they should know what our posture is. it's important that an attack on israel is an attack on our strongest ally in the region. that would be an act of agression.
clinton: iran is dangerous. that's all she's said in about 500 words. skillfull diplomacy in the region is needed she says. we want the region and the world to know that we're serious. would not meet with iran's leader. but she would engage him in a diplomatic process but not directly talk to him. why i ask? that just seems silly.
economy. finally, one hour in.
question: under $200k will there be new taxes?
clinton, over $250k, taxes will go up. it won't hurt the economy to do that. i won't raise on people earning less than $250k. she plugs her website and how she will pay for it.
obama: won't raise the taxes and will cut their taxes by offset the payroll tax for $75k or less would get $5,000 tax break. no income tax on social security for seniors. wages and income flat while costs are going up. pain trickles up. the tax code, trade laws written by the well connected for the wealthy.
increase capital gains tax?
obama: i said i would look at raising the capital gains tax for fairness. $29 billion for 50 hedge fund managers. they are able to work the stock market and paying a lower tax rate than their secretaries.
our tax system needs to be fair. we need to invest in infrastructure and education and you can't do that for free. john mccain's tax cuts irresponsible.
he talks about paygo.
clinton: president doing well for the wealthy. we had that during bill's term. we've lost that, she said. we need to invest in renewable energy. i want to see us tackle the housing crisis. plugs gov. rendell about how he's handled home foreclosures in pennsylvania.
charlie: that wasn't the question. would you raise the capital gains? she says she'd have to look at it. she's not sure.
obama and clinton get into a fight over funding social security.
clinton on guns: more than 1 person a day is murdered in philly. she will bring back the "cops program." reinstate the assault weapons ban and track illegal guns. balance between lawful gun ownership and bad gun ownership.
obama: as a general principle an individual has a right to bear arms but those rights can be constrained. reconcile two realities: gun ownership and the reality of murder by guns.
do you favor a ban on handguns? no. we need commonsense approaches to gun ownerships. we have to get beyond the politics of this. on the southside of chicago, 34 deaths of school children. local governments should figure out how to stop that.
clinton: i support sensible regulation. the federal government can't set rules for all the states.
i'm done.
