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Politics : Stockman Scott's Political Debate Porch -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: one_less who wrote (56578)	9/21/2004 2:26:39 PM
From: stockman_scott	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 89467

Some comments by Tim Russert... cumberlink.com <<...Russert said he believes the American public is frustrated with the level of information they are getting from the campaigns and people are anxious to hear the candidates discuss big issues. "Based on my visits to battleground states, people are saying, 'Enough about Vietnam. Can we please discuss Iraq and the economy?'" he said. "People are starving for that." "The difficulty right now is getting access to the candidates," Russert said. "They don't want to be confronted by hard questions. They don't want to be misheard. But presidents cannot make tough decisions unless they are confronted by tough, specific and detailed questions." This, he said, is one reason it is important to hold presidential debates. "We probably will never have the truly traditional Lincoln-Douglas type of debates, but the people want the views of the candidates," Russert said. For example, he noted, "Iraq is a real challenge, whether you support it or not. It is a major issue; this is real life and death and it must be discussed." Other issues Russert said should be brought into debate are the deficit, the war on terror and the retirement of the Baby Boom Generation. "Another issue is our kids -- who are they and what do we want them to look like?" he said. "It is essential to communicate to our kids that they are loved unconditionally, but they are not entitled. ... We have a generation of kids we need to worry about. This is not a Democratic problem, this is not a Republican problem. This is an American problem." Russert said the candidates need to tell the American public where they really stand on these issues. "They need to explain to us where they are going to take the country," he said. "Never mind the 30-second ad telling us how great you are -- we know how great you are." He added they shouldn't waste time downgrading each other either. "Tell us how you are going to solve the problems. Forget the smoke and mirrors."...>>