 Stephanie Connor columnist |
It's time to keep score. With the Arizona Republican primary only three months away, every game in the election season counts. Sunday night's debate was important, and Texas Gov. George W. Bush forfeited.
Hometown hopeful Sen. John McCain came to Tempe to debate publisher Steve Forbes, talk-show host Alan Keyes and Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch. They came to talk to each other but more importantly, to talk to Arizona voters.
McCain is battling for his home state. Forbes is defending a state he won in 1996 over Bob Dole. Keyes and Hatch were probably just praying that someone -- anyone -- listened to something -- anything -- they said.
Bush, who leads the pack in every poll, stayed home.
Not to be immature, but what a chicken.
Bush's campaign released a statement Sunday night that he was at a memorial service for the 12 students killed at Texas A&M last week when the logs of their Homecoming bonfire toppled over. He certainly should have been at the memorial, but that's not why he missed the debate. Bush announced weeks ago that he would not attend.
That's why he's a big chicken.
He must get credit for being politically smart, though. Bush is in the lead -- why risk it? Bush has everything to lose, while McCain can only gain. Keyes and Hatch have everything to gain -- literally.
Presidential debates are clearly an opportunity for the public to see its options. About 2,000 people attended Sunday night's face-off, and it was broadcast nationally on C-SPAN. Until the candidates clash in a debate, it can be difficult to discern the difference between the players' views. It is easy to think a conservative is a conservative and completely overlook the varying nuances among the candidates.
Sunday night's debate should have provided a clash between the two frontrunners as well as other contenders. Without Bush, the debate was disappointing. For someone who thinks he deserves to be president, Bush sure wasn't very presidential Sunday.
Who wants a president who assumes victory and stops fighting? That seems a little arrogant. Do we want a president who doesn't respect the democratic process enough to give voters a look at all the candidates? A little dramatic? OK, maybe.
But even if you didn't like what McCain had to say, you can't help but respect him for coming out and saying, well, something. McCain could have played the same political game as Bush. McCain could have decided that he didn't want to look bad next to Forbes or Keyes. He could have decided that the risk was only worth it if Bush was there.
If McCain had stayed home, too, that would have made the debate really boring. And almost pointless. It seemed almost pointless anyway. Now we have an inkling what the second through last-place candidates think about selected issues. We still know very little about the leader. We sure don't know why he's winning.
Bush hasn't given us much of a reason to vote for him -- other than his dad was president. Before Sunday night, Arizonans had a couple reasons to vote for McCain. He was a military man and a prisoner of war during Vietnam. And he's from Arizona.
For those us who like to vote on more substantive things like ... oh, um, I don't know ... issues, the debates are convenient. Some would even say critical.
Sunday night's debate let the candidates talk about Social Security and gun control as well as criticize Bush for avoiding the debate. Even Bush's retort was un-presidential. The Texas governor was at a memorial service for college students, his campaign announced. Criticizing Bush for missing the debate is hardly fair, they argued.
Wrong.
Bush is hiding behind the aftermath of a tragedy on a college campus. He never committed to the debate. He had better things to do. The death of 12 Aggie students was tragic, and the service may have warranted the presence of the governor. But, that is not why Bush declined the debate. This is Bush's second political game, and he should be castigated for using the death of those 12 people to explain his absence Sunday night.
Bush and those in his campaign are smart people. They know how to play the game. But Sunday night, they lost.
They lost because they were afraid to put Bush on the stand and tell us what he thinks. They lost even more when they hid behind the Texas A&M tragedy.
Many people probably haven't made up their minds about who they'll vote for in February, predominantly because they still don't know the candidates' stances on the issues.
But if straightforwardness and integrity count for anything, give McCain a point.
Stephanie R. Conner is a junior studying journalism and can be reached at sconner@asu.edu.
