Republicans and Democrats debate on campus

“It’s like you’ve got 10 seconds to beat someone down with your logic,” onlooker Jessica… “It’s like you’ve got 10 seconds to beat someone down with your logic,” onlooker Jessica Fields said. “It’s awesome.”

The Student’s Citizenship Alliance hosted a debate between College Republicans and College Democrats midday Thursday in the Towers lobby, in anticipation of last night’s presidential debate.

A large turnout maintained the charged atmosphere, as each party was given limited amounts of time to voice the party positions on a variety of issues.

The crowd seemingly enjoyed providing the participatory ingredient to the event. When the Republicans were unable to give a quick reply to the Democrat’s charge that the Bush administration is indifferent to the ongoing genocide in Sudan, a loud “oooh” reverberated, accompanied by indiscriminate shouts and applause.

“There ain’t no oil in Sudan, that’s why we’re not going in,” Vice President of College Democrats Laurel Schwartz said.

Topics ranged from abortion and gay rights to the Iraq war and the economy. Each side was able to present its candidate’s position on some issues in half-minute bursts, while on others they were given time to rebut each other’s attacks.

The debate was marked by moments of taunting by both sides that got the crowd laughing. Democratic debater Jason Pippi sarcastically emphasized “president” when referring to President George W. Bush, while Republican Sara Callan responded with a similarly inflected “senator” when referring to presidential candidate John Kerry.

Freshman Republican Chris Janosco welcomed the opportunity to debate, commenting on the discrimination young Republicans sometimes face.

“We are outnumbered here,” he said. “If I ever mentioned that I was a Republican, I would immediately be confronted by people. You’ve just got to shake it off.”

On the subject of the controversial USA PATRIOT Act, the Democrats charged that it was an “absurdity,” that it “censured freedom of speech” and that it violated principles of privacy. The College Republicans responded to the criticism.

“I am yet to hear an instance of [Attorney General] John Ashcroft actually going through someone’s medical records or library accounts,” College Republican Vice President Bill Bradley said.

“I wouldn’t care if they did; I’ve got nothing to hide,” he added. “The government should be able to investigate people who pose a threat to national security.”

The Republicans also argued that the economy was improving under Bush, and that the current economic problems he faces are because of events out of his control.

As the debate moved on to health care, the Democrats argued that Americans now pay more for prescription drugs than any other country

“A standardized health care system would not serve us any better than what we’ve got now,” Aaron Sukenik said. He recounted the example of a Canadian patient who had waited a year for surgery on a brain tumor, making the point that a private health care system allows those with health problems to get the help they need.

On the question of whether terrorism stems from poverty and poor social conditions, and how a war can be fought on terrorism, which would only accentuate the circumstances that created the problem in the first place, Bradley described an apparent “focus on trying to understand the terrorists.”

“I don’t want to understand these individuals,” he said. “We need to deal with them on the only terms that they understand: Force. We must bring the fight to them.”

As the subject of the recent school siege in Beslan, Russia, came up, questions were raised of whether the culprits were Chechen rebels bringing their fight to Russia, or part of a wider terrorist network. A spirited yell of ‘terrorists are terrorists’ from the Republican supporters reverberated behind debaters, to notable applause.

Maura Holmes commented that it was good to see the debate and to see people addressing the right topics.

“It’s refreshing to see people well informed on these important issues,” she said.

Freshman Sarah Voye said it was hard to watch the debate when she’s so angry about the present administration.

“I can see why someone might take a Republican position, but not with Bush,” she said.

After the debate, Schwartz said she thought it went well.

“The College Republicans put up a good fight, and I think we presented John Kerry’s positions well,” Schwartz said.

Sukenik seconded this view.

“It was fun,” she said. “I don’t think a single person changed their view on the subjects, but I think it did get people more informed.”

Noah Dougherty, president of the Student’s Citizenship Alliance, was happy with the debate and was impressed by the turnout.

“It was good that lot of people came and stayed to the end,” he said.

With the election nearly only a month way, he assured that there are definite plans to hold more.