Another Patisan Debate Moderator Does Work for Democrat

[ltorlo64]

I always thought the debate moderators were supposed to be neutral. Well I thought that until Candy Crowley did something similar to Mr. Romney in 2012, in effect supporting President Obama. Why have a debate if the moderator is going to help one candidate over another?

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014...-nh-geography/

[LAGC]

New Hampshire has some interesting politics going on up there, especially with all those "free state" Libertarians moving up there over the past decade and a half.

Notice how Brown kept falling back to his talking points about high corporate tax rates and Obamacare while Shaheen kept talking about subsidies for the big oil companies (corporate welfare) -- all major concerns of Libertarians.

Interesting to see both sides pandering to them like that.

But I'm not seeing where the moderator works for a Democrat. It sounds like he's just a reporter with a local news station up there.

Moderators should be asking tough questions of both candidates. Indeed, right after he got done "correcting" Brown he proceeded to grill Shaheen on why things hadn't gotten any better after 12 years of her rule.

Doesn't sound partisan to me.

[ltorlo64]

Interrupting the candidate, trying to make them look like they don't know the state when it turns out they do, show partiality on the part of the moderator. Asking follow up questions after the answer is done to clarify points in one thing, trying to make a person look like they don't know what they are talking about is another matter. Again, I refer to Candy Crowly supporting President Obama when the only person that was right on what was said was Governor Romney. But what was played for days after the debate and what drove undecided voters' opinion of who won the debate was Candy Crowly's interruption of Governor Romney and her allowing President Obama to push, what turned out to be a blatantly false, narrative of Benghazi. This is done in the same vein. People will not remember the apology from the moderator, what they will remember is that Senator Brown doesn't know the geography of the state he is running to be senator of, even though it turns out to not be true (at least not in the way the moderator was trying to make it sound).

[LAGC]

Interrupting the candidate,

Well, to be fair -- he was asked a direct question about SPECIFICS for helping that ailing county out. And all he could come up with were some generalized canned talking points about all counties in that state, so I can kind of understand the reporter's frustration. It's hard to nail down a slick politician of any stripe.

Again, I refer to Candy Crowly supporting President Obama when the only person that was right on what was said was Governor Romney. But what was played for days after the debate and what drove undecided voters' opinion of who won the debate was Candy Crowly's interruption of Governor Romney and her allowing President Obama to push, what turned out to be a blatantly false, narrative of Benghazi.

You'll have to jog my memory on that one. Was that the first presidential debate of 2012? Wasn't that the one that everyone said Obama failed miserably at, including many loyal Democrats?

I seem to remember several folks on DU that night all posting: "What in the fuck just happened?" -- completely dumbfounded while a chorus of other sycophants tried to downplay his pitiful, dull performance.

Team Obama's polling numbers started declining until Biden turned things around the next week by repeatedly mocking and laughing at Paul Ryan during the entire V.P. debate.

Then Obama delivered much stronger performances during the final two debates, Chris Christie went out of his way praising him for his Hurricane Sandy response, and the rest was history.

[stevelyn]

Anyone in the media is part of the democrap propaganda corps. It's not in their nature to be neutral.

[ltorlo64]

Well, to be fair -- he was asked a direct question about SPECIFICS for helping that ailing county out. And all he could come up with were some generalized canned talking points about all counties in that state, so I can kind of understand the reporter's frustration. It's hard to nail down a slick politician of any stripe.

It is hard, but the moderator did not interrupt the Democratic candidate to get them to give specifics, only the Republican.

You'll have to jog my memory on that one. Was that the first presidential debate of 2012? Wasn't that the one that everyone said Obama failed miserably at, including many loyal Democrats?

I seem to remember several folks on DU that night all posting: "What in the fuck just happened?" -- completely dumbfounded while a chorus of other sycophants tried to downplay his pitiful, dull performance.

Here is just some of the information you can find. First, it was the second debate, Romney was widely considered to win the fist one, but the second was much closer. Here are some quotes for you.

Debates are about moments -- the moments that get replayed again and again in the after-action analysis -- and President Obama had three: ...2) winning, against all odds, the scrap about the Benghazi attack (with an assist from moderator Candy Crowley)...

But, as we noted above, these debates are about moments. And Romney thought he had one when it came to what President Obama said on the day after the Libya attacks. But, in trying to catch the incumbent in what he thought was a clear mistake, Romney was hoisted with his own petard by Crowley in what will be the single most memorable (and replayed) interaction of the debate. Yes, we are aware that there is considerable controversy already over whether what Crowley said regarding Obama's statement was right/accurate but remember that the average viewer simply isn't going to read everything ever written about the subject to get to the bottom of it. They are going to watch the debate and think: "Obama looked strong there, Romney looked like he didn't have his facts straight."

The above was taken from http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...ential-debate/