I was invited to attend the Democratic Presidential Forum in Miami this past Sunday evening. The forum was sponsored by Univision, the most popular TV station among Spanish speakers in the United States, and was broadcast live nationwide. The moderators asked the questions in Spanish, the candidates received translations in their ear pieces, the candidates responded in English, and their responses were in turn translated into Spanish for the broadcast. Because I watched it live in the auditorium, thankfully I was able to hear the candidates directly since I don't speak Spanish.
Governor Bill Richardson expressed his disappointment during his first response at the forum that he would not be able to speak Spanish but would have to answer in English even though he is Hispanic and fluent in Spanish. Even though it was an awkward moment at the time, I understand where he was coming from. Why have a translator potentially miss the meaning or not convey the appropriate emotion when he speaks Spanish? Although this would be deemed unfair to the other candidates who don't speak Spanish, why should Richardson (and Sen. Chris Dodd who also speaks fluent Spanish) be penalized? Now, I'm not a Richardson supporter. I had high hopes for him initially but I have been very disappointed with his poor debate performances. But, I do see his point. I actually had a chance to meet him at a post-debate gathering and he was genuinely warm, friendly, and funny. I think he needs to either study and practice more for the debates so his performance is better or he needs to stick with diplomacy and negotiation, not run for president.
Governor Bill Richardson expressed his disappointment during his first response at the forum that he would not be able to speak Spanish but would have to answer in English even though he is Hispanic and fluent in Spanish. Even though it was an awkward moment at the time, I understand where he was coming from. Why have a translator potentially miss the meaning or not convey the appropriate emotion when he speaks Spanish? Although this would be deemed unfair to the other candidates who don't speak Spanish, why should Richardson (and Sen. Chris Dodd who also speaks fluent Spanish) be penalized? Now, I'm not a Richardson supporter. I had high hopes for him initially but I have been very disappointed with his poor debate performances. But, I do see his point. I actually had a chance to meet him at a post-debate gathering and he was genuinely warm, friendly, and funny. I think he needs to either study and practice more for the debates so his performance is better or he needs to stick with diplomacy and negotiation, not run for president.
I have a number of reactions to the forum and I will expand on some of them more this week:
1. This was the first time in the history of presidential elections that there has been a Spanish-language forum for the major candidates. I am pleased that the Democratic candidates embraced Univision's idea for this forum and had a great opportunity to reach millions of Hispanic voters. I am even more pleased that the Republican candidates have chosen not to agree to a similar forum. The Republican candidates know that they will be hit hard on the immigration issues and they know their positions smack of xenophobia and scape-goating. (Note: John McCain is the only Republican who agreed to attend; obviously because of his more centrist stance on immigration reform compared to his rivals.)
2. I was surprised when the moderators announced that Senator Joe Biden did not attend because, to paraphrase their words, he did not feel like it was worth his time. I knew that Senator Biden had just been in Iraq late last week, and so I had assumed that was why he was unable to be there. So, I called Senator Biden's campaign manager, Luis Navarro, and asked him about it. Luis said that it was indeed a scheduling issue (coming back from Iraq and then Biden was on Meet the Press that Sunday morning), but that Univision was upset so spun it another way. I was glad to hear from Luis that that was indeed the case because I like Senator Biden and would not expect him to be dismissive of the forum, as indeed it turns out he was not.
3. All of the candidates looked fatigued and seemed to lack the energy and enthusiasm that they had during the first couple of debates/forums. I feel the same way. After watching every debate thus far this season, I think I can recite by now every candidate's response to every major issue they are asked about. These forums are good for bringing awareness to Americans who may not have seen the other ones, but for those of us who have watched several of them, it's like the movie Groundhog Day where the same day keeps repeating itself over and over. Is there something that can be done to liven them up? I found the debate that Keith Olbermann moderated in Chicago to be the most interesting thus far because the candidates were allowed to talk to each other and Olbermann asked follow-up questions and allowed rebuttals. We need more of those types of debates.
What do you think about having all of these forums/debates? What format would you prefer?
