The highly anticipated first Democratic debates took place in Las Vegas, Nevada, where the Top 5 candidates will made their cases in a bid to be President of the United States.
The most noticeable difference between the Republican and the Democratic debate was the number of candidates debating.
The Republicans had controversial figures like Donald Trump, Ben Carson, Jeb Bush, Carly Fiorina, Chris Christie and six other hopefuls on their main stage. If nothing else, the Republicans delivered an entertaining debate in September that was watched by a record 23 million people.
The Democrats hosted five rather bland potential candidates debating: Jim Webb, Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton, Martin O’Malley and Lincoln Chafee, as well space for the undecided Joe Biden.
Each one made his or her case on issues like police brutality, health care, the war in Syria, growing tensions with Russia, the economy, immigration and some other hot button issues.
CollegeHipHop.com caught up with Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz who explained the importance of tonight’s debates, why Republican’s rhetoric is so dangerous and how she plans to stay “in their grill” on behalf of Democrats.
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| Florida U.S. Representative DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz |
ON THE REPUBLICAN DEBATES AND CANDIDATESÂ
I was stunned. I guess I shouldn’t have been because nothing surprises me anymore with the field of Republican candidates that double down on extremism every single day. Who can’t alienate minority groups more or quickly enough. Who take Donald Trump’s extremism and do everything they can to out right-wing him.
[Their debate] was mostly spent in a food fight with one another. But to add insult to injury, and there were plenty of insults, they double down on repealing the Affordable Care Act and taking health care away from 16 million Americans. On denying women access to quality affordable healthcare and to make our own healthcare choices. [They want] to go back to a time when discrimination against women simply for being women was perfectly acceptable.
They say that they are going to start a process immediately upon election, God forbid a Republican is the 45th president, of deporting 11 million people, who are here only to make a better way of life for themselves and their families. Just like generations of our forefathers and foremothers have done.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN REPUBLICAN AND DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATESÂ
In contrast, our candidates, no matter which of our five candidates for President…are talking about how to help people build those cornerstones of a middle-class life.
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| Florida U.S. Representative DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz |
Their not doing anything to try to alienate people or turn people away, they want to be inclusive. At their first Republican debate – which I also had the misfortune of attending because someone’s got to get in their grill and make sure our sides opinions are represented – it was the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act. Not a single one of those candidates even mentioned The Voting Rights Act.
Why? We know why.
Because they’ve done everything they can to make it harder, not easier for people to be able to cast their ballots.
I know firsthand my Governor in the previous two elections, has done everything he can to tighten the screws on people who simply want to be able to cast a ballot. To make sure that they don’t get hung up by their working hours and don’t get hung up by having to take care of their kids when they get home from work. To be able to maximize their opportunity to cast a ballot.
The Republicans have done everything they can to suppress the vote and I’m sure it’s “just coincidence” that it happens to be targeted at people and populations most likely to go to the polls and vote for Democrats.
MONEY VS MOBILIZATION
We have been in the fight every single day, to make sure whether it’s new legislation or litigation, or organizing and mobilizing to make sure we can help people expand the franchise. That we will be able to make sure we can add more voices to who is ultimately selected as 45th President of the United States of America.
We want a president who is going to continue President Obama’s incredible legacy, bringing us out of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.
The Republicans my friends, are playing for keeps. We saw just how serious these people are. They will have hundreds of millions of dollars, but what they don’t have is the grassroots networks that will organize and mobilize and build off of the unprecedented campaigns we built in 2008 and 2012 under Barack Obama’s leadership.
