There was an interesting exchange between Barack Obama and a young supporter at an event in Iowa yesterday. From Jonathan Stein’s transcript:
Young girl: “I just want to say that every time I see a commercial of Mitt Romney on TV I want to throw up.”
Barack Obama: “Haha. Okay. I feel you. What’s your question?”
Young girl: “I just want to say to anyone who is considering voting for Mitt Romney–”
Barack Obama: “Well, hold on, sweetie. I know you have an opinion on Mitt, but I want to use this forum for questions, not to dog Mitt Romney. Though he sometimes uses his town halls to dog me! So why don’t you ask a question.”
Young girl: “Uh, I guess I want to know your thoughts on Mitt Romney.”
Now, Obama tried to turn this into a light moment, and answered by commenting on Romney’s impressive hair. But Oliver Willis raised a really good point: “Compare this with John McCain’s chuckle at his supporter calling Sen. Clinton a ‘bitch.’”
Quite right. A month ago, McCain hosted a campaign event in South Carolina, in which one charming elderly voter stood up to ask, “How do we beat the bitch?” McCain, assuming the voter was referring to Hillary Clinton, responded, “That’s an excellent question.” It’s the polar opposite of how Obama handled a similar situation.
There just seems to be a difference in how the candidates deal with supporters attacking rival candidates. Obama heard a supporter attacking Romney, and he put a stop to it. John Edwards heard a supporter attacking Obama on racial grounds, and he refused to engage.
On the other side, McCain heard a supporter attacking Clinton, and he thought it was “excellent.” Mike Huckabee heard a supporter say she’s planning to support him because God won’t hear the prayers of a Mormon, and Huckabee responded, “I’m glad you’ve made your choice for me. I don’t care why. I’m just glad you did.”
It is me or is there just a basic difference of class between the Democratic candidates and the Republicans?
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