MANCHESTER, N.H. – Mudslinging had no place here Thursday night in the final presidential debate before the New Hampshire primary, as the seven Democratic presidential candidates avoided attacking each other on camera and instead blasted President George W. Bush’s economic and foreign policy.
The candidates displayed an almost unusual solidarity during the debate, refusing in some cases to outline or criticize the differences among them.
Most of the challenge came from the debate’s moderators, who forced Sens. John Kerry (Mass.), Joe Lieberman (Conn.) and John Edwards (N.C.) to defend their votes to authorize an invasion of Iraq, even though they now criticize the president’s course of action in the country.
Retired Army Gen. Wesley Clark defended his devotion to the Democratic Party and former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean congratulated Kerry and Edwards on their respective first and second place finishes ahead of him in the Iowa caucuses Tuesday night. Dean has faced a whirlwind of criticism and speculation about his temperament this week after delivering a controversial concession speech the night of the caucuses.
Each candidate made his case for the presidential nomination, while being careful to keep the focus on the Bush administration’s mistakes and the ways they must be fixed.
“If anybody in New Hampshire believes that John Kerry would have in fact gone to war the way George Bush did, they shouldn’t vote for me,” Kerry said. “But if they know that I would have stood up and exhausted the remedies and done what was necessary to hold them accountable but lived up to the values and principles of our country, then I’m the person to be president who actually can make America more secure without breaching relationships across this planet.”
Riding a wave of momentum after finishing first in Iowa and leading the polls, Kerry was the first to attack Bush’s economic integrity, accusing him of abandoning average middle-class workers and feeding interests of corporate elites.
Kerry vowed to protect the middle class, but Dean took his argument one step further, calling for the repeal of what the administration claimed – and Dean disputed – was a “middle-class” tax cut.
“There was no middle-class tax cut in this country,” Dean said, touting his balanced budget record. “Somebody has got to stand up and say, ‘We cannot have everything. We can’t have tax cuts, pay for health care, pay for No Child Left Behind and pay for adequate defense.'”
Edwards called for increased gun control laws, greater civil rights for gays and lesbians and more cooperation between Arab and American leaders to prevent terrorism. Edwards also raised the issue of poverty, about which neither he nor any of the other candidates were asked.
“We have a responsibility – I believe, a moral responsibility – to do something about 35 million Americans living in poverty,” Edwards said.
“I understand that maybe on some poll that may not be a big issue, but the truth is, it’s important,” Edwards added later.
Lieberman reminded voters that Bush cited him as his most formidable opponent in the presidential race.
“[Republicans] can’t say I flip-flop because I don’t. They can’t say I’m weak on defense because I’m not,” Lieberman said. “They can’t say I’m weak on values because I’m not. They can’t say I’m a big taxer and a big spender.”
Lieberman stood by his resolution vote to authorize an Iraq invasion, and also called for major health care reform.
Clark, who has been criticized by some for his lack of political experience and his previous Republican leanings, praised Democratic Party values.
“I’m pro-choice, pro-affirmative action, pro-environment, pro-labor. I was either going to be the loneliest Republican in America or I was going to be a happy Democrat,” Clark said of his decision to join the party after his years of military service ended. “And I’m in this party now, and I’ll bring a lot of other people into this party, too. And that’s what we need to do to win in November.”
Rep. Dennis Kucinich and Rev. Al Sharpton also participated, but fielded fewer questions than the other major candidates. There were two fewer candidates at this debate, just five days before Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary – former ambassador and Illinois Rep. Carol Moseley Braun exited the race last week amidst dropping poll ratings and Rep. Richard Gephardt (Mo.) dropped out of the race after a fourth-place finish in Iowa.
The debate was moderated by ABC’s Peter Jennings, Fox News’ Brit Hume, The Union Leader’s senior political writer John DiStaso and WMUR-TV’s Tom Griffith. All four news organizations hosted the debate at St. Anselm College in Manchester.
As of Thursday, CNN/Gallup polls showed Kerry still leading the pack in the state, followed by Dean, Clark, Edwards and Lieberman, who are tied, followed by Kucinich and Sharpton.