John Berman has been at ABC since 1995, and allowed to appear on television since 2001. He covered the 2008 campaign extensively, following John McCain and Mitt Romney during the primaries and then Barack Obama in the general election. He also spent more than 20 months chasing George W. Bush around the country as a producer from 1999 until 2001, earning the clever nickname, "Pain in the Ass," from our 43rd president. He is a frequent and sometimes welcome contributor to all of ABC's broadcasts.
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Live Blogging from the Democratic Debate
April 16, 2008 8:52 PM
9:50 pm ET: Apologies for drop-off in postings as the debate wore on -- the overwhelming number of comments slowed down our server.
Overall -- with the preface that all of this may not matter, since Obama was and is the delegate leader, this was not a good night for the frontrunner. He hasn't been all that strong in any of the debates, and we saw some of his less attractive qualities tonight -- odd comparisons (Ayers and Tom Coburn?), some slippery answers, and a general prediliction to avoid confronting his own words and actions directly.
Clinton had one of her better nights -- set a generally positive tone, despite the need for her to score some points. She managed to avoid overt attacks but still found ways to differentiate herself -- and make herself look presidential.
Bottom line: I don't think Sen. Obama got this much scrutiny in any other two-hour period during this campaign, but then again he shouldn't have been surprised by any of the lines of inquiry. I'm not sure he held up that well -- not that he fell apart, but he didn't do himself all too many favors. There are a number of answers I think he'd like to have back. But for his supporters -- the soaring above his opponent is almost certainly attractive.
That's it for tonight -- check back in tomorrow morning in The Note for a full wrap and analysis.
9:34 pm ET: The handwriting wasn't his? From a Politico story unearthed by ABC's Teddy Davis: "Through an aide, Obama, who won the group’s endorsement as well as the statehouse seat, did not dispute that the handwriting was his."
9:28 pm ET: How does Sen. Obama not have a position on the DC gun ban? It's not like this is a new issue --and, as he likes to say, he taught constitutional law.
9:26 pm ET: A much different Clinton we're hearing tonight on guns, in Philadelphia, with Virginia Tech as backdrop.
9:22 pm ET: So far, it's hard to score for Obama. He's gotten tougher questions, but sometimes hasn't seemed like he saw them coming. And Clinton is back to the strong presence we saw early in the cycle, when she was the frontrunner.
9:19 pm ET: A Republican strategist offers this, to ABC's Karen Travers: "I think we’re going to buy 90 minute infomercials in October to replay this . . . I can’t believe Obama’s answer on Ayers. It’s like he never even considered the question. Doesn’t he do debate prep?! His answer was so bad/wrong/misleading/offensive – it’s going to be a huge problem for him . . ."
9:15 pm ET: Obama is trying to skate around his plans on the Social Security payroll tax. Gibson is right, lots of people make between $97,000 and $250,000, and their taxes would go up. Nobody wants to favor a tax hike, but Obama may be ceding the high ground of intellectual honesty by not calling this was it is.
9:09 pm ET: Obama, on capital gains -- strikes me as a strong answer, lots of juicy morsels of economic populism.
And when Clinton gets the question, she didn't answer directly. That comes through.
9:04 pm ET: On taxes, Clinton is clear about letting the tax cuts for wealthy earners expire. And "I am absolutely committed to not raising taxes on middle-class Americans." (Which she defines as people making under $250,000? That's a thick middle...)
Oh -- and go to that Website (and maybe make a donation while you're there).
9 pm ET: Israel is a potentially dicey issue for Obama -- he just spent this morning explaining himself to Jewish leaders in Philadelphia. Seems like he gave the "right" answer for that constituency.
8:56 pm ET: On troop withdrawal -- Clinton's answer leaves a teensy bit of daylight, no? She's still going to consult with military commanders, right? Not that that's irresponsible, but it isn't entirely consistent with the idea of definitely sticking to a withdrawal plan.
8:48 pm ET: Strikes me as an Obama performance that his backers will adore -- but not one that's going to do him much good in terms of quelling concerns about his candidacy. Again, thinking of the undecided superdelegates -- if they're watching tonight, I don't see them tipping based on this performance, not so far.
8:45 pm ET: Obama swings back on the "weather underground" connections -- brings up pardons. (!) That was his first flash of offense tonight.
8:43 pm ET: Clinton has the facts on the Ayers relationship. Taken as a whole, not a great first 43 minutes of the evening. "What they did was set bombs," Clinton said.
8:38 pm ET: Obama on the flag question: "I revere the American flag, and I would not be running for president if I did not revere this country." And he "shows" patriotism through actions, not symbols. That's a solid answer -- not that the questions will stop.
8:34 pm ET: A sharp colleague notes that Sen. Obama has not used the word "hope" yet tonight -- think that's right, will check the transcript to be sure [actually -- he did in his open, but not since]. Is Sen. Clinton the candidate of "hope" this evening?
8:33 pm ET: Maybe it doesn't help her, but Sen. Clinton is falling on her sword over her big recent mistake, on Bosnia.
8:30 pm ET: Obama is not really directly engaging on the questions of his own behavior and language. A little curious. There's a lot of talk about uniting and rising above, but does that assuage concerns? (And he came perilously close to saying he "disowned" Rev. Wright.
8:27 pm ET: Per ABC's Teddy Davis, these are the comments in Rolling Stone that Obama WAS aware of -- the ones he described as "entirely different": "We believe in white supremacy and black inferiority and believe it more than we believe in God. . . . We conducted radiation experiments on our own people. . . . We care nothing about human life if the ends justify the means!"
8:26 pm ET: Strikes me as a ho-hum answer on Rev. Wright -- something's still missing. Obviously he was concerned enough about Wright to disinvite him from his announcement ceremony, yet it wasn't until it went to YouTube that he grew really concerned? He tries to rise above this one, too, but again, the comments linger.
I'm just a bit surprised he didn't have a sharper answer on this, and the "bitter" remark. "When we are unified, there is nothing we cannot tackle," Obama said in closing. What, exactly, does that have to do with his relationship with Rev. Wright?
8:21 pm ET: I've already lost track of how many times Sen. Clinton has made this about the Democratic Party as a whole. This is shades of early-debate Clintons, when she rose above the field. Myrtle Beach Clinton hasn't shown up yet.
8:19 pm ET: This has become the Obama M.O. -- when attacked, push back by ascribing it to the old kind of politics. Works with his base, but beyond that? The comments in question linger. He didn't have much to say that's new tonight on the "bitter" comment, for better or worse.
8:16 pm ET: Clinton is asked -- can Obama beat John McCain: "I think we have to beat John McCain." Hmmmm -- what was missing there? BUT, when pressed: "Yes, yes, yes. I think that I can do do a better job."
This is not the bazooka approach. Too much risk of backfire?
8:15 pm ET: Clinton reminds us of her PA roots -- and focuses on the "cling" part of the remark, of course. "I just don't believe that's how people live their lives." "I can see why people would be taken aback and offended by the remarks." And -- perhaps oddly -- this debate has Sen. Clinton offering a touch more of hope.
8:12 pm ET: Obama on "bitter": "There's no doubt that I can see why people are offended." He's clearly had time to prepare his answers on this (indeed, he's had answers on this every day since Friday). Yet he's still not fully addressing his sentiments -- focusing on what he can explain away, versus what he can't (namely, the "clinging" to guns, religion, anti-immigrant sentiments). If the comment is remembered just as about "bitterness," Obama can survive this and thrive through it -- people ARE bitter.
8:10 pm ET: Sen. Clinton aims for healing -- will do whatever she can to see the Democrat elected, "anywhere in the country." (She doesn't want to answer, either.) Wonder if this is Clinton working on her negative numbers -- her first answer, on the dream ticket, is about party healing, and a strong promise to campaign for Obama if he's the nominee.
8:08 pm ET: Ahhh, the dream ticket question: Looong pause there. Sen. Obama jumps in: "Premature," he says. (Yes, but that's the point of the Cuomo proposal.) Sorry, but he doesn't want to answer the simple, "why not?" (That's a complicated answer, now isn't it, Sen. Obama?)
8:05 pm ET: Clinton uses her opening statement to talk about "records" and "plans" -- plus a shout-out for her Website (still working on that donors list).
8:03 pm ET: In his opening statement, Obama immediately turns to the "frustration" of Pennsylvanians -- he's trying to own the sentiment of his "bitter" comment before it owns him.
For those asking, the debate will be streaming live on the Website of our ABC affiliate in Philadelphia, WPVI.
7:55 pm ET: Funny moment during the awkward silence after the mic checks but before the debate started. Playing off the "We the people" banners that are ubiquitous inside the Constitution Center, Charlie Gibson said, "In here, it's we the contributors." Said Obama: "Just like Washington." (Some groans.)
7:51 pm ET: The senators are coming onto the stage now. It will be Clinton stage right, Obama stage left. The podiums are pretty close to each other -- should make the tussles fun.
7:06 pm ET: If you're Sen. Clinton, how do you frame your attacks (assuming you attack tonight)? Her problem is with credibility -- so she has to come with hard and fast facts, not just talk, in making her case.
And keep in mind tonight -- no matter what happens in Pennsylvania, it will be the superdelegates who are likely to settle this race. So they will be the other audience -- a more politically savvy crew, though also a difficult group to reach.
6:35 pm ET: Another name for the celebrity-watch: M. Night Shyamalan. (Does he see dead candidates?)
6:23 pm ET: For those asking, the debate will be streaming live on the Website of our ABC affiliate in Philadelphia, WPVI.
Greetings from Philadelphia's Constitution Center. Rick Klein from ABC's The Note here -- I'm live blogging during tonight's debate, which airs on ABC starting at 8 pm ET.
For you star-watchers, tonight's (cozy) crowd of 573 will include: Ted Danson, Richard Dreyfuss, and Harvey Weinstein, in addition to famous-for-politics folks including Chelsea Clinton, Wes Clark, Gov. Jon Corzine, Gov. Ed Rendell, and Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter. Bill Clinton will not be in attendance. Stephen Colbert wants in -- and the Constitution Center has scared up a ticket for him. (True story.)
Now for business: I wrote in this morning's Note that Barack Obama may have more pressure on him than Hillary Clinton. What I mean by that is, he's the one who has had big new questions about his candidacy emerge in recent weeks. He's the one who's going to be in the spotlight (and Hillary Clinton will make sure that's the case). He's got to show he can close the deal.
That doesn't make his job harder than Hillary Clinton's. On the contrary, she's fighting on a slippery slope -- her negative ratings are rising, which makes it harder for her to attack with credibility. Will she be aggressive (like she was in Myrtle Beach, S.C.), throwing the proverbial "kitchen sink"? Or will she try to look presidential, and let Obama speak (and squirm) for himself?
A quick comment on the setting -- this is an intimate room. The crowd size actually doesn't explain fully how small the room is -- we're talking seven rows of seats in a theater-in-the-round setting. Mostly guests of the candidates and the Constitution Center. So don't expect whoops and hollers -- this should be more of a discussion than a shout-fest, if the room has anything to do with it.
April 16, 2008 | Permalink | User Comments (3522)
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Hilary, what was your relationship with Stan Lee & Peter Paul during your senatorial campaign.
Posted by: Kingsley | Apr 16, 2008 6:42:24 PM
David:
Because he's Obama!
Posted by: S | Apr 16, 2008 6:44:31 PM
i would like to ask both canidates this question. with oil at 112.00 a barrel, rising food prices ect, ect, it is well known that there is vast amounts of untapped oil in alaska and the gulf of mexico. when is the government going to do something about it? as far as obama is concerned he says he will not take any money from the big oil companies yet he voted to give big tax breaks to the oil companies. in my opinion he talks out of both sides of his mouth. also, when bill clinton was president in 1999 before the big dummy bush took over the country had a balanced budget and gas was 99 cents a gallon. i for one am voting for hillary because i believe she can get this country back on its feet again
Posted by: doug | Apr 16, 2008 6:44:46 PM
i would like to ask both canidates this question. with oil at 112.00 a barrel, rising food prices ect, ect, it is well known that there is vast amounts of untapped oil in alaska and the gulf of mexico. when is the government going to do something about it? as far as obama is concerned he says he will not take any money from the big oil companies yet he voted to give big tax breaks to the oil companies. in my opinion he talks out of both sides of his mouth. also, when bill clinton was president in 1999 before the big dummy bush took over the country had a balanced budget and gas was 99 cents a gallon. i for one am voting for hillary because i believe she can get this country back on its feet again
Posted by: doug | Apr 16, 2008 6:44:52 PM
"I wrote ... Barack Obama may have more pressure on him than Hillary Clinton... he's the one who has had big new questions about his candidacy emerge in recent weeks."
What the f*ck are you spouting you idiot?
Bosnia gunfire?
Helped Northern Ireland?
Children's Healthcare?
NAFTA BS?
"Honesty" polling dropping 20 points?
$109MILLION for SPEECHES?? (according to Hill, speeches mean nothin')
The Hillary BIAS is disgusting.
Posted by: MGBYG | Apr 16, 2008 6:45:34 PM
AH THE CLINTONS MASTER MANIPULATORS AND OBVIOUSLY GREAT LIARS---AND NOW PUTTING THEMSELVES AHEAD OF THE GOOD OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY---ITS ALL ABOUT THEM --SURE THEY RELATE TO US-HA-THEM AND THEY 100 MILLION DOLLAR PAYCHECK !!! OBAMA COULD HAVE HAD NEGATIVE ADS RUNNING ABOUT SNIPER BULLETS, CLINTON ADVISERS WHO MET WITH COLUMBIANS ETC BUT HE DIDNT-HE DIDNT STOOP TO THE CLINTONS NEGATIVE ATTACKS. WHAT KIND OF RELIGIOUS PERSON RUNS VICIOUS ATTACK ADS LIKE CLINTONS-SHES A FAKE !!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: izzy | Apr 16, 2008 6:46:29 PM
I have watched all the debates and Senator Clinton has won them all. But still the press especially ABC and CNN only report negatively on the Clintons. One must ask are they backing Senator Obama. What about all the lobbyist who are supporting him while he continue to say he is the only one not taking money from them. Is that not a streching of the truth
Posted by: Richad | Apr 16, 2008 6:47:15 PM
To "Dooley"...
"Obama looks down on people of faith and gun owners."
Obama supports the second amendment, and was today endorsed by the American Hunters and Shooters Association (an alternative to the NRA that believes that the NRA does not focus enough on preserving the environment for hunters and sportsmen, and has been too focused on gun manufacturers instead of owners), and is a 'man of faith' himself. Funny how people try to attack the man for "looking down on people of faith" and lash out at his former pastor in the same breath.
William Ayers is a college professor now, and Obama (also a college professor) went to one party that Ayers was also at once.
Rezko was involved with a lot of political fundraising and has been associated with a lot of candidates in Illinois. Mr. Obama has never been tied to any wrongdoing in relation to Rezko - except by people like Sean Hannity and Bill O'Reilly who are desperate to find any "dirt" they can on Obama.
Maybe you should turn off Fox once in a while and try watching some real news. Or better yet, turn off the TV and actually read something.
Posted by: Chris R | Apr 16, 2008 6:48:24 PM
ATTENTION FELLOW AMERICAN.
Here is the truth, has anyone bother to find out why Gov. Ed rendll has left his constitutional duty and continue to campaign for Hilary along every street? Pls my fellow Penns don't allow yourselves to be used, he is fighting for his own personal interest, he knew his political life has come to an end if Hilary did not win since this's last lap as a Governor. Think and vote wise Hilary is good at using people and dumping them, if you have problems tomorrow she will disassociate herself and deny you, trust me.
Posted by: Peter, NY | Apr 16, 2008 6:48:48 PM
let's see how much studdering he does???? He is so funny to listen to, he can only say " I agree with Hillary, otherwise he studders....
Posted by: lady | Apr 16, 2008 6:50:24 PM
What delusional person could possibly believe that CNN and ABC only report negatively on the Clintons? Obama has certainly gotten his share of bad press! Also, to say that Senator Clinton has won all of the debates is an opinion, not a fact. Some would disagree.
Posted by: Phil | Apr 16, 2008 6:51:16 PM
The NRA didn't endorse Obama and Hillary can actually shoot a gun and we all know about Obama's church.
Posted by: Dooley | Apr 16, 2008 6:52:51 PM
I want to know why Obamba Voted for tax Breaks for Big Oil and Gas Companies, Then denied taking money from them.
How can he vote for something, Take money from it, Then say he's against it?
Posted by: David | Apr 16, 2008 6:53:15 PM
WOW well I'm for Obama, I was at the event i San Francisco after the event where all the "bitter" stories have come from. Most people need economics as their primary interest - unless we are scared by fear, used by Bush for sure to gin up the votes in the 04 election as a deliberate tactic to play to the votes in the Rust Belt and beyond. He never delivered any economic substance in fact we are all i dire straights unless you are very wealthy.
None of us attending those events are elite, we all came from other cities, the venues were in a wealthy neighborhood.
I do not have a job, my son is in Iraq, I'm 60 years old, a woman and white.
While I am an attorney I was the oldest of 9 kids and paid my way the whole way.
Anyway, I'm for Obama, California
Posted by: Kathie | Apr 16, 2008 6:53:28 PM
I wonder if ABC will call him on it when he's rude and interrupts Hillary. I found that to be very rude on how he shakes his finger, or interrupts before it's his turn..
Not one person has called him on it yet.
That's a shame...
Posted by: David | Apr 16, 2008 6:53:38 PM
The media prefers Obama because they give me more story lines. The same reason they wanted Bush in office.
Posted by: lady | Apr 16, 2008 6:53:39 PM
NBC (the National Barack Channel) is Obama's biggest campaign strategist....
ABC (Always Barack Channel) is right behind them
CNN is probably the most objective channel on tv (if you exclude Jack "run away from the scene of the crime" Cafferty and Anderson "I will not reveal my sexuality" Cooper
Posted by: CowboyJack | Apr 16, 2008 6:56:24 PM
I have never heard CNN report the Larry Sinclair story. It is an unbelievable story.
Posted by: Dooley | Apr 16, 2008 6:57:19 PM
Its obvious Hilary lack English comprehension, that has been proven when she could not differentiate between denounce and reject, hahahahahahaha!
Posted by: KC, NY | Apr 16, 2008 6:57:25 PM
This election will come down to Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Florida........
No matter who the Dem nominee is, they'll win all the typical big, blue states....
but Obama CANNOT WIN OH, PA, and FL....
Archie Bunker Dems don't want to vote for him, but they would vote for Hillary
Posted by: CowboyJack | Apr 16, 2008 6:58:07 PM
Wow! You clintonistas are a piece of work!!!
Obama 2008 -- Yes, WE CAN!!!
Posted by: Jackt51 -- Vietnam Vet and Proud Liberal | Apr 16, 2008 6:58:16 PM
Substance or style? I vote for susbstance and experience.
Posted by: lady | Apr 16, 2008 6:58:22 PM
To KC: Don't criticize English comprehension if you don't know the difference between "its" and "it's"
Posted by: mike | Apr 16, 2008 7:00:22 PM
Since today marks the first anniversary of the Virgina Tech massacre, I hope George or Charlie asks the candidates where they stand on gun control. With Senator Clinton touting the values of hunting, it would be especially enlightening for the voters of Pennsylvania - as well as the rest of the country - to hear both candidates true feelings on this important matter. With the two candidates pandering to Pennsylvania voters about which of them loves guns the most, let's have a question on this topic.
Posted by: Lesleyann | Apr 16, 2008 7:00:23 PM
Obama's story is kinda like Tales of the Arabian Nights.
Posted by: Dooley | Apr 16, 2008 7:01:38 PM
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