Democrat Chris Coons and Republican Christine O’Donnell went toe-to-toe in a nationally televised U.S. Senate co-hosted by Delaware First Media and the University of Delaware in Newark Wednesday night before a throng of students, members of the public, and national and international media.
- © 2010 Associated Press
Some 650 people witnessed the exchange at Mitchell Hall, one of the few times both candidates have appeared together in the general election season.
The hopefuls came out swinging. Coons called his opponent a candidate who wants to take the country “back to the failed policies of the past. and who values partisan bickering over compromise and solutions.” O’Donnell, saying “Uncle Sam needs to be cut off,” alleged that a vote for Coons would “cost the average Delaware family $10,000 instantly between the January vote for tax hikes and his vote for cap and trade.”
UD political science [rofessor Jason Mycoff was struck by the negativity of the debate. "Both candidates showed a willingness to go after each other a little more than I was expecting," he said. "I think it was pretty equal from both sides, going after the records, going after the statements."
The 90-minute exchange was not without lighter moments, and a few stumbles. O'Donnell said Coons was jealous he was not on NBC's"Saturday Night Live," where she has been the focus of recent comedy skits. When pressed by CNN'S Wolf Blitzer about recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions she disagreed with, O'Donnell could not think of any. Coons, meanwhile, avoided specifics on where to cut off extension of the Bush tax cuts, other than making them available for the "overwhelming majority of Americans.”
Chris Coons and Christine O’Donnell spar over O’Donnell’s past finances (click for video).
The Democratic candidate also was not sure why U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Coons would be his "pet." "I'm nobody's pet," Coons said.
- © 2010 Associated Press
Coons also appeared to be working against the clock several times, saying at various points “so much to say,” “a minute may not be enough,” and, when told to answer a question in 30 seconds, “that’s going to be difficult, Wolf.”
On the issue of jobs, O’Donnell said the best thing government can do is to “get out of the way of the small business and get out of the way of the entrepreneur” by making sure tax cuts don’t expire in January and to “begin to roll back some of the regulation that’s forced them to close their doors.” Coons defended the Obama administration’s response to job losses, saying it has made capital available to small businesses and wisely spent stimulus and TARP funds.
The candidates sharply differed on many current issues. Coons believes the nation is more secure since President Obama took office. O’Donnell said the United States is less secure, and also took issue with Coons’ support of a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants once they have admitted to their wrongdoing, paid a fine, and gotten “in line” for citizenship behind legal applicants.
Chris Coons and Christine O’Donnell discuss immigration (click for video).
Coons sidestepped directly answering a question about whether teachers’ unions have become too powerful. He called for a “new generation of teachers, who are fully prepared and fully qualified to engage their students in the classroom.” O’Donnell said too much money was being spent on administrative salaries, and said teachers and parents should be more empowered. She also is a supporter of charter schools and school vouchers.
- © 2010 Associated Press
O’Donnell repeatedly used the phrase “Obamacare” to describe what she sees as a flawed health-care reform program that will not in fact result in lower costs and more access to care. Coons is in favor of the measure, saying it’s not perfect but “rather than turning it back and repealing and going for another year or two of endless partisan bickering, this was a critical piece of legislation.”
Was the debate a “game changer?
Earlier in the day Wednesday, the University of Delaware Center for Political Communications released its latest National Agenda Poll, which indicates that Coons has expanded his lead over O’Donnell to 21 points (54 to 33 percent). Coons is up 49 to 41 percent among men who were surveyed, while the New Castle County executive enjoys a strong lead among women, 58 to 25 percent.
The race is a statistical deadlock in central and southern Delaware, according to the poll. Coons leads O’Donnell, the favorite of the tea party movement in Kent County, 41 to 40 percent, and in Sussex County 45 to 41 percent. The survey gives Coons a larger lead in New Castle County, 60 to 28 percent.
A poll conducted by Monmouth University of New Jersey released on Tuesday gives Coons a lead of 19 points.
O’Donnell must overcome a Democratic majority and sway numerous independents and undecided voters to hope to turn things around before November 2, according to University of Delaware Political Science Professor David Wilson. “She is ahead among conservatives and Republicans,” Wilson said. “But she’s now losing among moderates and liberals, and she is also behind among men now by up to 9 points. I think she did not make headway into the political segment that she needs to have in order to win.”
In the month since O’Donnell’s upset victory over longtime Representative Michael Castle in the Republican primary, attention to the race has reached a fever pitch. Wolf Blitzer hosted “The Situation Room” live from the Newark campus and co-moderated the debate with Nancy Karibjanian of Delaware First Media.
“The storylines that we’ve seen throughout this 2010 election are coming home in this debate,” said CNN Political Director Sam Feist, who was aboard the CNN Express Bus outside of Mitchell Hall. “Think about the tea party in this race, the ascendency of the tea party and, frankly, the role of Sarah Palin in helping to select Republican nomionees. That was true in Delaware as much as in any other state this year.”
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