At Last, an Informative Interview with a Candidate
May 5, 2008
Updated 5/8/08
As in years past, most interviews and debates in the 2008 presidential campaign have been uninformative and shallow. With a focus on hearsay and everything but issues, they have contributed to voter confusion instead of relieving it. I’m proud to say that voter outrage seems to be turning the tide. A mainstream journalist finally got it right on Sunday.
Tim Russert’s interview with Senator Barack Obama on Meet the Press covered many controversial issues surrounding the candidate. He thoroughly explored Obama’s relationship with the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, but not at the expense of dealing with other issues. Obama rose to the occasion by giving thoughtful, heartfelt answers.
The two also discussed the following:
- Obama’s concerns about the tone of the campaign
- questions about his patriotism
- his empathy with the growing number of voters who feel they won’t be able to achieve the “American Dream”
- his inability to gain support among white voters who don’t have a college degree
- why Obama opposes plans by Senators McCain and Clinton to temporarily suspend the gas tax this summer
- his plans for the country’s energy needs
- ethanol policies and other possible causes of escalating food prices
- Clinton’s recent response to a question about a hypothetical attack on Israel by Iran
- Obama’s plans for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan
- how to gain more support from Pakistan in the fight against the Taliban
While emphasizing that he doesn’t expect to be in that situation, Obama then pledged to support the Democratic ticket if not chosen to lead it.
There are many other questions about all the candidates that need to be answered. If Russert and his colleagues will continue to conduct interviews of this caliber in the future, voters should have what they need to make informed decisions in the remainder of the primaries and in the general election this fall. You can watch a video of the interview below this post.
Though I previously announced that I would discuss George Stephanopoulos’ interview with Hillary Clinton, I think this post and the primary results in North Carolina and Indiana have already made my point.
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