Back in '04 at DU, I remember a lot more debate about the candidates on issues...

[AP]

and a lot less spin about inconsequential tangents.

[babylonsister]

1. I think the issues were discussed here during the first 19 or 20 debates.

:crazy:

[olkaz]

7. /thread

Well played.

[AP]

11. ...I don't recall issues being discussed then either.

Yes, there were debates. But, no, issues weren't discussed here at DU anywhere near as much as they were 4 years earlier.

[AP]

10. So, everyone's clear on their respective positions on health care, tax policy, addressing mortgage

crisis?

OK.

Then lets get down to personal attacks, spin, and misrepresentation.

[KittyWampus]

2. BAck in 04, the losing primary candidates didn't stay in the race to trash the presumptive nominee

[AP]

5. In '04, candidates who didn't have a chance to win stayed in much longer.

We're down to two candidates, who both have mathematical chance of winning, and instead of exploring their positions on the issues, people are lying to themselves about there being presumptive nominees and about the motivations for why a candidate continues to compete.

[0007]

3. And what is it that YOU need to enlighten us about?

That is having relevance to the topic at hand:

[CTyankee]

4. The difference is the long wrangling caused by not have a definitive candidate

yet, at this stage of the game.

Both candidates' positions on the issues are very close. For those on the far Left, however, that is not good enough. While I understand and appreciate what they are pointing out, I think this is the reason we can't get much traction one way or the other in this campaign. Just more wrangling, more "sniper fire", more "Rev. Wright."

How much airtime, and cyber space (including here on DU) has been taken up talking about bowling? Even Maureen Dowd was making Obama look prissy in her NYT column today.

I could cry. It seems like we are in a time warp, not going anywhere except round and round...

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

6. The two candidates are almost identical on "the issues".

What's to debate between two moderates?

[izzybeans]

8. Welcome to the new dungeon. There are vipers in here so be safe and don't look them in the eye..

[nolabels]

9. The M$M knows it can't win it's favorites with the issues so they chose........

caricature assassination. The M$M doesn't even want to get close to the issues because of the implications on M$M itself. Wake up and smell the coffee already :shrug:


P.S. why the issues don't get more attention here at D.U. is because so many here follow the herd and get their cues from the M$M

[paulk]

12. the Obama campaign has made it a policy to not talk about

issues. It's part of their strategy - and who knows - they may even be right. Not focusing on issues has been the Republican strategy for many elections now and it's done them well. "Inconsequential tangents" win elections, I guess.

While Edwards was still in the race there was more of a focus on issues, but once he dropped out that kind of disappeared. There are a few HRC supporters still talking about issues, but it's kind of pointless considering how badly they're outnumbered here, and it gets tiring putting up with the constant abuse from the Obama faithful.