PURE GOLD VALLEY

Area collegians, politicos react to final debate

Alabama State University sophomore Alicia Hines said she came into the Levi Watkins Learning Center on campus to watch the debate Monday undecided about who she would vote for, but decided to support President Obama.

She said she was swayed by the president?s arguments on military spending, although she wasn?t totally satisfied with the debate.

?The idea of them talking over each other, I didn?t find that acceptable,? she said.

?(But) on a scale of one to 10, I think it was a nine. They got out what they needed to get out.?

Advertiser reporters watched the final presidential debate Monday between Obama and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney with students and staff at Alabama State University and at Huntingdon College.

At Alabama State, students and political science professors watched the debate at the learning center, where those in the ASU community have gathered to watch the debates.

Students in the honors program at Huntingdon watched the debate with university President Cameron West in a room on campus known as The Hawk?s Nest. Following the debate, prominent Democratic pollster John Anzalone discussed the debate with those at Huntingdon. Anzalone, who is based in Montgomery, and his firm Anzalone Liszt Research are conducting polls for the Obama campaign in several swing states.

Anzalone said the incumbent, whether George W. Bush or Obama, always has an advantage in a foreign policy debate because he can speak of his experience as commander-in-chief and receives daily briefings.

?Every challenger is new to foreign policy,? he said. ?? It is a very difficult issue to master.?

Huntingdon College freshman Jonathan Moore said the candidates continually diverted Monday night?s debate away from foreign policy and back to domestic policy and the economy here.

?I felt like they kind of beat around the bush,? said Moore, a freshman political science major from Montgomery. ?It wasn?t necessarily a strong debate in my opinion.?

He said he did not feel either candidate came across particularly well, although he felt Romney ?got his points across because he had facts,? but he said it would take time to fact-check the statements.

At ASU, a lively discussion began and continued long after the viewing event in the school?s library ended.

The crowd seemed generally pro-Obama, but several Romney supporters made sure to be heard, including Bill Green, a database administrator at Auburn University.

Green said he believed Romney came across as ?more presidential,? and that Obama ?didn?t crush him like he was supposed to.? That said, Green lamented what he said was a lack of discussion of issues of interest to the African-American community.

?(Obama) talks about $90 million in clean energy,? Green said. ?Know what? Take $20 million of that, and start some businesses in urban areas.?

ASU sophomore Vincent Onyilo, meanwhile, gave the victory to the president.

?His facial expressions really showed command of the debate, and it showed him pressing the attack against Romney,? he said.

William Dowdy, a retired ASU political science professor who moderated the debate following the debate, said the goal was to engage students in a ?historic event.? He scored the debate for the president.

?I believe both candidates acquitted themselves well,? he said. ?Neither hit a home run or suffered a damaging blow. Having said that, I think it was apparent to most objective observers that President Obama has a much stronger grasp of foreign policy.?

Huntingdon sophomore Kaison Darden of Wetumpka, who said she is a Democrat, said she felt the candidates were able to differentiate their views on foreign policy, such as where to send money or to send troops or by which countries they would emphasize.

Darden said both candidates had ?pre-rehearsed zingers,? although as a Democrat she enjoyed Obama?s comments.

Darden said she felt Obama was able to effectively point out Romney?s inconsistencies in his positions.

Anzalone said he felt that Obama was effective in pointing to Romney?s inexperience in foreign policy and said Romney did well ?trying to block and tackle? and ?move to the economy because that?s his strong point.?

?Romney was dying to get to the economy,? he said.

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This post was written by: Franklin Manuel

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