The big news this week is that leading GOP presidential
candidates are prepared to just say no to CNN’s September edition
of its YouTube debate series. In the aftermath of last week’s
unutterably awful display of what passes for modern political
debate in our country, this is a most welcome and commonsensical
development. In addition to the most obviously embarrassing aspects
of the Democrat debate — animated snowmen, phony rednecks, and a
host of other wannabes eager for their 15 minutes of fame — was
the inordinate amount of video-questions posed by young,
MTV-types.
We unfortunately live in an age where youth trumps all. This
phenomenon started in the 1960s and continues unabated today, to
the extent that those who started the ball rolling have adopted a
Peter Pan mentality: they won’t grow up. And it was painfully
apparent that the Democratic candidates, if not totally onboard
with this concept, must at least pay it lip service if they want
their party’s nomination. So great is this feeling that the youth
vote conquers, that even when choosing a commander-in-chief,
immaturity rocks, dude.
This however, is nothing new. Recall the 2004
election season, when CNN televised the “Rock the Vote” Democratic
debate which featured questions like, “I’d be curious to find out,
if you could pick one of your fellow candidates to party with,
which you would choose….If you get sick, who’s going to hold your
hair back? If you see a cutie across the room…who’s going to be
your wing man? Who’s going to take one for the team?”
Things were not that different this time around, as an ad featuring Chris
Dodd’s hair color was aired as well as a question by a young black
girl asking, “Who was your favorite teacher and why?” Cute stuff,
but not exactly what Time magazine’s Ana Marie Cox
wrote would be “heralded as an almost
life-changing event for American voters.”
Of course there were some illuminating moments, one of which was
this treasonous ditty from Mike Gravel: “Well, of course I want to
take credit and admit that I’m the guy that filibustered for five
months, all by myself, in the Senate to end the draft in the United
States of America. And I’m very proud of that because George Bush
does not have the boots on the ground to invade Iran.”
Or this bit of vintage trial-lawyer John Edwards: “I think the
people who are powerful in Washington — big insurance companies,
big drug companies, big oil companies — they are not going to
negotiate. They are not going to give away their power. The only
way that they are going to give away their power is if we take it
away from them.”
But the highlights of the evening were provided by the
youngsters Democrats feel will put them in the White House. Just
how uninformed many of them are, was nicely illustrated by a
Constitutionally-challenged little gal from St. Louis Obispo: “[I]
if I can go to any state and get the same triple grande, non-fat,
no foam vanilla latte from Starbucks, why I can’t I go to any state
and vote the same way?”
Another beaut was from Anne in Pennsylvania: “My question is, we
here at Planned Parenthood support comprehensive sex education and
I’d like to know if any of you as candidates have talked to your
children about sex and used medically accurate and age-appropriate
information?” If ever there was a “that’s none of your damn
business” moment, this was it. Predictably though, it was not
forthcoming.
The truth, thankfully, is that the “youth” vote will not
materialize in the way long envisioned by liberals. After all of
their efforts the past few years, a greater number of the 18-29
year-olds voted in ‘04, but failed to deliver the election to John
F. Kerry. It was hardly the landslide predicted by the “Vote or Die” crowd, as 44% of the coveted
demographic did the unthinkable and voted Republican.
No, I don’t think we’ll see that huge tsunami of liberal
twenty-somethings rushing to the polls in ‘08 either. They’re too
busing ordering their lattes on the way to their Planned Parenthood
gigs after which they will seek out their wing men or women to aid
them in their quest for medically accurate and age-appropriate
sex.
Being a “grownup” is not simply about one’s numerical age; were
that so, we would not be defended so magnificently by our young
people in uniform. Nor is the reverse true. Witness the petulance
of the Democrat candidates toward debating on Fox News; a juvenile
display of taking their bats and balls and going home if there ever
was one.
Out of the 13 Republican debates, only two have or will be
carried by Fox, while the rest will be hosted by, shall we say,
more liberal networks, including two by the YouTube-less CNN. As
for the 14 proposed Democrat confabs, all will be played on home
turf.
If Democrat candidates really want to reach all young voters,
maybe they should appear on Fox. After all, Barack Obama has no
problem sitting down with vicious, murderous dictators; could Brit
Hume be all that bad?
