Current Politics: The Presidential Debates

One of the most exciting parts of a presidential campaign are no doubt the debates. This is a highly publicized event where the candidates face off in a confrontation of political ideology. Unlike the usual scripted speeches we see or hear on the media, this is the once chance we get to see our political leaders in a natural environment that is completely off the script. In this setting of political and sometimes personal engagement, we get to read the candidates' reactions, body language, and overall character. In this day and age, it's not so much the agenda that wins over the public, yet rather how the person looks, speaks, and handles themselves in the spotlight. Over the past few decades debates have grown more and more popular and have served as a crucial turning point in various elections. Here is a brief look at some past presidential debates and an analysis of the recent ones between incumbent President Barack Obama and former Governor Mitt Romney.

Historic Debates

Although President Abraham Lincoln was known as a great debater, his seven debates in 1858 against Stephen Douglas, were for the seat of Illinois Senate and not for the office of president. Therefore surprisingly the first official presidential debate was not until 1960 between John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon. This event was also televised and famously caught Richard Nixon sweating on stage in the spotlight in front of 70 million viewers. There were a total of four debates that year, of which played an important role in winning JFK the presidency. These first debates were quite historic in changing the presidential race from not just one about political agenda yet also physical character as well.

There were no debates held for the next three elections from 1964, 1968, and 1972 perhaps due to the Vietnam War. It was not until 1976 that the country once again was able to tune into a national televised debate between Governor Jimmy Carter and incumbent President Gerald Ford. This would of course catch the infamous moment where Gerald Ford was caught clueless on foreign matters of the Soviet Union and the eastern bloc. Jimmy Carter would go on to win that election.

However in the 1980 debate, incumbent President Jimmy Carter was belittled on stage by a much more confident looking Governor Ronald Reagan. In the 1984 debates, Reagen would continue this humorous and confident appeal against former Vice President Walter Mondale. In 1988 it was not so much the presidential debates between George HW Bush and Michael Dukakis that caught media attention yet the Vice Presidential debates between Dan Quayle and Lloyd Bernstein. It was at this famous VP debate where Lloyd Bernstein told Dan Quayle that "He was no Jack Kennedy".

In the 1992 debate, incumbent President George H.W. Bush was constantly caught in an impatient state checking his watch and sighing against Governor Bill Clinton. Bill Clinton displayed a more affectionate and composed appeal on camera, that would finally put a Democratic back in the white house after 12 years of Republican leadership. He would continue this cool demeanor in the 1996 debate against Senator Bob Dole. However in the 2000 election, his Vice President Al Gore was unable to duplicate that famous Clinton smoothness. Gore displayed snobby and unlikable characteristics, constantly sighing on stage and shaking his head, while Governor George W. Bush was speaking.

I remember the first campaign and debates I really tuned into was the 2004 election between incumbent President George W. Bush and Senator John Kerry. I remember watching each of the three debates with my college friends, and always feeling that Kerry looked ten times more intelligible than George W. Bush I did. I was of course devastated when Bush would go on to win that election. However in 2008 my political passion was finally satisfied with the new fresh face of Senator Barack Obama, who steadily defeated John McCain with a similar cool demeanor as Bill Clinton.  


Obama vs Romney: Night One

This first debate is usually the most important debate, that establishes the candidate's dynamic with each other. I was very nervous for what this dynamic would be between the cool and un-aggressive Barack Obama against the ruthless business-boss, Mitt Romney. Sure enough the first few minutes of the debate were very telling of a fierce top dog executive talking down to everyone in the room. It seemed quite clear from the beginning the President Obama did not have his head in the game, rather looking down at his podium, with a very uninterested demeanor.

The entire night Mitt Romney stomped over moderator Jim Lehrer, on an overly aggressive attack. In my opinion President Obama was fine on substance however certainly lacked some body language and assertiveness. The media pundits went to town on the post-debate analysis ripping Obama to shreds and boosting Romney in the polls.


Vice Presidential Debate: Joe Biden vs Paul Ryan

That VP debate could not come any sooner, after several days of media scrutiny on President Obama's performance. The debate was moderated by Martha Raddatz as the one and only sit-down vice presidential debate. The dynamic was clear from the beginning; an older, confident, more experienced, and passionate politician against a sharp, poised, and competitive up-and-comer. Joe Biden dominated the stage with passionate body language, laughing and smiling at Paul Ryan's accusations.

Some media pundits may say this was a rude reaction, however in my opinion a smile is far more affective than having one's head down or looking angry at the heart of opposition. Paul Ryan was however no pushover and also brought solid substance and composure throughout the debate despite Biden's aggressive stance. Joe Biden was also quite effective with spot-on fact checks and counter-points for each of Ryan's arguments. The debate pundits declared this a tie, however I think Biden clearly won the stage on both body language and substance. This was a much needed moral booster for the democratic base, however nonetheless VP debates aren't very affective in swaying voters or the polls. The attention and pressure was now on the President to redeem himself from his first night's lackluster performance.

Obama vs Romney: Night Two

On the second debate night the pressure was extremely high for President Obama to attack and outperform Mitt Romney. The setting was a town hall meeting moderated by CNNs Candy Crowley. This time both candidates had the freedom to move around on stage while taking questions from the audience. The debate began very tense, when Mitt Romney got into Obama's personal space, challenging him over oil prices. Obama was however able to maintain his composure throughout the night, with good attacks on Romney.

The big break however came over a question on Libya where Mitt Romney was seen to have gotten his facts wrong. Romney accused Obama of not mentioning the Benghazi consulate attacks as "terrorism", yet was later corrected by moderator Candy Crowley informing Romney that Obama did in fact refer to the event as an act of terror in the Rose Garden. This major flub by Romney was responded with applause from the audience, and a major game changer in the dynamic. The pundits reaction was somewhat mixed, yet in general most agreed that Obama did much better than the 1st night and that Romney shot himself in the foot by constantly interrupting the female moderator as well as getting his facts wrong on Libya.


Obama vs Romney: Night Three

The third and final debate was on foreign policy, a sit down format, moderated by Bob Schieffer. Once again the first few minutes were telling of what was to expect, and it was quite clear to me from the beginning that President Obama was sharp and on his game. It seemed quite obvious to expect that the president would have the upper hand in the foreign policy discussion due to his achievements on Al Qaeda, Bin Laden, ending the war in Iraq, bringing down Gaddafi in Libya, reducing nuclear arms with Russia, and drawing down trips in Afghanistan. He also has much more insight on foreign issues as the commander in chief, having dealt with world leaders, unlike governor Romney's zero experience with foreign leaders.

The third debate was thus a total domination by President Obama on both substance and body language. Romney shifted his strategy from the previous two debates, by agreeing mostly with the president. Of course this time many of the same media pundits had the nerve to say that Obama was being overly aggressive this time. However spin and polarization aside, the majority of the media and viewers agreed that the night belonged to the president. He thus won the debate series 2 of 3 in my opinion.

And so with the end of these very suspenseful and critical debates, we are on to the homestretch of the election. It is almost a week away and the polls couldn't be any closer. The question will come down to voter turnout and whether our nation wants four more years forward or the same policies that got us into an economic recession to begin with. The answer will come on Nov 6th.

Musical Study: Bob Marley

I just recently saw a documentary on the life of Bob Marley directed by Kevin MacDonald and just had to make a post on his extremely interesting life. Before I even knew about Bob Marley, I always felt a warm feeling whenever I heard reggae music. It was perhaps the tropical sounds and playful rhythm I heard in songs as a kid such as "Don't Worry Be Happy" or hits from UB40s such as "Red Red Wine" or "Cant' Help Falling in Love".

I believe the first time I really began to hear and identify the music of Bob Marley was in High School through my older friend, Todd Kearney. And it wasn't until I got into college that I began to understand his impact on both music and perspective. Bob Marley can be considered the father of reggae music, as well as a spiritual prophet of the Rastafarian Movement. He lived a brief yet very interesting life of which I would like to study in this post.

Reggae Music

So it's my understanding that Reggae music grew in the late 1960s as an evolution from ska and rock-steady. The music of ska was popular in the 1950s, with a mixture of Caribbean drums, jazz, rhythm, and blues. In the 1960s Bob Marley and the Wailers, infused all the elements of ska and rocksteady to create a new form of popular music known as reggae. To this day there is no one that quite defines the musical genre of Reggae than Bob Marley.

Musical Career: Bob Marley and the Wailers

Much of the original inspiration and style of Bob Marley's music came from his Rastafarian beliefs. He grew up in Kingston, Jamaica where he met other musicians such as Joe Higgs and Peter Tosh. In 1963 he teamed up with Bunny Mailer, Peter Tosh, Junior Braithwaite, Beverley Kelso, and Cherry Smith to form Bob Marley and the Wailers. Marley was the lead-singer and writer, however backed up by a good team of reggae musicians and vocalists. The band became very popular in Jamaica, however did not gain world attention until the 1970s until the release of their major album, Catch a Fire. After that it was straight to the top, until his demise in 1981, due to cancer.\

By 1975 Bob Marley was one of the most famous Jamaicans in the world. He broke up with the Wailers, yet continued to release major albums and hits. In 1976 before he was about to give a free concert to ease political tensions, in Jamiaca he was wounded in an assassination attempt. He still however went on to perform in front of 80,000 people claiming that he could not take a day off in the fight for peace. In 1978 he performed in another major political concert known as the One Love Peace Concert. This time in front of 32,000 people, Bob Marley gave a passionate performance and united the two hands of the opposing political parties. He gave one final political concert in 1980 in Zimbabwe, calling for Africans to unite and rejecting the apartheid in South Africa.   


Marley's music is defined by his extremely soulful voice. He sings from his heart with such passion and belief in what he is singing about. He has the ability to yell and still make it sound so soothing. His music is relaxing yet energetic at the same time. It is music you can dance to or just nod your head to. It is poetic, political, and spiritual with a greater meaning and purpose. He is no doubt one of my top 10 favorite musicians of all time. Here are some of my all time favorite Marley songs;

• Redemption Song
• No Woman No Cry
• One Love
• Jamaican Rum
• Jamming
• Slave Driver
• Kinky Reggae
• Stir it Up

Rastafarian Movement and Pan-Africanism

Bob Marley was inspired as a young teenager by two influential leaders; Marcus Garvey and Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia. Marcus Garvey was a Jamaican writer who promoted a philosophy of Pan-Africanism, for all black people to unite. The idea being that African nations and people would unite to improve their social, economic, and political status. This philosophy eventually merged with the practice of the Nation of Islam and most notably the Rastafrian Movement.

Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia, became the central figure in the Rastafarian Movement for a variety of reasons. He was considered the strongest and most prominent of African monarchs and made a powerful appeal to the League of Nations in 1936. He ruled the country of Ethiopia from 1936 to 1974. Early Rastas considered Haile Selassie the reincarnation of Jesus Christ with a purpose to create a paradise known as Zion. Although he himself was more of a political leader, Rastas considered him a spiritual prophet and referred to him as "Jah".


The Movement took hold in Jamaica during the 1950s and 1960s and began to spread globally much thanks to Bob Marley's influential music. It was not so much a religion as it was a way of life, that embraced spiritual peace with oneself and one's brothers and sisters. They encouraged the use of cannabis, a healthy diet, and the rejection of western culture. Much of their beliefs were an off-shoot of the bible, with some new added elements of Pan-Africanism, political equality, and spirituality. To this day there are about a million practicing Rastafarian.