ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, October 18, 1996 TAG: 9610180037
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-8 EDITION: METRO
DESPITE CONSTANT signaling from the Dole camp beforehand that he would raise a bevy of charges against President Clinton about alleged ethical lapses (well, now they've been raised, haven't they), the last presidential debate Wednesday night offered more whimpers than bangs.
But it was the discussion of policy and substance, more than the debaters' positioning and style, that seemed most tired and resigned.
Dole did go on the attack, but was unable to land any blows. The format - town-hall questions from an audience - wasn't right for him. The challenger had no compelling point to make about "character," and seemed not to have his heart in it.
And Clinton was, of course, prepared. Most jabs he, slick as always, let slide off of him. At one point he issued a sound bite for the news recaps: "No attack ever created a job or educated a child or helped a family make ends meet." True enough.
Dole came off better when he showed his wit, when he invoked his longstanding personal rejection of discrimination and bigotry, and when he demurred in criticizing Clinton's Mideast policy at a sensitive moment in U.S.-Israeli relations.
Much has been said and written about the Republican's fear that he might come across the hatchet man and turn off voters disgusted by negativity. But this doesn't explain why Dole's debate performance fizzled.
The example that everyone cites from a previous debate, when he allowed his alleged meanness to erupt and had to suffer the political consequences, is from 20 years ago. Running for vice president, Dole said all the U.S. military conflicts of the 20th century were "Democrat wars."
But that accusation wasn't so much mean as it was incredible and ridiculous. Similarly, Dole's most notable error in Wednesday's debate in San Diego came not in his fumbling attempts to raise "character" issues, but in his discussion of the economy.
"We have the worst economy in a century," he said. Oh? So, not only did Democrats start World War II, but the economy was better during the Great Depression?
Of greater substantive significance was the spectacle of Clinton demagoging on Republicans' Medicare "cuts," and of Dole neglecting to explain how he would, simultaneously, reduce taxes, spare entitlements and balance the budget. There they went again. Aren't these matters of "character"?
Both candidates also acknowledged that they can't deal with the budget problems posed by Medicare and Social Security. The only way to fix them is to appoint bipartisan commissions to take the heat from elected officials. Isn't this a character issue, too?
LENGTH: Medium: 52 linesby CNB