Kaitlin Lange is a junior journalism and politcal science major and writes "Kaitlin's Langueage" for the Daily News. Her views do not necessarily agree with those of the newspaper. Write to Kaitlin at kllange@bsu.edu.
Politics aren't for everyone. This truth was reaffirmed when I forced my roommates to watch CNN's Democratic primary debate. One of my roommates thought the minimum age to be president was 50. Neither knew who Bernie Sanders was when his face appeared on the TV screen.
Regardless of if you live for debates or not, or just simply didn't get time to watch, here are some of the takeaways from the evening.
1. The debate was between the five Democratic candidates. Going into the race, former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton led the polls, followed by Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. The two were followed by former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley, former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb and former Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee. Vice President Joe Biden still hasn't announced any plans to run for president and was not a part of the debate.
2. It was clear who the front runners were the entire night. The debate centered around Clinton and Sanders, with O'Malley occasionally getting some of the focus. The difference in time between candidates was so noticeable that even when Webb was given the chance to talk, he complained about his lack of time.
3. If debate success rested solely on a candidate's Internet fame, Sanders just won. According to a story from The Washington Post, after hour one Sanders had not only been Googled the most, but had also gained the most Twitter followers. In terms of Internet popularity, Sanders is the Donald Trump of the Democratic party.
4. While the candidates touched on a wide range of topics during the debate, the issue Ball State students should probably care about most is college affordability. Each Democratic candidate at least touched on making college more affordable. Sanders has the most liberal position on the matter, calling for free public college tuition for everyone. While Clinton's answer was a little more vague, she said she would expect students to be able to work at least 10 hours per week to help pay for college. She also wanted to allow Americans to refinance their student loans in an effort to reduce debt. The topic of debt-free education wasn't talked about in-depth until the second hour.
5. Clinton's email scandal won't go away anytime soon, even though apparently everyone wants it to. Even Sanders said, “Enough about the emails. Let's talk about real issues,” and the crowd erupted in agreement.
6. For a party that brags about its view on minorities, the debate almost entirely consisted of white people. Even the majority of the questions were asked by Anderson Cooper, who, you guessed it, is a white man. A black man was given the opportunity to ask a question about “Black Lives Matter,” while a Latino man was given the opportunity to ask about immigration, which seemed far too stereotypical.
7. Most presidential debates center around knowing how to answer questions in a way that makes candidates look strong. If you want to know their past records or where they stand on certain issues, just look at the questions Cooper asked. “Is Clinton too quick to use force?” “Is Sanders tough enough on guns?” His questions pointed out each candidate's flaws. Chafee has only been a Democratic candidate for two years. Clinton has changed her views on multiple issues including Iraq and LGBTQ rights. Sanders might be too far left for moderate Americans to accept.
8. One topic every candidate seemed very passionate about was the unequal distribution of in America, which plays a huge roll in each of the candidate's platform. O'Malley focused on the corruption of big banks, while Sanders also added that he would raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour. For those students working on campus earning $7.25 an hour, thats a big jump.
Overall, the debate was not near as entertaining without Donald Trump for the non-politically minded. And my roommates were more interested in the BuzzFeed quizzes that told them which female Disney character they were.
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