Presidential Candidate
Debate: President Bartlet vs. Governor Ritchie
Debate Moderator: The rules for tonight's debate are as follows. A
candidate will be asked a question by one of the panelists and he will
have 90 seconds to respond. His opponent will then have 60 seconds with
which to ask a question and get an answer, though it must be limited to
the same topic. There will be two minutes for closing statements at the
end. By virtue of a coin toss, Governor Richie, the first question is
for you.
Panelist: Governor Ritchie, good evening.
Governor Robert Ritchie, R-FL: Good
evening.
Debate Moderator: Good evening.
Perhaps the biggest philosophical difference between you and the
president is over the role of the federal government itself and whether
national problems really have national solutions. Can you explain your
view?
Governor Ritchie: Well, first let me say good evening and thank you.
It's a privilege to be here.
My view of this is simple: We don't need a Federal Department of
Education telling us our children have to learn Esperanto, they have to
learn Eskimo poetry. Let the states decide, let the communities decide
on health care, on education, on lower taxes, not higher taxes. Now,
he's going to throw a big word at you -- "unfunded mandate." He's going
to say if Washington lets the states do it, it's an unfunded mandate.
But what he doesn't like is the federal government losing power. But I
call it the ingenuity of the American people.
Debate Moderator: President Bartlet,
you have 60 seconds for a question and an answer.
President Josiah Bartlet: Well, first of all, let's clear up a
couple of things. "Unfunded mandate" is two words, not one big word.
There are times when we're 50 states and there are times when we're one
country, and have national needs. And the way I know this is that
Florida didn't fight Germany in World War II or establish civil rights.
You think states should do the governing wall-to-wall. That's a
perfectly valid opinion. But your state of Florida got $12.6 billion in
federal money last year -- from Nebraskans, and Virginians, and New
Yorkers, and Alaskans, with their Eskimo poetry. 12.6 out of a state
budget of $50 billion. I'm supposed to be using this time for a
question, so here it is: Can we have it back, please?
Governor Ritchie: And the partisan
bickering? Now, I want people to work together in this great country.
And that's what I did in Florida -- I brought people together. And
that's what I'll do as your President, in the log jam, in the gridlock,
and bring Republicans together with Democrats 'cause Americans are tired
of partisan politics.
Debate Moderator: Mr. President.
President Bartlet: Actually, what
you've done in Florida is bring the right together with the far right.
And I don't think Americans are tired of partisan politics. I think
they're tired of hearing career politicians diss [disrespect] partisan
politics to get a gig. I've tried it before. They ain't buyin' it.
That's okay, though -- [audience applause]. That's okay, though, 'cause
partisan politics is good. Partisan politics is what the Founders had in
mind. It guarantees that the minority opinion is heard, and as a
lifelong possessor of minority opinions, I appreciate it. But if you're
troubled by it, Governor, you should know, in this campaign, you've used
the word "liberal" 74 times in one day. It was yesterday.
Debate Moderator: Governor Ritchie,
many economists have stated that the tax cut, which is the centerpiece
of your economic agenda, could actually harm the economy. Is now really
the time to cut taxes?
Governor Ritchie: You bet it is. We
need to cut taxes for one reason: the American people know how to spend
their money better than the federal government does.
Debate Moderator: Mr. President,
your rebuttal.
President Bartlet: There it is.
That's the ten--word answer my staff's been looking for for two weeks.
There it is. Ten--word answers can kill you in political campaigns.
They're the tip of the sword. Here's my question: What are the next ten
words of your answer? Your taxes are too high? So are mine. Give me the
next ten words. How are we going to do it? Give me ten after that, I'll
drop out of the race right now.
Every once in a while, every once in a while, there's a day with an
absolute right and an absolute wrong, but those days almost always
include body counts. Other than that, there aren't very many un--nuanced
moments in leading a country that's way too big for ten words. I'm the
President of the United States, not the President of the people who
agree with me. And by the way, if the left has a problem with that, they
should vote for somebody else.
