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Brown-Warren Springfield Debate (Update – Moderator avoids asking Warren character questions)

Brown-Warren Springfield Debate (Update – Moderator avoids asking Warren character questions)

This is the third of four debates, being held in Western Massachusetts. It starts at 7 p.m. Eastern.

You can watch it on CSPAN on television or online, or live fees at masslive.com, policymic.com and bostonherald.com.

There will not be a “live” blog tonight, but you can comment and I’ll give assessments at the breaks and the end.

End Assessment:

No big moments.  The moderater didn’t ask a single question on any of Warren’s character issues.  Brown brought up her legal representation of big corporatoins repeatedly, and her big salary, but she didn’t respond.

Warren’s game plan was clear, repeat over and over Republicans, Grover Norquist, Mitt Romney, Millionaires, Billionaires, Big Oil, fair share.

Brown kept coming back to his Massachusetts connections, name dropping and pointing out how he helped local businesses.  Brown also stressed his bipartisan nature.

Overall I’d say this was a draw.  Warren was more on offense than in the past, and since the moderator didn’t ask any questions on her character issues, she got to speak in platitudes.

Play by Play:

First question was on jobs.  Warren went right after Brown, and complained that Brown sided with the millionaires, Brown said he rejected the first two jobs bills because they raised taxes, but did support the third bill because it made sense.  Brown made sure to throw in a lot of local references, to places he worked and people he knows.

Next question on Obamacare, Warren went after Brown again.  Tried to tie Brown to Romney.  Brown was a little defensive.

Next question was on higher ed.  Warren again went after Brown and tied him to Romney, protecting millionaires.  Brown brought up Warren’s salary, zero interest loan and perks, and pointed out how students borrow money to pay Harvard which pays Warren.

On deficit, Warren said cut agriculture and military.  Brown hit her on the military cuts.

On the middle class, Brown brought up Warren’s representation of Travelers, LTV and Dow Chemical.  Warren never came back on it.  Brown referred to Washington as pigs in a trough.  Warren brought up that after Dodd Frank bill, Brown worked for a company to get better treatment.  She fell in a trap, because Brown pointed out that the company was Mass Mutual, headquartered in Springfield and a huge local employer.

Throughout the debate Warren supporters were interrupting Brown and cheering Warren.

Next segment was on “womens issues.”  It gave Warren a good opportunity to play the women as victim card.  Brown brought up Catholic issue.  Brown could have been better when Warren kept bringing up “equal pay for equal work” misleading characterization.

Base Realignment program next.  (The moderator is doing everything to stay away from Warren’s personal problems, and there are only 10 minutes left to go.)

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Comments

I am waiting for the debate to begin on C-span. Meanwhile they have the dreadful David Corn from Mother Jones on now, promising he’s going to release something new on Romney tomorrow. Ugh.

Her voice drives me crazy, she’s hard to listen to.

Go Scott and thank you Professor.

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Well, there’s one final debate. Let’s hope Brown brings up her character issues- in a relatively civil way in the next one.

Jim Braude of New England Cable Network just gave the debate to Brown.

    turfmann in reply to Mercyneal. | October 10, 2012 at 8:52 pm

    Really?

    You do realize that Prius drivers with Warren bumper stickers next to their Coexist bumper stickers, going E X A C T L Y the speed limit (lest they incur the wrath of Mother Nature) think that Jim is a flaming moonbat…

    Wow.

Thanks Brown for bring up the ‘Catholic’ issue. I practice Natural Family Planning. Despite differing forms of NFP are accepted withing the medical community and even have its own medical billing codes with a health professional teaches a woman, the mandate covers contraception but not NFP teaching.

Fertility isn’t a disease…

    NC Mountain Girl in reply to ReneeA. | October 10, 2012 at 9:21 pm

    There is no potential payoff for the trial lawyers in natural family planning the way there is in birth control pills. Four or five years ago I couldn’t turn on some cable channels without seeing several ads with high production values for birth control pills like Yaz. Now those same channels are full of cheap ads from law firms trolling for clients for their class action suits.

I caught 5 minutes of the debate at 7:40pm, when Scott Brown was describing his history of legislative support for women’s rights, and then stating that he would continue to support women’s right in the future. He had clearly been practicing reciting the list of votes, which was kind of adorable. Then he said that his support for a domestic violence bill was based in part on personal experience, which I had not realized. Scott Brown was articulate and sincere in his support for women’s rights, reassuring a lot of Massachusetts voters on an important set of policy issues.

It was a very good answer for Democrats considering a crossover vote.

I heard the first few minutes. I was struck by the speed with which they both were talking – which I would say benefited Warren as a Professor. Brown should have slowed down and redirected the questions in order to get beyond Warren’s platitudes. In the little I heard Brown was holding his own but Warren has really nothing beyond the platitudes and Democratic talking points – though of course the latter consists primarily of the former.

What sticks in my memory from tonight:

I want to see the transcript… warren must have said “clear” or “let me be clear” 10 times.

There was a heckler there that sounded like she was yelling “BULL” twice when warren was speaking.

Brown’s best zinger at Warren, “Put the hammer down”

After witnessing Romney destroy Obama on many of the issues discussed in this third Mass Senate debate, My expectations had to be throttled back.

Brown did an ok job and Warren kept firing standard run-of-the-mill liberal blanks.

I rate it as a toss up.

I ran a twitter-commentary live during the debate and unlike the first two previous debates I did, this time several liberals got heated and started trolling me. That I consider a good thing… it meant they felt threatened enough by the commentary to strike out defensively.

Warren is highly scripted. ….let’s all say it “middle class getting hammered ” or “millionaires, billionaires and oil companies” or “he voted against three jobs bills tat would have created jobs”

While highly annoying to listen to, it is good actually. Why? Because it is robot talk that is unpersuasive. Every robo-response is a lost opportunity for EW to lie about something else.

I also think the character issue is played out. Those who think she is a scrounge already decided to vote for Brown. The moon bat crowd doesn’t care. The want “D” over “R” after what.

I think the remaining undecided are going to vote based on “nice” ‘friendly” or other bs

Last, just think about Briwn. In 45/50 states he would most naturally be a DEM, and even ten MA is going to e a tough place for any. “R” to win.

TrooperJohnSmith | October 10, 2012 at 10:20 pm

If Scott Brown walked across the Chelsea River in broad daylight with a piano across his shoulders, the typical Massachusetts voter would say, “Look? That Brown fella ova theah. He con’t even swim the riva!”

If character really mattered, Ted Kennedy would’ve gone to jail for life instead of to D.C.

How could any GOP candidate agree to a radical leftist debate ‘moderator,’ let alone candidates like Brown and Romney?

Is there something in the bottled water the GOP establishment hacks drink? Or are the determined to lose and simply want to coast as a minority party with no responsibility — but with all the perk$?