Meet The Press: Maryland Senate Style

Iraq
Michael Steele's platform on Iraq as announced on Meet The Press is unbelievably callous and downright fucked up. He claims that the Iraqi government needs to decide whether they want to work towards democracy or not. And if they don't he's going to call for the troops home.

I can't believe he's blaming the Iraqi government for the failures in Iraq. That's like blaming the children of murdered parents for not wanting to succumb to the wishes of the murders. Michael Steele's policy on Iraq is that absurd and sad.

Ben Cardin supports involving the international community in helping to solve the problem. I've never understood why we haven't brought the international community into this dilemma.

Now, I support bringing the troops home immediately. Anything short of this assumes that America can actually help rectify a disastrous situation that it created. The reality is that American troops have been put in an impossible situation by Bush and Rumsfeld and need to come home in order to save their lives.

Bipartisanship
Michael Steele handled tough questions about bipartisanship with skill. He was asked whether he was running away from being a Republican and he was able to explain that he is a proud Republican, but it's his intention to break down labels that divide Washington. Cardin stumbled on this issue.

Stem Cells Research and Abortion
Michael Steele is pro-life, but he had trouble admitting as much. Embryos are discarded from fertility clinics all the time and was asked whether that was murder, which is why he doesn't support embryonic stem cell research. He muddled about and never gave a position. Ben Cardin was far more eloquent and definitive in his pro-choice stance.

Supreme Court Nominations
As upsetting as Steele's stance on Iraq was, this issue was his poorest showing. He was asked whether he would have voting against any sitting supreme court justices during confirmation. He repeated the question and tried to weasel out of it. It was fairly pathetic. Cardin was firm and clear.

Affirmative Action
Michael Steele defended his pro-affirmative action stance with clarity, claiming that it should be a system bent on correcting economic wrongs and not racially polarizing. Cardin agreed.


It was unfortunate that Green, Libertarian, Populist candidate Kevin Zeese wasn't included in the debate. However, this debate made me feel stronger about voting for Ben Cardin.