Throughout the debate, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have accused each other of numerously and purposely distorting the truth about each other for political gain. The attacked each other over the war in Iraq to Bill Clinton’s role in Hillary’s campaign.
Obama fired at Clinton saying when he was helping unemployed workers in the state of Illinois, she was a corporate lawyer sitting on the board at Wal-Mart. Shortly after, Clinton said she was fighting against misguided Republican policies while Obama was practicing law and represented a slum landlord business owner in inner city Chicago.
It would also seem that Obama looked irritated at former President Bill Clinton.
“I’m here. He’s not,” Clinton responded snapping at Obama.
“Well, I can’t tell who I’m running against sometimes,” Obama replied as he countered Hillary’s reply.
All three with former Senator John Edwards debated five days before the South Carolina primary election.
“The kinds of sharp exchanges we saw tonight probably don’t do much to help any of these three candidates but might harm Obama the most,” according to Vaughn Ververs, CBSNews.com senior political editor.
“Getting caught up in lengthy and confusing explanations about votes, wheter in the Illinois legislature or in the United States Senate, makes Obama seem less like the transformational leader he has presented as more like a politician,” Ververs explained and adds: “The fact that both Clinton and Edwards pressed him hard on those issues made that perception stand out even more. At least the audience seemed to be largely on his side.”
In the past, Clinton was the national front-runner but was bumped off when Obama won Iowa. But, Clinton recovered shortly after by claiming New Hampshire in an upset victory along with winning the Nevada caucuses.
South Carolina’s Democratic electorate is expected to be 50 percent black. This would be an apparent advantage for Obama in a historic race between a black male candidate and a female candidate.
Both Clinton and Obama slung mud at each other when complaining about dirty politics and disenfranchising voters. Obama gave the suggestion that the Clintons were practicing tactics that alienated voters.
“There was a set of assertions made by Senator Clinton as well as her husband that are not factually accurate,” Obama said in regards to his accusations of distorting the truth. He added: “I think that part of what people are looking for right now is someone who is going to solve problems and not resort to the same political tactics that we’ve seen in Washingon.”
Clinton fired back by saying: “I believe your record and what you say should matter.”
Edwards tried to get equal time.
“Are there three people in this debate, not two?” Edwards asked.
Hillary Clinton had close ties with the Walton family. From 1986 to 1992, Clinton had served on the board. Her Senate campaign in 2006 returned $5000 to Wal-Mart’s political action committee along with citing difference with company policies.
The Clintons also held a blind trust that included stock holdings in Wal-Mart. But the contents of the blind-trust were liquidated in 2007 because those investments could create conflicts of interest that could embarrass Hillary as she ran for president.
Antoin “Tony” Rezko, who is a Chicago real estate developer and fast food magnate was a longtime fundraiser for Obama. Rezko was charged with fraud, attempted extortion, and money laundering.
On Saturday, Obama’s campaign said it was giving to charities over $40,000 from donors with ties to Rezko.
Obama and Clinton often spoke over each other throughout the debate.
CNN and the Congressional Black Caucus sponsored the two-hour debate.
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