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The debate, the second to last of ten before next Tuesday’s election, took a similar shape as many of the candidates’ previous face-to-face meetings, with Republican Kennedy and Democrat Klobuchar trading accusations about each other’s records, while Fitzgerald, of the Independence Party, touted himself as an alternative to the polarization of the two major parties.
“You have a responsibility this year, a responsibility to reclaim a government that’s been taken away from you,” Fitzgerald said at the debate sponsored by AARP and broadcast live on the Minnesota News Network.
Fitzgerald is the only candidate supporting the immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops while Klobuchar is calling for a “change in course” but resisting a timetable.
As in the past, Fitzgerald’s underdog message was largely drowned out by the face-off between Kennedy and Klobuchar that extended beyond Iraq to Medicare and Social Security, illegal immigration, abortion and stem-cell research.
The debate featured a somewhat milder tone than recent meetings, though Klobuchar still accused Kennedy of misrepresenting her position on several issues: Kennedy maintains that Klobuchar supports, among other things, granting social security benefits to illegal immigrants and rationing of prescription drugs, which she strenuously disputes.
As in previous debates, Iraq took up the greatest portion of the discussion. Kennedy used the opportunity to criticize recent comments by U.S. Sen. John Kerry, which Republicans have interpreted as insulting the intelligence of U.S. troops.
“You have refused to denounce his statements questioning their intelligence, and you have refused to give back the more than $100,000 your campaign received from him,” Kennedy said.
“John Kerry made an inaccurate statement and it was in very poor taste and he apologized for it,” Klobuchar shot back. “But unlike the congressman, I don’t believe the people want to go back and redo the Kerry-Bush fight, they want to talk about this November.”
The debate touched on greater length than most previous meetings on the controversial social issues of abortion and stem-cell research, which some doctors believe could hold the key to curing diseases including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
Kennedy said he supports adult stem-cell research, but not taxpayer funding of research that destroys human embryos. An opponent of legalized abortion, Kennedy criticized Klobuchar for accepting campaign donations from the group Emily’s List, which he has called a radical pro-abortion group.
“Liberty and the pursuit of happiness begin with the pursuit of life,” Kennedy said.
Klobuchar confirmed her support of abortion rights but said she has many pro-life supporters and wants to find ways to reduce abortions. She also said she supports stem-cell research, saying, “it’s a difficult issue but I come down on the side of the cure.”
