The Democratic Frontrunners

So here I am writing on deadline once again. Tonight my constraints are self-inflicted. I have rice cooking and some tillapia on the stove. The sun room is usually my sanctuary/home office to get stuff done without being interrupted. I have just stepped out of Little Korea, where my roomates + 1 are watching a Korean television program.

So last night I had to write a story for my press writing class, but for some reason I struggled to write it. The form was the same as the previous weeks, 3 Paragraphs, no more than four lines a paragraph. Hey Nathaniel just walked in, hey what's up Nathaniel? He says something smells about the room smelling like crap, hmm? Oh my rice.....Ok, I'm back, I salvaged what I could of the rice and the pan is soaking and the tillapia is on my plate. Ok, back to writing. So the format is pretty straight forward and the writing is strictly reporting, no opinion, no inferences, just shoot straight. It took me most of the time to find an angle. I wasn't able to complete the assignment on deadline but this is what I was able to come up with:

Elliott A. Farmer
October 2, 2007
New Hampshire Debate
10:00 p.m

Like prior debates the focus of Wednesday night’s debate in New Hampshire focused on ending the Iraq War. This time around MSNBC moderator Tim Russert asked each candidate directly if they were able to commit to ending the Iraq war in one term.

The frontrunners Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) and Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) were reluctant to promise a complete withdrawal or even to provide specifics on phased withdraws. Senator John Edwards did not make a commitment to end the war, but promised to cut forces by at least 40,000 troops.

Every other candidate promised to end the war in Iraq within a single term. Senator Mike Gravel (D-VA) chided the democrats in the congress and candidates for not doing what the American public elected them to do, which in his opinion was to get troops out of Iraq. Now it seems unclear if electing a Democrat for President will end the war in Iraq.

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So anyways, two weeks ago we had an opportunity to write about Senator Clinton because our class attended a book discussion with author/journalist Carl Berstein. Berstein is best known as one of the two journalists that helped exposed the Watergate scandal over thirty years ago. He sat down to talk to a bookstore audience about his new book, A Woman in Charge: The Life of Hillary Rodham Clinton. He share some interesting insight on the presidential hopeful.

Last week I had an opportunity to see Senator Clinton in person, I caught some of her speech on a televison screen in the halls of the Washington Convention Center and then I had the opportunity to see her upclose. It was impossible to snap a picture with her beacuse the four feet between us was inpenetrable, well unless you disregard human life.
I went to hear Senator Obama speak about evironmantalism on a panel dicussion, that was pretty decent (same event for the LBCW). The next day I was on an elevator with his wife. Although I knew Michelle Obama would be speaking at the Congress of Black Women's event, I was not expecting to see her upclose.

To be honest, I was at the JW Marriot looking for the event and I figured I'd follow the first group of black people I saw. Then I noticed they were going in a diiferent direction than the brunch. When she went to get off the elevator, I laughed to myself, 'crap, I should of gave her my elevator pitch!' She spoke very well that day, I think she is a better public speaker than her husband. Barack has a thoughtful stutter that lands authenticity, you get the feeling that is actually thinking as he answer questions and speaks. Michelle is a bit more dynamic. Anyway...that's it for now, I could write alot about this weekend, but I'll say more laterz. Plus I am trying to go to the Conservative event next week where several Republican candidate will be present.