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Democratic debate tonight: another chapter in our political reality show!
Our red-hot political reality show continues tonight with another bout between Democratic contenders Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
Could this Philadelphia bout, refereed by Charles Gibson with George Stephanopoulos standing by as his corner man, be the title match? Maybe but probably not. Never mind that Clinton has already compared herself to the city’s most famous (and fictional) prizefighter, Rocky Balboa.
The 90-minute debate, starting at 7 tonight on ABC, has been anticipated for weeks, and the hissing between the two candidates’ camps has only heightened the pre-debate frenzy. Political reporters are licking their chops, and bloggers are ready for a big blast in cyberspace.
The April 22 Pennsylvania primary has been shaping up to be a major smackdown between Obama and Clinton. Not too long ago, Clinton was more than 20 points ahead of her rival in the opinion polls there; now a slender 4 points separates the two. The tightening of the race — yet again — should serve to tighten the tensions as well.
Gibson is one of TV’s most laid-back anchors, but he’s also one of the most steeped in politics. He grew up in the Washington, D.C., area and has been covering politics for most of his journalistic career. He’s not likely to get caught in either an unmanageable diatribe by one of the candidates or a determined skirting of the issues.
Snuffleupagus, uh, Stephanopoulos, is an interesting choice for the debate … he was Bill Clinton’s senior political adviser and communications director before the Monica Lewinsky scandal broke.
New blood coming to ‘L&O’
“Law & Order,” the Energizer Bunny of TV dramas, is prepping for another transformation next Wednesday.
That’s when Jesse L. Martin, the dependably sane Detective Green, bows out, and Anthony Anderson, so superb as a villain in “The Shield” and a hero in the recently axed “K-ville,” makes his debut.
Now in its 18th season (and renewed for a 19th), “L&O” has changed principal cast more often than Elton John changes shoes. But with rare exceptions (hello, Elizabeth Rohm!), change has been good.
In next week’s episode, Detective Green gets in trouble because of a past life of gambling, and Anderson’s Detective Bernard barges into the precinct to sort things out. Green leaves; Bernard stays.
“L&O” will have five episodes with the cast change before the end of the season but will return next season — and maybe with even more changes. You never know with this show.
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By Gordon
April 18, 2008 12:31 PM | Link to this
Snuffleupagus! heh... How did ABC EVER get away with hiring this guy to be anything BUT a clinton commentator... where was the Obama insider on the panel?
All that aside; was that not the most boring/repetitive debate of the season? was there a single original question? we were covering the same old territory, like a very long daily commute... we could have done it in our sleep... i wish i had.
By King
April 17, 2008 11:51 PM | Link to this
How could ABC *not* include Stephanopoulos in the debate coverage? He is the senior political reporter at ABC, host of their Sunday show This Week, and their go-to guy for all things political. He's been commenting on the Clintons for years since he's been at ABC (even while Bill was still in office when he first joined This Week With David Brinkley). It would be weird if he wasn't involved. If anybody questioned his objectivity, he wouldn't have been doing that all these years.
By Doug
April 16, 2008 11:19 AM | Link to this
I, too, was disappointed with Elizabeth Rohm on "Law and Order". Her departure was even more bizarre ("Is it because I'm a lesbian?")
She had previously done a good job on "Angel".