There was no clear winner in the debate – except for the city of Springfield and organizers of the event for giving Western Massachusetts residents the opportunity to hear the candidates.
With an audience of 2,500 at Springfield Symphony Hall hanging on their every word Wednesday night, Republican U.S. Sen. Scott Brown and Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren kept their debate in the Massachusetts Senate campaign civil, avoiding personal attacks while drawing clear distinctions between their positions on issues including health care, the federal deficit and how best to create jobs.
Thankfully, there were no references to Warren’s Native American heritage and whether she benefited from it, which Brown has cited in previous debates in an attempt to assault her character.
Warren, a Harvard professor and consumer advocate, did a good job differentiating herself from Brown on the question of who will best defend the interests of the average Americans, saying that fighting for the middle-class has been her “life’s work.”
She argued that the Republican philosophy of cutting taxes for top earners and hoping it filters down to folks with more modest incomes hasn’t created jobs.
While Warren argued that “millionaires and billionaires” should pay more in taxes, Brown stood firm on his across-the-board “no-taxes” pledge signed by congressional Republicans.
In their third face-to-face debate, Warren said the Republican promise to repeal the Affordable Care Act would have devastating consequences for all Americans – especially seniors who have come to rely on prescription drug benefits. As she has done in previous debates, Warren criticized Brown for voting against jobs bills.
Brown, who touted his bipartisan philosophy throughout the debate, said the jobs bills were flawed.
When the one-hour debate wrapped up, there was no clear winner except for the city of Springfield and organizers of the debate for pushing for a live debate in Western Massachusetts, which is all too often overlooked by candidates for statewide office. Kudos, too, go to moderator Jim Madigan of WGBY-TV (Channel 57) for his carefully calibrated control of the action. With one debate to go, it’s up to the voters to choose the winner.