From: tal@Warren.MENTORG.COM (Tom Limoncelli)
Subject: Clinton on the debates (from the Today Show)
Followups-To: poster
Organization: none.
Distribution: usa
Date: Tue, 29 Sep 1992 00:12:33 GMT

Message <1992Sep28.221219.20550@cc.gatech.edu> had the transcript from
the 9/28 Today show.  I thought this was interesting.

   QUESTION: Are you discussing with the Bush campaign the prospect of
debates right now?

    CLINTON: No. I thought for sure they would accept the 2d proposal
of the debate commission. Because the debate commission said okay,
we'll have 2 debates instead of 3, which is what Mr. Bush wanted. And
then they invited us to come to a meeting at which we would discuss
the format.  Because he likes the interview format. So there's less
room for fall up there.

    And so I said okay, we'll accept that. I accepted that immediately,
and once again they turned it down.

    So I don't know where we are now. I'm going to Louisville on
Tuesday. I was in East Lansing last Tuesday, I'll be in Louisville
this Tuesday, and I'll keep looking for the opportunity to have a
debate on these issues.

    QUESTION: The American public I think is really getting tired of
this whole thing. I think they want to see a debate, and I think
perhaps they're looking at this whole thing as both sides playing
games.

    CLINTON: They're wrong. They're dead wrong. I have not played any
games. There is a recognized, bipartisan debate commission. The
co-chairman of it is Gerald Ford, a Republican former president, Frank
Fahrenkopf is on it, he worked in 3 of George Bush's national
campaigns. They have been the recognized sponsor of this.

   They made a recommendation. There was just as much Republican input
as Democratic. And I accepted it. It is not true that both of us are
equally at fault.

    George Bush was like a kid on a play yard. He said I don't want to
play that way, I don't like them, we will do it my way or no way. You
get in a room with Jim Baker and let us work you around in private
when the press is not there. We liked the debate commission 4 years
ago, but now they want to hold me more accountable, they want me to
have follow up questions, they don't want me to be able to dump on
Bill Clinton with no accountability, because then--with the panel I
get to go to the next news person and be clever and engaging and
ignore the fact that nobody got to follow up my answer.

    Now, I have accepted the debate commissions. I have played by the
rules. This is not both party's fault. This is his fault.

    He refuses to acknowledge the legitimacy of the commission that he,
not me, that he, George Bush legitimized 4 years ago. And I don't
think anybody who studies these facts believes that I'm dodging these
debates.

    Bush is ducking the debates because he wants to control the whole
game, and he does not want to be held accountable for his record or
for his hit jobs in the debates by follow up questions.
-- 
Tom Limoncelli -- tal@warren.mentorg.com (work) -- tal@plts.uucp (play)
"I like Bill Clinton tremendously.  I know him from the governors' conferences.
The Democrats nominated their best person, a very able fellow.  The country is
well served by that choice." -Bush's re-election chair in NJ (Thomas Kean)
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