·Voting for Gore (11.7.2000) ·Down the Stretch: Still Reserving Final Judgment (10.31.2000) ·After The Final Debate: Tipping Slightly Toward Gore After His Strong Showing (10.20.2000) ·After the Second Debate: Still Waiting to Hear a Reason to Vote for One Guy Over the Other (10.13.2000) ·After the First Debate: Tie Goes to the Guy Who Didn't Screw it Up? (10.4.2000) ·Introduction (10.2.2000) Colleen is 25 years old and works as a web editor for a large private university. She is engaged to be married. In 1992 she was ineligible to vote. In 1996 she voted for Bill Clinton. taxes, welfare, and social security She is regular church-goer and is pro-choice. She believes in practicing abstinence, but doesn't want the government to get involved in these areas.

First, I couldn't really identify a clear winner. I think Gore did as well as expected, and Bush held up better than expected - so from that standpoint he's a winner just for not screwing the whole thing up. They both behaved reasonably well, except for Gore's audible sighs and I could swear I heard him mutter "whatever" at one point while Bush was talking. If appearances count, I thought Bush looked better. I don't know who did Gore's makeup but it must have been a mortician. I know he's fond of the new airbrushed method of applying foundation but it was a bit too heavy handed.

OK! On to the issues:

The Environment. I don't agree with Bush's plan to open the Arctic wildlife reserve for oil drilling. I do agree with him that we need to be less dependent on foreign oil, but destroying the environment is not the way to do it. I like Gore's plan to give tax incentives for the development of more environmentally conscious vehicles. Bush says he wants $2 billion for clean coal technologies but doesn't elaborate very much (this is sort of a running problem with him through the debate - lots of philosophy, not a lot of detail).

Military. I give points to Bush here. Although neither of them really have the military experience I would prefer in a president (and there apparently has been some question over whether Bush finished his tour of duty in the National Guard), I like Bush's "fight, win and prevent war" goal for the military and his reluctance to use our military as a world-wide police protection force. I like the $1 billion pay raise. I like that Powell and Stormin' Norman are behind him. And from a linguistics point of view, I like the way he refers to military personnel as those who "wear the uniform." Strikes a certain cord of respect that I didn't sense from Gore.

Abortion. Bush is WAY too wishy-washy here. He's pro-life, we all KNOW he's pro-life... so just say you're pro-life already and stop using euphemisms for "morality choices" etc. etc. His comments about RU-486 and his doubts about its safety were irritating. I like that Gore came right out and said he was pro-choice and would nominate pro-choice Supreme Court justices. On that issue, I also don't agree with Bush's "strict constructionist" ideology. The Constitution was never meant to be taken as final word - it should grow with the times.

Social Security. I give this to Bush. Gore seems completely oblivious to Alan Greenspan's warnings that the Baby Boomer's will drain social security over the next few decades. I completely stand behind Bush's privatization options for younger taxpayers.

Foreign Policy. Seemed to be a draw, but Bush looked thrown when Gore criticized his idea of using Russia to pressure Milosevic out of power. This was the one time when Bush really cast any doubt on his own ability/experience to be president. He doesn't seem to have his father's prowess for foreign policy - at least on first impression.

Budget and Medicare. OK, there are two phrases I DO NOT want to hear for the rest of the campaign - "wealthiest one percent" and "fuzzy math". They both really over-used these phrases. I'm quite skeptical of both of them on these issues because they're both playing with Monopoly money. All the financial analysts (who I trust more than these two) agree that there won't be $24 trillion over the next ten years so their promises are pie crust from the start.

Education. I'm doing a turn-around on my previous support of Bush's education record in Texas since learning about some of the hidden problems his testing plan has caused - like an overwhelming increase in "special education" kids whose test results are ineligible for the school record, and a raise in SAT scores of only one point since the plan has been in place. I think basing all education evaluations on one test is a poor way to weed out problems and can lead to short cuts and "teaching to the test." I do like his voucher system for kids in failing schools and I don't agree with Gore that this would be the death of public schools. I support Gore's effort to recruit more teachers and train them better.

Economy. Gore finally allowed himself a pat on the back for the economy over the last eight years. Bush came back with a nice shot about the working people building the economy and it benefiting Gore and Clinton more than they helped it. Gore got in a good slam about people working just as hard eight years ago and the administration (read "your Daddy's administration") not helping.

Closing comments. Bush had been playing good cards before this - emphasizing his bipartisan success and painting himself as a "breath of fresh air" in DC. I think he played it wrong in the end by pointing out the moral inadequacies of the current administration rather than keeping it positive. We all know about Clinton and Monica, and Gore at the Buddhist temple. We haven't forgotten it. Quit reminding us and tell us why YOU would be different. I think Gore scored points here by taking the high road, using the "I am my own man" line, and taking the role of the loving husband and family man who's been in public service for 24 years.

·Voting for Gore (11.7.2000) ·Down the Stretch: Still Reserving Final Judgment (10.31.2000) ·After The Final Debate: Tipping Slightly Toward Gore After His Strong Showing (10.20.2000) ·After the Second Debate: Still Waiting to Hear a Reason to Vote for One Guy Over the Other (10.13.2000) ·After the First Debate: Tie Goes to the Guy Who Didn't Screw it Up? (10.4.2000) ·Introduction (10.2.2000)