BALTIMORE (Map, News) - Tonight’s Republican presidential debate won’t bring the GOP frontrunners to town, but it will bring some economic benefits and national attention to Morgan State University.

“When you have a major political event that occurs in Baltimore or any other major city, from a publicity standpoint, that shows you’re a major player in the political arena,” said Donald C. Fry, president and CEO of the Greater Baltimore Committee. “It’s certainly a nice feather in the cap of the city.”

The debate, moderated by talk-show host Tavis Smiley and broadcast nationally on PBS, will feature just five of the Republican candidates: Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney, John McCain and recently announced candidate Fred Thompson all declined to participate, citing “scheduling difficulties.”

Smiley’s production company chose Morgan State as the site for the debate, according to PBS spokeswoman Carrie Johnson, due to its presence as a historically African-American university and its proximity to Washington for candidates who are also members of Congress.

But it’s not the first debate the campus has hosted. Morgan State sponsored a Democratic presidential debate in 2004, said university spokesman Clinton R. Coleman.

Coleman said it’s difficult to place an exact dollar figure on what the debate will bring to the area, but said he didn’t think the lack of GOP frontrunners would cut into that figure, or the prestige reaped by Morgan State.

“I don’t think it hurts the university at all, and that which we hope to glean from this, because we believe just as many people will be watching,” Coleman said. “If there’s any harm inflicted by them pulling out, it’s harm to them.”

He said all 800 publicly available tickets went quickly, and a capacity crowd of 2,000 is expected for tonight’s debate.

Fry wasn’t so sure.

“The timing and the participants minimizes the impact, and it seems only a small segment of the population will be paying attention at this time,” he said.

In addition to the previous debate, the 2000 NAACP convention, held in Baltimore, also brought national attention to the area, including an address by then-President Bill Clinton, said Nancy Hinds of the Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Association.

“That was huge for the city, it was a national event,” she said. “Anything that gains national attention is very big for the city.”

Presidential Forum on PBS

Republican Forum

Morgan State University, Murphy Fine Arts Center

9 to 10:30 Tonight

» Live broadcast: Maryland Public Television

» Moderator: Tavis Smiley, PBS

» Panelists: Cynthia Tucker, Atlanta Journal-Constitution; Juan Williams, NPR; and Ray Suarez, PBS/The NewsHour.

acahall@baltimoreexaminer.com

Morgan's fine art building looks very good on TV.

How was the debate? Detail if you have them. Thanks in advance

BALTIMORE (Map, News) - Before five Republican candidates for president got to address important issues of crime, jobs and immigration, they and the hosts spent the first 15 minutes of a nationally televised debate at Morgan State University Thursday night bashing the four candidates who didn’t show up.

“I’d like to say a word to those viewing from home,” joked radio talk show host Tom Joyner, as he greeted Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney, Fred Thompson and John McCain – all no-shows for a forum organized specifically to address topics of interest to minorities.

Tavis Smiley, the PBS personality who moderated and organized the forum, rejected the notion that the majority black audience at Morgan would be “hostile and unreceptive.” Smiley thanked all the Maryland Republicans who had helped put the show together, including former Lt. Gov. Michael Steele, who introduced the six candidates on the stage.

Most were warmly received or at least politely welcomed, and Texas Congressman Ron Paul, a former Libertarian candidate for president, got a rousing reception from the crowd – at least based on what scores of reporters segregated in the field house could tell from the broadcast.

Once the introductions were done, the candidates only had about 65 minutes to answer questions from columnist Cynthia Tucker, NPR’s Juan Williams and Ray Suarez of PBS.

Smiley’s first question about why they chose to come to Morgan allowed some of the others, considered “second-tier candidates,” to roast the no-shows who lead in the polls.

“I’m, embarrassed for our party,” said former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who boasted about his 43% support among African Americans in his home state. “We’ve come a long way, but we’ve got a long way to go.”

Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback apologized to the audience for the non-participants. “I think it’s a disgrace that they’re not here. They’re sending a message of narrowing the base.”

The candidates defended the record of some Republican presidents in regard to African Americans – at least as it applied to Presidents Dwight Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan.

Asked about high unemployment among black high school graduates, Huckabee said, “There is still racism in this country and the opportunities are not the same,” while Paul criticized government intrusion through minimum wage laws.

Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo criticized the institution of the welfare state and the importation of millions of illegal immigrants, putting pressure to lower wages.

“It’s got nothing to do with race,” Tancredo said.

Perennial candidate Alan Keyes, who has also run for U.S. Senate in both Maryland and Illinois, cited the inculcation of “a culture of selfish hedonism” that was destroying the black community, pursuing a theme of restoring the black family he would return to over the next hour.

All of the candidates were for tougher enforcement of immigration laws in one way or another, Keyes arguing, as Tancredo did, that “cheapening the price of labor hurts black Americans.”

Responding to a question about possible reform of the criminal justice system, Keyes suggested a return to using justices of the peace -- local people who judged crimes in their own neighborhoods.

“We don’t have a crime problem,” said Huckabee. “We have a drug and alcohol problem.” He stressed the need for rehabilitation and treatment over incarceration for drug offenses.

“We need to repeal the whole war on drugs,” said Paul. “This is a disease,” not a crime.

The war in Iraq came up in only one question. Several of the candidates were critical of the political situation and the execution of the war, but only Paul said the U.S. went to war “under false pretenses” and promised to immediately withdraw the troops from Iraq, a point he had emphasized earlier in the program.

After the event, in the “spin center,” Smiley told reporters that the lack of attendance by four candidates showed that “the Republican Party has to deal with the issue of the Southern Strategy,” appealing mainly to white conservatives.

“No one should be president who seeks to avoid answering questions about issues of importance to people of color,” Smiley said.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nation/politics/bal-te...3261037.story?page=1


By David Nitkin and Matthew Hay Brown | Sun reporters

September 28, 2007
The lesser-known Republican presidential candidates had the stage to themselves last night at Morgan State University, taking advantage of high-profile absences to pitch themselves to a national audience.

The no-shows meant a larger share of the spotlight for contenders all polling in single digits. But it came with challenges: The event's hosts and some questioners voiced skepticism that the Republican Party offered any opportunities for people of color.

"I admit I'm a little bit out of my comfort zone," said radio host Tom Joyner, who kicked off the event.

The debate at the historically black university in Baltimore focused on unemployment, criminal justice, health care and other issues of importance to minorities - issues on which they traditionally side with Democrats.

Even if the Republicans won converts, it was unlikely they would benefit anytime soon, given the relatively few blacks and Hispanics expected to vote in the GOP primaries.

The debate was perhaps most noteworthy for who wasn't there.

Moderator Tavis Smiley said the empty lecterns on the stage of the Murphy Fine Arts Center were reminders that Rudolph W. Giuliani, John McCain, Mitt Romney and Fred Thompson had declined to appear.

Those men - leaders in the polls so far - decided weeks ago that they would not attend, citing scheduling conflicts and fundraising obligations as an end-of-the-month campaign finance filing deadline approached. Their absence has been called a snub by many black leaders.

Some of those campaigns "have suggested publicly that this audience would be hostile and unreceptive," Smiley said. "Since we're live on PBS right now, I can't tell you what I really think of these kinds of comments."

The absence of leading candidates contributed to the auditorium being about two-thirds full. The crowd, which appeared to be evenly split between whites and blacks, was courteous, applauding each of the candidates.

Former Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele, one of the GOP's prominent black politicians, said during an introduction that blacks and Republicans have for too long "stood at arm's length from each other" and the divide needs to end.

Those candidates who attended ---- Sen. Sam Brownback of Kansas, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Reps. Duncan Hunter of California, Ron Paul of Texas and Tom Tancredo of Colorado, and conservative activist Alan L. Keyes - reached out to black and Hispanic voters when asked why they decided to participate. Huckabee said he was "embarrassed" by the absences, and Brownback "apologized" for the message sent by the no-shows.

The emotion was shared by many in the audience. "If you can't show your face to someone you want to represent, how can you represent us?" asked Aimena Lipscomb, 21, a senior English major.

From the outset, it was clear that the candidates were tailoring their campaign messages in response to questions from a panel of black and Hispanic journalists.

Brownback said that if elected, his administration would issue an "official apology" for slavery and segregation. Paul, a libertarian, said strict adherence to the Constitution would improve conditions for blacks.

Asked why unemployment is higher among black high school graduates than white high school dropouts, Huckabee said: "There is still racism in this country."

"We clearly still don't have a colorblind society," Brownback agreed.

But Tancredo said he couldn't "agree with these race-baiting comments." He blamed welfare and illegal immigration for the economic woes of minorities.

Tancredo, whose stance against illegal immigration makes him close to a single-issue candidate, said a porous border "lowers wage rates" for working-class blacks.

Returning to Maryland, where he was a nominee in 1988 and 1992 for the U.S. Senate, Keyes repeatedly invoked religious themes during lengthy responses that were cut off by Smiley.
"I don't believe there is this deep divide between blacks and whites in America," said Keyes, the lone African-American candidate.

Each of the candidates expressed discomfort with the death penalty, expressing concerns not often articulated in Republicans-only gatherings.

Paul said DNA evidence has shown that "too many mistakes" have been made. Brownback said the death penalty should be limited "to cases where we cannot protect the society from the individual, such as when Osama bin Laden is caught."

The debate unfolded hours after Mychal Bell, a black teenager charged in the beating of a white student in Jena, La., was released on bail from jail, where he had been awaiting trial.

The case - in which Bell originally was charged as an adult and could have been sentenced to 15 years in prison - came to symbolize inequitable justice for blacks. Against that backdrop, the candidates were asked what policies they would pursue to ensure equal justice for all.

Brownback spoke of mentoring programs to help keep ex-convicts from returning to crime. Tancredo criticized mandatory sentences for drug offenses and said such laws should be left to the states.

But Hunter expressed little sympathy for Bell, accused of an assault that continued after the victim lost consciousness.

"This is a nation that has the rule of law," he said. "There must be accountability."

Unlike in most Republican and Democratic debates, Iraq was a secondary issue. Paul, the lone anti-war candidate, drew cheers from scores of supporters who packed the hall with his trademark call to pull U.S. forces out of Iraq.

"We just shouldn't be going to all these wars," he said. "Now we're in this war for five years or so, and nobody sees the end to this."

But other candidates spoke of seeing the war through: "We can leave Iraq," Hunter said. "And under my leadership, we will leave Iraq in victory."

Tancredo had not planned to take part in the debate. But Smiley, other black leaders and some prominent Republicans called on all of the party's presidential contenders to participate to avoid the appearance of brushing off minority issues. And this week, Tancredo changed his mind.

david.nitkin@baltsun.com matthew.brown@baltsun.com

Sun reporter Gadi Dechter contributed to this article.
This article incorrectly stated that Sam Brownback is a senator from Texas when it was published in the print edition. He is from Kansas.

Thanks MorganFan. I forgot to record it. I was hoping to see a glimpse of your campus also. I hear it's beautiful

quote:

Originally posted by #1FAMUAN:
Thanks MorganFan. I forgot to record it. I was hoping to see a glimpse of your campus also. I hear it's beautiful

The campus is still going through construction but once its complete everything will be first rate.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: MorganFan,