The Democrats gathered in South Carolina to persuade the American people to elect them. They had some harsh words, but not really for one another (with one notable exception).

Fire was flung at the war in Iraq and the Bush administration. Hillary Clinton made a promise that if Bush didn’t end the war, she would. Governor Bill Richardson said he would withdraw the troops by the end of this year if elected (though how he would withdraw troops in 2007 if sworn in in 2009 eludes this reporter). Former Alaskan Senator Mike Gravel had particularly harsh words about the war as well.

Senator Hillary Clinton overcame the concerns of if a woman could become President during this hour and a half. She was forceful but soft-spoken, moderate and the definition of Presidential.Her approval rating in the MSNBC online poll changed drastically for the positive.

Gravel was, in my opinion, a madman. He was the loose cannon on the team. He said that other candidates on the panel actually scared him. When asked who, he cited the “top tier” candidates. Gravel was particularly angry the entire time, and seemed to think no one was qualified. He, as it was, was not involved in politics for the last thirty years, leading some to call him the new Nixon (though if thats a posative thing, I don’t know). Gravel was, however, very entertaining.

My personal least favorite was Bill Richardson, who seemed more than happy to ignore time limits and rules of debate in order to get his camera time. On one question, he used the time of all eight candidates to answer question designed for a ten-word answer.

Also, deserving of note, was Senator Joseph Biden. He, you may recall had problems calling Obama “clean” a while back. When asked if he would be a simpler and more elegant speaker if elected – to present us well on the world stage – he answered “Yes”, which may be the shortest answer inrecent debate history according to pundit Chris Matthews.