Well it opened up with Chris Dodd basically answering a question about being different by giving the exact same kind of answer every candidate always gives, it was pretty much how the night went.

Did politicians answer the questions any better when Internet users asked them than when a tv host asks them? Nope.

Did they avoid questions and just give their stock answers and attempt to put out fifty additional ideas and deviate from the premise? Yes

The most honest answer in my opinion was from John Edwards about his belief in gay marriage and his use of religion to justify not allowing it. It was a really honest moment that wasn’t brought about by the video (Edwards dodged the question after the video and tried to use his wife’s alternative belief as a way of making the audience believe he might change) but the videos creator was in the studio audience and was allowed to speak. After he did Edwards admitted he would not allow gay marriage and that he was personally against it and that his belief probably would not change.

What We Learned
- Dennis Kucinich is for slave reparations which got almost no applause.
- Mike Gravel is still crazy
- Anderson Cooper doesn’t know how to host, cutting off real debate moments, fumbling over lines
- CNN did better with the Microphones but the audio went out of sync several times near the end.
- Biden would love to have Dick Lugar as his secretary of state
- Hillary Clinton says she couldn’t run as anything but a woman
- Kucinich believes the Democratic Party has failed the American people, cutting off funding for the troops is how he would stop the War in Iraq
- Hillary really schooled Barack Obama when he said he will meet with leaders like Fidel Castro & Hugo Chavez when he become president. She noted she wouldn’t just promise to do that with a blanket statement as it could be used for propaganda. She noted she would be open to it but only after sending envoys etc. to test the waters and ensure something constructive would come of it
- Biden then schooled Bill Richardson on what it would take to pull troops out of Iraq and the idea that it could be done in the next six months. Then he kind of trailed off into odd territory

All in all, pretty much what I predicted. If they didn’t announce fifty times how unique it was to have users send in questions it really would have looked and sounded like all the other debates. There was little gained, a lot to potentially lose (Democrats started sounding shaky on economic and military issues) and little revolutionary other than a talking snowman animation.

In all, there were actually what I thought seemed like some pretty undignified moments and I am not looking forward to more of these.