Groups of University of Wisconsin student Democrats and Republicans clashed over several topics relating to the upcoming presidential election Wednesday night.
Hosted by the Bipartisan Issues Group and the Alexander Hamilton Society, students were treated to pizza and politics as four representatives from each opposing organization argued for their respective presidential candidates.
Moderated by UW political science professor Donald Downs, the debate allowed each side two minutes to explain its position on a set of topics, followed by time for discussion across tables.
Each side then answered related questions the audience tweeted at them during the event.
College Republicans Chair Jeff Snow began the debate by questioning President Barack Obama’s leadership abilities and emphasizing the importance of the November election.
“This election will say a lot about the country we are and the country we want to become,” Snow said shortly before endorsing former Gov. Mitt Romney, R-Mass.
Chair of College Democrats Chris Hoffman highlighted the progress Obama has made in his first term in his introduction and said the president’s focus on directly influencing the middle class will help boost the economy.
When a member of College Democrats criticized Romney for focusing on helping the top 10 percent of U.S. earners, College Republican Treasurer Dan Shanahan argued that cutting taxes on those earners would promote job growth.
Shanahan said the middle class needs to first gain jobs before it can gain money to spend in the economy.
The debate soon moved onto education, a hot-button issue in this election cycle. College Democrats of Wisconsin Second Vice Chair Zach Wood strongly opposed Romney’s promise to cut funding to education.
“If you’re legitimately concerned about our children’s future, cutting education is the last thing to do,” Wood said.
Both sides were able to voice their opinions on other topics, including health care, foreign policy, the deficit and the economy.
Many points and discussion questions spurred factual disputes between the groups, often resulting in laughter from the audience of about 70.
The chairs of both groups ended the debate by reiterating the importance of voting but remained firmly divided on many issues.
Snow blamed Obama for Washington, D.C., having “never been so broken,” while Hoffman affirmed “President Obama knows what it takes to move [the U.S.] forward.”
BIG President Alex Holland said even though there was still a clear divide between the groups, allowing both sides to voice their opinions helps promote understanding.
“We need to have these discussions and listen to the other side if we’re going to create bipartisanship,” Holland said. “I thought [the debate] was really successful considering there were a few communications glitches, but the overall debate ran smoothly.”
The Alexander Hamilton Society UW Chapter President Anthony Lee agreed debates help open discussion.
Lee said he thinks it is still good for people to come out and listen to what the other side has to say.
“Nowadays especially, it’s a lot easier to live in your own little bubble and not really hear anything from the other side,” Lee said.
UW freshman Caleb Gerbitz gave the debate to the College Republicans but said both sides did a good job of articulating their points.
Gerbitz said he thinks one of the core principles of this university is to get some good honest debate going between students, and the event provided a great way to do that.
