DCentric

Depending on what sticker one was wearing, half of a crowd would cheer wildly as people exited the Newseum.

Mayoral challenger and current Council Chairman Vincent Gray put Mayor Adrian Fenty on the defensive at the Big Debate which just occurred at the Newseum; yes, I know it ended an hour ago. But I promise, you’ll appreciate my inability to update this space in SUPER-FAST fashion when you read the last paragraph! No, really, lower your expectations right now, please. I’m not DCist or the Washington Post (one of the sponsors of this Big Deal, along with WRC-4 and my wonderful, supportive, delightful employer: WAMU). I’m just a blogger who was chosen to write about a city I love. So that’s what I’ll do.

Here’s what I found memorable:

-When confronted with questions about “Why should people who feel disrespected by you re-elect you?” or when asked about the “stark racial divide” among his supporters, Mayor Fenty tried to apologize repeatedly for not being more “inclusive” and for “moving too fast” with his attempts at reform and thus, “leaving people behind”; each time he did, Gray pointed out that we are just two weeks from Election Day and that a change at this point in the campaign is a “change of strategy, not a change of heart”. Ouch.

-When asked to identify two mistakes he had made (after the questioner asked for specific examples as opposed to vague ones like “I didn’t listen”, in a tone which implied that she would appreciate a straightforward, complete answer), Mayor Fenty gave one example and it wasn’t a surprise– the Summer Youth Employment program. I waited for the second example and maybe he gave it, but I didn’t hear it. Vince Gray was happy to follow-up with one for him: “your lack of a relationship with the Council”. Maybe the Mayor was flustered and just ran out of time, but I cringed at how Gray pointedly returned the focus to his missing answer.

-When Mayor Fenty tried to go on the attack by bringing up Gray’s record at DHS in the 90s (this seemed to always inspire groans and muffled laughter from the audience) or potential shadiness regarding a contractor the Council Chair employed (to indicate a lapse in ethics), it didn’t seem to work. Gray remained calm and stayed on message.

Aside: many, many years ago, I was an ardent debate nerd in high school. Because of that, even when I admonish it not to, my gut tends to pick a “winner”. I’m no veteran journalist, or expert on city politics but I can tell you that as a regular old citizen and “media outsider” who is new to this sort of blogging, I walked away from this debate with the sense that Gray won. Quite simply, he seemed to answer questions better than his opponent did.

As I sat in the rapidly-emptying auditorium and tried to write up my reaction to the debate, I noticed that Mayor Adrian Fenty had remained on the edge of the stage to answer additional questions. There was a mob of reporters surrounding him, and random audience members awkwardly pointing cameras, surrounding *them*. At one point, his wife Michelle gently intervened and was asked questions, too. She became visibly emotional. I wish I could tell you exactly what she said (she seemed to be defending him), but there were too many stragglers with camera phones muttering snarky things between us.

When the snark-makers moved, I overheard Fenty say his wife was at this debate because it’s the biggest one and that while she is First Lady, she also works hard as a lawyer, then goes home and takes care of their three children. It’s notable that Fenty seems more comfortable and eloquent while answering questions 30 minutes after the debate, on the side of the stage, as people around us break down equipment. He sounds more like candid Fenty, not candidate Fenty, especially when discussing his wife’s emotional response to a reporter. If he had communicated like this during the debate, it would have been good for him. It makes me wonder about how nervous he was, at this point in the Mayoral race.

All right, final observation: a reporter from WTOP asked the Mayor a question about beverages– apparently the Mayor usually drinks Vitamin Water and today he was seen with a Coke. Like a lot of us who let go of nutritional standards when we are exceptionally busy and sleepless, soda is for when the Mayor is campaigning. Ah, DCentric– your source for hard-hitting political news. And other stuff.

UPDATE: Via Mark Segraves (WTOP) Twitter account, what Michelle Fenty said:

Fenty’s wife near tears as she defended her husband to reporters.”It’s so painful to hear that people think he’s arrogant. It’s not true.”