Bush, Gore tackle range of issues in face-off

By Betsy Rogers

Before an attentive crowd of some 900 ticket-holders and about 140 "town hall" audience members, Texas Gov. George W. Bush and Vice President Al Gore matched wits Tuesday, Oct. 17, discussing a wide range of substantive issues in the third and last presidential debate of the campaign season, held in the Washington University Athletic Complex.

True to predictions, Gore was more combative than he was in the Oct. 11 debate at Wake Forest University, but somewhat more subdued in his body language than during the first match, when his audible sighs and frequent head-shaking elicited considerable post-debate comment.

Washington University hosts final presidential debate

The third presidential debate of the 2000 campaign brought tens of millions of American viewers and additional millions worldwide into the Washington University Field House, where Texas Gov. George W. Bush and Vice President Al Gore sparred for 90 minutes over issues ranging from health care to tax cuts to the death penalty to world peace Tuesday, Oct. 17.

A somber note prevailed as Janet Brown, executive director of the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD), addressed the crowd and offered sympathy to the families of Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan, his son Randy and a top adviser, Chris Sifford, who all perished Monday night in a plane crash in Jefferson County, south of St. Louis. They were en route to a Carnahan Senate campaign rally in New Madrid, Mo.

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Welcome to 'Spin Alley's' manic scene

By Jessica Roberts

After watching the heated, high-stakes final debate between Vice President Al Gore and Texas Gov. George W. Bush, "spin doctors" poured into the media filing center ready to spend a few moments with reporters and photographers in the manic intensity of "Spin Alley."

The Recreational Gymnasium in the Athletic Complex, converted for the occasion to a bustling media room, served as the platform for spin doctors prepared to let each member of the press know who won the third and final debate. They ranged from the traditional (former Missouri Sen. John Danforth) to the unconventional (activist Erin Brockovich). However, they shared common goals --analyzing and reiterating their candidate's debate positions and debunking the messages of his opponent.

Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Andrew Cuomo summed up the thoughts of many of the spin doctors when he said that people's reaction to what they saw in the debates would be a "frame" for what happens in the voting booth.

Overall, though, the spin doctors toed party lines when it came to discussing which candidate was most successful.

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University students volunteer 6,500 hours on debate

Many students, told on Tuesday that they would not get debate tickets, volunteered their services in the final hours before the debate. One of the jobs found for them was riding on the shuttle buses between campus and the Muny Opera parking lot in Forest Park, answering questions about the University and the event for arriving reporters.

John Heys, a senior majoring in English in Arts & Sciences, stood in for George W. Bush during a camera rehearsal. People standing in for "town hall" participants asked him questions, and he moved about the circular stage answering them, as the candidates were expected to do. The run-through took about 15 minutes, but seemed much longer.

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More than 150 lucky students won the lottery for tickets to the Oct. 17 debate.

 
Senior English major John Heys stands in for George W. Bush during a camera rehearsal in the Field House's town hall debate set Oct. 17.

Lucky lottery winners see candidates debate live

By Jessica Roberts

A high-tech lottery determined which registered students would receive tickets. Sue Hosack, director of the Office of Student Records, explained that students submitted their names electronically to the debate Web site. The application process closed at noon Friday, Oct. 13. A computer then randomly assigned numbers to all the applicants, and the top 300 received notification e-mails. During the lottery, there was still no information about the number of tickets available for the debate.

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Candidates' top economic advisers spar in preliminary debate

By Holly Edmiston

In a tone of restrained combat- iveness, two veterans of the national economics scene debated their candidates' views on economic policy in a pre-debate held at the John M. Olin School of Business Tuesday, Oct. 17, the morning of the presidential debate. In a discussion where the numbers often did not agree, Lawrence Lindsey and Gene Sperling discussed their candidates' economic plans. John M. Berry, economics columnist for the Washington Post, moderated the event.

Lindsey, a former Federal Reserve Board governor and the Arthur F. Burns Scholar in Economics at the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research in Washington, D.C., presented the case for Bush. Sperling, assistant to the president for economic policy and director of the National Economic Council, detailed the Gore plan.

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About 300 people take advantage of a Center for the Study of American Business pre-debate on economic policy Oct. 17, featuring Lawrence Lindsey (seated left), an adviser to Texas Gov. George W. Bush, and Gene Sperling, assistant to President Clinton. Washington Post economics columnist John M. Berry (at podium) was moderator of the early-morning face-off at the John M. Olin School of Business.

 
Marilyn Pollack, director of financial planning and management for student services, organized parking and transportation services for the debate.

Long hours, hard work-and the chance to be part of history

By Julie Kennedy

Long days and hard work at Washington University paid off in a successful and well-orchestrated presidential debate and, for the staff across campus who threw themselves into the effort, in an opportunity to be part of a historic event.

Behind the scenes, staff members helped out in many ways --assisting with security, arranging parking and transportation, transforming the Field House, documenting the event for posterity, printing banners and signs, organizing the student volunteers and meeting the needs of the major networks and other media.

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For basketball coaches, 'spin' and 'bounce' get new meaning

By Julie KennedyIn the offices of the University's basketball coaches this week, "spin" and "bounce" had little to do with basketball. Instead, they took on their political meanings as the coaches vacated to make room for the presidential candidates.

Far from being annoyed, Nancy Fahey and Mark Edwards were proud of their contributions.

"It's exciting to think your office is going to be used by someone who may determine history," said Edwards, the men's head basketball coach.

Fahey, head coach of the women's basketball team, said she had become accustomed to important-looking people coming in and out of her office during preparations, and to contractors crawling around and over her desk.

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Basketball coaches Mark Edwards and Nancy Fahey show off their newest autographs. They vacated their offices for presidential candidates George W. Bush and Al Gore.