(8:53) Back at my apartment with some closing remarks.  I’m not sure whether the audio will be good; reception was low.  Video camera actually belonged to the Drake campaign; no word on whether they’ll release the product.  Drake and staff darted out following debate towards the 2nd Street Garage.  Grijalva hung out for a while near Great Clips.  Cobb hung out at the site of the debate and performed the best at least according to my own ideological bent.  Loudness highlight was around 7:44 during rebuttals over some OSHA controversy.  Drake and Grijalva disagreed on a factual basis there.   Somebody please expain this to me. 

(7:56) Closing statements.  Cobb: "Think outside the box."  Constitution is not set up around two-party system.  Would like to see Green party on ballot in Arizona.  Instant-runoff voting.  Won’t be "wasting your vote."  "Packaged deals are just bad things."  Open up the market.  "One term is enough."  Grijalva: Politics is not what it should be.  Nation built on great values and traditions.  Elected officials have responsibility to uphold such values.  Diversity (ugh…).  Opportunity / American dream not about "privileged few."  Drake: Thanks panel.  "[T]ime for a change."  World is not coming crashing down on us.  Great opportunities.  Leadership.  Invest in the people.  Debate ends at 8:02.

(7:50) Federal deficit.  Cobb: Debt approaching $7 trillion; will never be paid off.  Deficit is $300 billion.  Interest has to be paid by current taxes to bond owners.  Debt is shameful, but won’t be paid off, not as bad as people think.  Grijalva: Programs should require revenue accountability.  Repeal tax-cuts to wealthiest 1%.  Big oil, pharmaceuticals, insurance making too much money.  Republicans notorious for borrow-and-spend policies.  Drake: Republicans have disgraced themselves with earmarks, money spending.  Tax cuts produced a net-gain.  Farmer in Yuma had to pay $4.2 million to inherit father’s estate.  Grijalva would like that.  Don’t create burden on college generation.  Cobb: Rebuttal against myself.  Eliminate most federal spending.  After cutting spending, cut taxes.

(7:46) First priority.  Drake: Community summit of people within district.  90-day town halls throughout district.  Cobb: Would be only Libertarian there.  Would take first 100 days to visit every other congressman.  Try to build a coalition around "me."  "[G]et my ideas advanced."  Party-line votes on important bill.  9/11 bill was crap; Grijalva’s vote was good.  Grijalva: Depends on make-up of Congress.  Betting on change of leadership, clean house ethically.  Medicare part D.  Protect environment; not selling it out.  Education.

(7:40) Minimum wage.  Grijalva: Raise it.  $5.15 is not sustainable.  Raise to $7.25.  Supports Prop 202.  Drake: Thinks it’s a bad law, but will support if Arizonans do.  Talk about getting jobs into Arizona.  Attacks Grijalva on job growth.  Cobb: Minimum wage is feel-good.  "Go ask anybody on the faculty of economics."  "The answer is unemployment."  Silly idea that doesn’t work; "causes unemployment among weakest and least well-trained in our society."  Get them additional job training.  Most minimum-wage workers are teenagers.  Grijalva 30-sec rebuttal: No record of Grijalva opposition to such job growth, but particular refinery didn’t have financing.  Somebody look this up for me.  Beryllium emissions.  Drake: OSHA requirements met.  Has had a tour; still here.  Confrontation!!  Yow!!  Cobb: "Gee whiz, I don’t know what to say."  More on minimum wage.

(7:33) Iraq.  Cobb: Vote against keeping troops in Middle East.  Afghanistan and Iraq are different countries.  Congress has power to declare war; ought to declare end of war.  "Iraq never really has been a real country."  Stop looking at my screen, please, Mr. Grijalva staffer.  Grijalva: Congress declares war.  Six-month exit strategy.  Bush on ABC: Similarities between Tet Offensive and Iraq.  Disengage.  Drake: "[W]e need to be in Iraq because we’re there now."  Rebuilding the country.  Democracy.  Jihadists have declared war.  Disengagement will create power vacuum.  "Americans don’t cut and run."  We weren’t in Iraq in the 90’s when they attacked us.  Cobb 30-second rebuttal: "I certainly heard the Republican National Committee soundbytes!"  Would create a power vacuum; would be disaster for Iraqi people.  But it’s not the function of the military.  Grijalva 30-sec rebuttal: Bloody month for U.S. troops.  Halliburton.  Drake 30-sec rebuttal: Drake initially declines; then takes it.  Those aren’t my soundbytes; I haven’t taken in NRCC money.  I don’t like to hear about American cowardice.

(7:27) Voter turnout.  Drake: No societal focus on politics.  Define your generation as the one that got involved in politics rather than turning around 50 years later to say "What happened?"  Cobb: Two-party system a "bipolar disorder."  Negative ads are more effective statistically.  Libertarian Party is "party of ideas."  Instant-runoff voting (mentioned in third-party presidential debate two years ago).  Grijalva: Disillusionment with special interests making decisions.  Same-day registration.  Vote by mail.  Early voting.  "This election will be different."

(7:23)  Grijalva: In favor of McCain-Kennedy.  Immigration is so divisive.  "It’s about realism."  McCain-Kennedy was most realistic plan out there.  Drake: Slams Grijalva on wanting citizenship for illegal immigrants.  Secure the borders first.  Keep us safe and keep Mexican nationals from killing themselves.  Fix Visa programs.  Tamper-proof ID cards for Social Security and INS.  Cobb: Sending them home is silly.  Give them a green card and photo ID.  Abolish the quota system.  Enforce 10-year prohibition on welfare for immigrants.  America needs workers.

(7:19)  Santa Cruz to Cobb: What are the strengths of your opponents?  Cobb: Drake is tall.  Grijalva has four years in a predominantly Democratic district.  "I have the advantage of being a fresh, new thinker."  Credits Grijalva for voting against recent military commissions act.  Grijalva: Cobb is direct.  Drake has joined a race about ideas; respectful campaign.  Drake: Cobb is from Avondale.  Grijalva is the incumbent.  That’s all he said.

(7:15) On high school dropouts / education, Drake wants more vocational training in high schools, etc.  Cobb wants "some kind of fundamental reform" against bureaucratic model.  Gov’t schools follow bureaucratic model.  Privatize all schools, but let gov’t pay for it.  Grijalva says have young people ready for post-secondary education.  More funding.  Education should not be "survival of the fittest."  Better teacher pay.

(7:13) Grijalva wants pell grant increases.  Drake wants that and fraud prevention; attacks Grijalva’s record.  Cobb says higher education is important; cut taxes to keep government from being around people’s necks.

(7:10) Federal involvement in college education.  Adjusting microphone placement.

(7:05) Cobb espouses the Libertarian Party.  (:07) Grijalva: "I’ve represented this district with independence, strength…"  "What kind of country are we going to be?"  "…legacy of last four years…"  (:08)  There’s some Native American drumming going on outside.  Is this some sort of subversive cheerleading?  (:09)  Drake: Blames Grijalva for lower graduation rates in high schools and college.  "It’s time for a change."  People "don’t know who their congressman is."  "I’m gonna work for the people."

(7:04) Start of introduction.  Moderators are ASA guy Matthew Boepple, Wildcat editor Nicole Santa Cruz, and Tucson Citizen columnist Mark Kimble

(7:02) We’re past the start time right now; let’s get this thing going.

(6:57) Looks like the College Republicans are getting video of this.  I might make contact and see if we can get that up as well.  Redundancy is important here, though, so I’ll still be recording.

(6:55) I could use one of those privacy screens right now. (hint)

(6:47) By the way, I’m using another microphone; it’s one of those Labtec brand desktop microphones that sell for about $17.  My biggest fear is that it’ll pick up too much within the room.  We shall find out.

(6:43) Now that Rep. Grijalva has spotted me, I can report that I’m liveblogging the debate among Congressional District 7 candidates in person.  Special thanks to University of Arizona wireless internet access and the presence of an accessible power outlet here in the Kiva Room of the Student Union Memorial Center.