Anthony Galli, candidate for Broome County Legislature, brought together political enthusiasts for the “Student Vote Presidential Debate Viewing” Monday night.
The event, organized by the “Rally for Galli” team, drew nearly 40 students to the Broome Hall Great Room to watch the third and final presidential debate.
“The main reason for the screening was to bring a large group of politically active students into a room from all backgrounds,” said Galli, a junior majoring in political science.
Galli announced his candidacy in September for the 4th Legislative District seat. He is challenging Democratic incumbent Dan D. Reynolds.
President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney debated in Florida on a variety of issues, including strategies for dealing with Iran, maintaining military strength and the economy in general.
Obama and Romney argued on the effectiveness of the president’s response to the terrorist attack on the American consulate in Libya, as well as America’s policy with Syria. Attendees agreed that Obama won that part of the debate.
Romney agreed with Obama’s response to the revolution in Egypt in 2011, but believed it could have been predicted. He also discussed how he would avoid cutting military spending by cutting “unnecessary programs.”
“We do it by getting — by reducing spending in a whole series of programs,” Romney said. “By the way, No. 1 I get rid of is Obamacare.”
Obama took the offensive with Romney, making multiple jabs at him while pointing out conflicting opinions and questioning certain facts.
“Nothing Governor Romney just said is true, starting with this notion of me apologizing,” Obama said. “This has been probably the biggest whopper that’s been told during the course of this campaign. And every fact-checker and every reporter who’s looked at it, Governor, has said this is not true.”
Both candidates agreed on maintaining a strong alliance with Israel, arguing over who truly supported the nation.
In closing statements, Obama focused on nation building, while Romney emphasized decreasing unemployment and increasing take-home pay.
The screening was a social event as well as a political event, with attendees discussing major points of the debate among themselves. Galli provided food at the screening.
“The event was about breaking bread and watching the final and most important debate of the entire race,” Galli said.
Galli wanted the event to raise awareness about the local elections, as well as his personal campaign.
“I hope [students] walked away with an understanding of the presidential race and be more politically motivated to vote for me and in the local elections in general,” he said.
Alvin Mathew, a junior majoring in integrative neuroscience, disliked Romney in the debate.
“Romney sounds like a broken record of Bush-era policies,” Mathew said.
But despite his misgivings about the content of the debate, Matthew enjoyed watching it in a group.
“The event provided a great setting for the debate, allowed for discussion and was a great time in general,” Mathew said.