Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama aren't the only ones debating major issues facing America - the Penn Democrats and College Republicans came together for a debate of their own last night at the Penn Bookstore.
The event, an annual tradition among the two groups, served as a forum for members of both parties to debate a variety of issues.
According to Penn Dems President Lauren Burdette, the event was much more "off the cuff" than last year, with fewer participants coming with prepared notes and statistics.
The event was moderated by Genna Selesnick of the Penn Dems and Peter Devine of the College Republicans, and each side had four debaters.
Each side gave a two-minute opening speech. College Republicans President Zac Byer and Burdette spoke for their respective groups, outlining the general principles of the Democratic and Republican parties.
Byer described the Republican Party as "the party of personal responsibility," saying that people can better their economic and social status for themselves. Burdette, on the other hand, argued that the government is meant to and should help its people.
The moderators then posed a series of questions to each side, focusing on the Iraq war and perceptions of the United States abroad, the state of the economy, immigration reform and health care.
The debate also focused largely on presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain and his ability to lead. The Penn Dems attacked McCain's initial support for the war, while the College Republicans focused on McCain's break with the Republican Party in criticizing Bush in the handling of the war.
But despite the intense discussion that took place during the debate, the leaders of both groups talked and laughed after the event.
"The eight of us are all pretty good friends," Byer said. "We realize that we're all still going to have different opinions."
Byer added that the debate was important because "there are people in the crowd that might want to learn something new about a different party or even about their own party."
About 40 people attended the event.
The Penn Dems were represented by Burdette, Vice President Mukul Sharma and former presidents Clayton Robinson and Nathan Hake.
The College Republicans involved in the debate were Byer, chairwoman Abby Huntsman, executive director and Daily Pennsylvanian finance manager Nick Smith Wang and former president Michael Shiely.
