The Cauldron

More than 250 students slogged through the snow last night to watch Democrats Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama battle it out in the last debate before Ohio's primary election on March 4th. The game room at Fenn Tower, where the campus-wide Debate Watch Party was held, was packed to its maximum capacity. "I didn't think turnout was going to be this large," said one of the watch party organizers from the Department of Student Life.

And though the rumor about the candidate's spouses showing up turned out to be just that, the energy in the room was unmistakable. Shouts of "O-bam-a" could be heard throughout the evening, and there was a general aura of excitement filling the air.

Some students clamored to get in front of the television camera for their fifteen seconds of fame on the nightly news, while others spoke with Associated Press reporters and ate hot dogs.

As the debate got underway on the big screen, the din of the crowd continued and Tim Russert's opening statement was barely audible. "This is as loud as it gets folks, so you're going to have to quiet down to hear it," somebody yelled. But in fact it wasn't as loud as it could get, and the volume was increased moments later.

When MSNBC showed a clip of Sen. Clinton saying that she was "honored" to share the stage with Obama at last week's debate in Texas, and then cut quickly to Clinton shouting "shame on you Barack Obama" in Ohio the very next day, the audience erupted in laughter. And although there were a couple of "Hillary for President" signs to be seen, the sentiment in the room was decidedly pro-Obama.

Are you here for the change?," Obama supporters asked incoming students before the doors opened, referring to the senator's campaign theme of "change." Dozens of "students were clad in Obama t-shirts, and others held "CSU for Obama" signs. Obama also received the most applause from the audience during the debate.

Education major Darryl Buxton said he was supporting Obama because he thinks that "It's time for a black man to be in the White House." Chad Justice, a history major, said he intends to vote for Sen. John McCain in the general election, but that Obama would be his "second choice as a candidate," because he's "not a big fan of Hillary."

But if Clinton supporters were hard to spot last night, they were even harder to engage. Two students holding Clinton campaign signs declined to speak with The Cauldron, one saying she was "shy," and the other saying she did not want to discuss politics.

Others, like English major Amanda Evans, were neutral. Evans, an independent voter, said that she wasn't yet leaning towards either Obama or Clinton, and wasn't even sure if she'd be voting in the Democratic primary on Tuesday. Still, she found the debate to be "interesting."

As Obama continues to make almost daily gains on Clinton in Ohio polls, it's still unclear if Clinton's performance in this debate will succeed in slowing the Illinois senator's momentum, as her campaign hopes it will, or if Obama will continue to gain ground in what is shaping up to be a make or break election for Sen. Clinton on Tuesday.

For the first time in a long while, it appears that Ohio voters will get to have their say in who this year's Democratic nominee for president will be, and judging by the enthusiasm of last night's crowd, Cleveland State students are ready to participate.

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