Mayor Pam Iorio acquitted herself well on her recent appearance on “Hardball With Chris Mathews,” even if the confrontational format is hardly her forte. She was on in the aftermath of her endorsement of Barack Obama. Her counterpoint partner was U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the South Florida congresswoman who is a national co-chair of the Hillary Clinton campaign.
“I am not sure I am ‘Hardball’ material,” assessed Iorio. “I don’t like to cut people off and argue so much.”
Basically, Iorio and Wasserman Schultz disagreed over the ultimate Florida disagreement – how to count the Sunshine state’s primary votes and parcel out the delegates. Iorio was about moving forward and then fixing a process that is an obvious mess. Wasserman Schultz was about looking back and fixating on the vote and delegate counts.
The tete-a-tete was an apt metaphor for the Obama-Clinton primary marathon. Pam was upbeat Pam and above the fray. She could have been weighing in on concerts in the park. Wasserman Schultz, who began more than one interruption with the disingenuous “With all due respect,” was unyielding and strident.