Debate Showcases Clinton-Obama Rivalry

This analysis was written by CBSNews.com's David Miller.

But even though this debate was unlike those that came before it, the Democrats on stage seemed more comfortable and confident. They were in front of a crowd largely composed of blacks, who have been one of the Democratic Party's most dependable voting blocs since the Depression. Also, they were addressing issues that have been the bread and butter of their party's platform for decades.

Even the news events of the day allowed for an easy jumping-off point in a debate held at historically black Howard University, thanks to the Supreme Court's 5-4 ruling that rejected racial integration plans in two school districts and could have sweeping effects nationwide.

Despite this most friendly atmosphere for Democrats, an intense battle was under way between Hillary Clinton, who has seen the support her ex-president husband enjoyed among blacks carry over to her campaign, and Barack Obama, perhaps the most viable black presidential candidate in U.S. history.

While Obama's appearance on the debate stage caused a swell in the opening applause in the auditorium, it was Clinton who drew the night's loudest cheers in discussing the spread of AIDS among black women. "If HIV-AIDS were the leading cause of death of white women between the ages of 25 and 34, there would be an outraged, outcry in this country," she said, prompting an enthusiastic audience response.

Throughout the evening, Clinton spoke with the forceful words and aggressive tone that, in previous debates, she used in discussing the war in Iraq and combating terrorism — two subjects that received scant attention in a forum almost entirely devoted to domestic, urban issues. When one international issue — the crisis in Sudan's Darfur region — was raised, however, she was quick to show she would not hesitate to use military force to enforce a no-fly zone over the country. "We should make it very clear to the government in Khartoum," she said. "We're putting up a no-fly zone. If they fly into it, we will shoot down their planes. It's the only way to get their attention."

Obama, on the other hand, did something none of the other candidates, including Clinton, could do by emphasizing his membership in the black community. In his first words of the night, he invoked the Supreme Court's landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education. "This is where Thurgood Marshall and the team from Brown crafted their strategy," he said, referring to the late justice who argued Brown before the Court prior to serving on it. "If it hadn't been for them, I would not be standing here today."

But Obama saved most talk about his common kinship with the audience for discussing HIV-AIDS, softly admonishing the black community for not being more open about the epidemic. "One of the things we've got to overcome is a stigma that still exists in our communities," he said. "We don't talk about this. We don't talk about it in the schools, sometimes we don't talk about it in the churches. It has been an aspect of, sometimes, our homophobia that we don't address this issue as clearly as it needs to be."

The battle between Clinton and Obama for black voters was evident even after the debate in "spin alley," where candidates or, in the case of front-runners, their surrogates go to take questions from the hundreds of reporters on hand. Both had members of the Congressional Black Caucus on hand to promote their campaigns. In Clinton's corner were Democratic Reps. Stephanie Tubbs-Jones of Ohio and Sheila Jackson-Lee of Texas. Backing Obama were Jesse Jackson Jr. of Illinois and Elijah Cummings of Maryland.

The other six candidates tried to score points where they could. Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, who leads the polls in Iowa, made a point of mentioning he launched his campaign in New Orleans' heavily black Lower 9th Ward, which was devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and has yet to recover. He also dusted off the "two Americas" theme that was the centerpiece of his 2004 campaign.

Edwards has focused most of his campaign on white middle-class voters and organized labor, but sought to extend those themes to the problems facing blacks. "What we do, I think, is live in an America where no matter who your family is or what the color of your skin or where you're born, everybody gets the chance to do well," Edwards said, before launching into a more general description of his economic plan.

The remaining candidates may have had a harder time connecting with the audience. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson has run on his lengthy résumé, but his time spent as Energy secretary and U.N. Ambassador were of little use to him on Wednesday. Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd was solid, but never had a standout moment. Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich often crafted his answers to come to his pet issue, immediately ending the war in Iraq. Former Alaska Sen. Mike Gravel — known for colorful debate performances and bizarre online campaign ads — spent a good portion of his time railing against the War on Drugs.

But it was Delaware Sen. Joe Biden who may have had the most odd performance of the evening. Some in the audience were probably already skeptical of Biden given his comments, made early this year, about Obama, who had then just entered the race, being "clean" and the first serious black presidential candidate — despite earlier campaigns by the Rev. Jesse Jackson and the Rev. Al Sharpton.

Discussing HIV-AIDS, Biden mentioned efforts in his own state's black communities to prevent the spread of the virus and then said, "I got tested for AIDS. I know Barack got tested for AIDS."

The remark drew a somewhat confused look from Obama, who, once Biden was finished, gestured toward his wife, Michelle, in the audience and said "I just want to make clear, I got tested with Michelle when we were in Kenya and Africa."

The crowd laughed as Biden attempted to recover from a somewhat awkward moment, but one person the crowd clearly wasn't pleased: a frowning Sharpton, who glared at Biden from his seat in the audience.

But that was the one uncomfortable moment in an evening that, otherwise, allowed these eight Democrats to discuss some of their favorite issues in front of a friendly constituency.

By David Miller