The Young Democrats of DeKalb and NIU won a debate Wednesday night against the College Republicans of NIU, according to a vote of the audience members.

“The debate went well,” said Tom Elkins, chairman of the YDs. “I was pleased with the questions of the audience.”

Chris Hudders, College Republicans chairman, echoed Elkins. “It went good,” he said. “The people in the audience were educated about the topics.”

Both praised their teams, especially since the YDs had two last-minute fill-ins, Dave Broustis and Bill Gannon. “They did a great job—a fabulous job,” Elkins said.

“Ken Hanson was terrific,” Hudders said. “He’s a skilled debater. Jodie English put up a fine show.” Hudders added that the CRs had to deal with many of the debate’s resolutions being turned around, putting them on the negative side of the issue.

Both parties laid out their platforms prior to the start of the debate.

“Most people think GOP stands for ‘Grand Old Party,’ but to me, it stands for growth and opportunity party,” Hudders said. “We’re a party of hope, not despair; growing, not declining; free enterprise, economic liberty, equal rights, justice and opportunity for all.”

“We’re as conservative as the constitution, as liberal as Lincoln and as progressive as Teddy Roosevelt,” he said.

Elkins said his party is a party of caring. “We’re for quality, fairness, the working class, the unfortunate and the underdog,” he said. “We’re for the wealthy with a social conscience.

“We’re for the farmer losing his farm, the student who can’t pay tuition, the elderly with hospital bills,” he added. “We’re the majority party of the United States.”

The members debated over whether the cold war is over, who is to blame for the national budget deficit, why a cut in the capital gains tax will or will not lead to economic growth and the issues of global warming and the greenhouse effect.

Concerning the cold war, CR Ken Hanson said the Soviet Union’s current reforms “tell nothing of their motives.” He said the U.S. cannot mistake “style for substance” and “should welcome change, but be wary of its purpose.”

Hanson’s opponent, Bill Gannon, referred to George F. Kennan, who Gannon said was a career diplomat and a leading expert on Soviet relations. Gannon said the cold war “died” with former Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin and former President Leonid I. Brezhnev.

“War is only inevitable to those who believe it is so,” Gannon said. “We need to get beyond the hostilities that no longer exist.”

In the debate over the budget deficit, Elkins blamed the Reagan administration. Elkins said the Reagan years had shown “irresponsible deficit spending.” He said the deficit prompts him to ask, “Hey, friend, you got that trillion you owe me?”

udders argues the “true answer” was a line item veto for the president. “We need to set legislation to begin cutting funding,” he said.

YD Foria Younis debated the capital gains and said cutting the tax on them would increase the wealth of the wealthy and create a deficit increase. “There are many alternatives to help the poor and middle class,” she said.

Younis’ opponent, Ed Grasse, said a cut in the tax would add “fire to the growth” of the economy. “If you cut taxes, the economy will grow,” he said.

In the final debate, Broustis said the greenhouse effect blocks the escape of heat from the earth. “Without the greenhose effect, temperatures would be about 50 degrees cooler,” he said.

He named fossil fuels, the destruction of trees and rain forests, automobile emmissions and factories as causing the problems.

His opponent, English, said it was a “misconception.” She asked the audience members whether they would be willing to give up their cars, refrigerators and air conditioning, all sources of global warming.

Members of the audience were allowed to question the debaters for about 30 minutes after the debate. The audience then voted for their opinion of the winner.

The debate was gaveled by Student Association Mass Transit Adviser David Pack, who donned a judge’s robe for the event.