The Democratic Forum, the first of the All American Presidential Forums on PBS hosted by Tavis Smiley, was held on June 28, 2007 at Howard University in Washington, DC. All Democratic presidential candidates participated in the forum and were given equal time, unlike the previous debates where “random” selection of candidates allowed for the big money candidates to be called on more often.

The following topics were covered: Race in 21st Century America, Poverty, The AIDS Epidemic, Economic Disparity, Crime and Punishment, The Right for Katrina Victims to Return, Outsourcing Jobs, and the Crisis in Darfur. I personally think Kucinich stole the show, and was most able to connect with the audience. Then again, I’m biased. Gravel also did a fairly good job of calling bullshit on the other candidates. The panel was composed of journalists Michel Martin of NPR, Ruben Navarrette of The San Diego Union-Tribune and Washington Post, and DeWayne Wickham of USA Today and the Gannett News Service.