EDITOR’S NOTE: This originally appeared as a May 15th blog entry on Daily Kos. It compares what questions MSNBC asked the Democratic and Republican presidential candidates in their first respective debates. Apparently, Fox News isn't the only network setting up Democrats for failure.

This past weekend, I made a post suggesting that the Democratic candidates need to make better responses to the questions asked in the media "debates," and not allow the moderators to lead them into defensive positions. As the Republicans get ready to line up for another game of softball tonight, I thought it would be interesting to look at the other end of this affair. Just what did the good ol' MSNBC boys ask Democratic candidates when compared to Republican candidates? Here then are the first three questions asked in each debate:

Democrats: Senator Clinton, your party's leader in the United States Senate, Harry Reid, recently said the war in Iraq is lost. A letter to today's USA Today calls his comments "treasonous" and says if General Patton were alive today, Patton would "wipe his boots" with Senator Reid. Do you agree with the position of your leader in the Senate?

Republicans: In the NBC-Wall Street Journal poll, just 22 percent believe this country is on the right track. Mayor Giuliani, how do we get back to Ronald Reagan's morning in America?

Okay, in round one, a Democratic leader is declared a treasonous weakling based on a misquote and ravings from a Letter to the Editor. A former Republican leader is seen as the goal to which we should aspire. Certainly "fair and balanced" so far.

Democrats: Senator Obama, you have called this war in Iraq, quote, "dumb," close quote. How do you square that position with those who have sacrificed so much? And why have you voted for appropriations for it in the past?

Republicans: Senator McCain, most of the public pessimism today has to do with Iraq. What would you need, as commander in chief, to win the war in Iraq?

In round two, a Democratic senator is shown to be a hypocrite who doesn't respect the troops, while a Republican senator is asked what he needs to dispel public gloom and seize victory. Nothing to see here.

Democrats: Senator Edwards, you made a high-profile apology for your vote in favor of the Iraq war resolution. You have said, quote, "We need a leader who will be open and honest, who will tell the truth when they made a mistake." Was that not a direct shot at your opponent, Senator Clinton?

Republicans: Governor Thompson, if you're commander in chief and you want to win this war in Iraq, what do you need to do to win it?

And in round three, Democrats are invited to wallow in their past mistakes and take pot shots at each other, while Republicans are given another opportunity to win, Win, WIN! All good.

Look for more of that "liberal media bias" at work in tonight's debate, as Republican candidates are forced to field tough choices between whether they think mom, apple pie, and Jesus are merely great, or really, really super cool.

Mark Sumner is the author of several novels, and an IT manager at a large corporation. He blogs on Daily Kos as “Devilstower.”