Why can't you cut DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman off when she doesn't answer the questions?

Answer 1

For the same reason you can't just cut off RNC chair Reince Priebus. Sad to say, politicians from both parties have learned how to avoid answering the questions that TV talk hosts ask them. Mostly, candidates want to get their "talking points" out-- they want to repeat the pre-rehearsed phrases that state the positions of their political party. Talk hosts know from experience that the politicians are going to try to be evasive, and that is part of the interview process. The host tries to get a spontaneous answer, the politician tries to give a talking point.

Debbie Wasserman-Schultz appears on television to get her party's point of view across, and while you may not agree with her, talk hosts understand that she should get a chance to have her say. Most radio and TV stations will give politicians a certain amount of time to respond to a question, and if the answer is totally unrelated to what was asked, some hosts do become very insistent about trying to get the politician back on track. Others, however, are more patient about it. It depends on the style of the host.

That said, it might be exciting to see a talk host yell at a candidate or cut them off (and there are several talk hosts who do in fact get very frustrated when politicians seem to be evading the issue), but if a host is really rude to a guest, that person might not want to give another interview or appear on that show. Doing political Talk Shows is a balancing act-- try various times to get the politician to answer, but don't insult or be rude to them.