Post-debate dust-settling

Sorry it's been a few days since my last post. I was in Wisconsin for a wedding. I listened to the debate on Thursday night as my wife and I drove across the midwest, frantically hopping from AM station to AM station as each one sputtered out of range. Eventually we managed to get a good signal out of Cincinatti (!) and were able to hear the whole thing.

Now, hearing a debate as opposed to seeing and hearing a debate is a fascinating experience - you wonder what you're missing. You've probably heard the story about the 1960 debates - those who heard it thought Nixon won, while those who saw it thought Kennedy won.

Kerry won on both TV and radio. For the record, I'm not a huuge Kerry guy. I want him to win because 4 more years of Bush is a terrifying prospect (and I don't use that adjective lightly), but he has exasperated me some over the past few months. I think his voting for the war in Iraq was a mistake. That being said, Kerry did a pretty good job at clarifying what is a pretty nuanced position (that is, he voted to use force provided it was done with allies and with a clear, organised plan for post-war reconstruction - those things being left undone, he's against the war as it's been waged). That's quite a cool trick for someone with a reputation for being...less than to the point. He made a few good little jabs, and a couple of solid uppercuts. My favorite lines were .."...colossal error in judgement...'; ..."...I made a mistake about how I talk about the war. President Bush made a mistake in going to war. Which is worse?"; and, ...'...it's possible to have convictions and be wrong."

All of these made Kerry look good, but what really helped him was how bad Bush looked. Honestly, I would have looked presidential next to him. Stammering, whining like a teenager who wants to borrow the car, hunched like a monkey. And making little to no sense at all, while hardly ever answering the questions. This isn't how Americans want to see their president. This is why the White House limits opportunities to see him in unscripted situations. Their curtain of spin falls away and the little chimp is revealed. Still, I expect him to do better in the next two debates - not that he could do much worse. The damage is done though - he missed his chance to put Kerry away, and now - well now, it's on, like Donkey Kong.

A few posts ago I talked about how Kerry needed to win this debate to have any shot at all on November 2nd. Mission Accomplished. Thank God.