I'll have more on all the debates in an upcoming writing, but here's my quick analysis of tonight's contest between the two Vice Presidential contenders:She didn't answer a single question that was asked, she didn't offer any differences between McCain and Bush, she didn't say anything new, she lied and she talked like Ned Flanders...
...But I'm sorry, Sarah Palin won this debate. She managed to come across like someone who had a clue, even if it wasn't a clue about the question that was asked, but it was perfect Republican sleight of hand. Your average person isn't going to sit there and say "oh well she wasn't really answering the question that was asked," they're just going to absorb whatever the hell Palin was talking about. Her cram session paid off and she spewed talking points like it was nobody's business without sounding like the complete mental invalid that she has with Katie Couric. All they have to do now is keep her out of the spotlight for the next 30 days or so and McCain is back in the saddle.
Biden did fine, but he was on the defensive the entire time and never once went after Palin for fear of being labeled sexist. If this debate were Hillary Clinton vs. Sarah Palin, the governor would have been humiliated and this race would be over, but of course, we would have heard the media use the phrase "catfight" a couple thousand times tonight, so I'm glad things turned out this way. Regardless of her winning the debate, I don't think this does much for McCain except slow the hemorrhaging that she has caused the campaign since the Charlie Gibson interview and only worsened with Couric. I don't think she's swayed anyone to her side, but she probably revved up the Republican base that were desperately in need of something to point to in order to defend this embarrassing pick for VP. At least now they can say she beat Joe Biden in a debate, but anyone with half a brain saw that she never answered a single question that was asked and managed to bullshit her way out of stuff she was clueless on. George W. Bush must be so proud!
...But I'm sorry, Sarah Palin won this debate. She managed to come across like someone who had a clue, even if it wasn't a clue about the question that was asked, but it was perfect Republican sleight of hand. Your average person isn't going to sit there and say "oh well she wasn't really answering the question that was asked," they're just going to absorb whatever the hell Palin was talking about. Her cram session paid off and she spewed talking points like it was nobody's business without sounding like the complete mental invalid that she has with Katie Couric. All they have to do now is keep her out of the spotlight for the next 30 days or so and McCain is back in the saddle.
Biden did fine, but he was on the defensive the entire time and never once went after Palin for fear of being labeled sexist. If this debate were Hillary Clinton vs. Sarah Palin, the governor would have been humiliated and this race would be over, but of course, we would have heard the media use the phrase "catfight" a couple thousand times tonight, so I'm glad things turned out this way. Regardless of her winning the debate, I don't think this does much for McCain except slow the hemorrhaging that she has caused the campaign since the Charlie Gibson interview and only worsened with Couric. I don't think she's swayed anyone to her side, but she probably revved up the Republican base that were desperately in need of something to point to in order to defend this embarrassing pick for VP. At least now they can say she beat Joe Biden in a debate, but anyone with half a brain saw that she never answered a single question that was asked and managed to bullshit her way out of stuff she was clueless on. George W. Bush must be so proud!
4 comments:
How do you win, though, when you aren't playing the same game? I get what you're saying, but she didn't win. She didn't come close to winning, at least not in debate terms. She may have been charming or cute or able to talk (though she was mostly condescending and arrogant), but that doesn't equal a win. Standing there reciting lines from your cram session doesn't mean you know what the hell you're talking about. Speaking of not knowing what you're talking about, why else would she not answer so many questions? Even when she was talking, she very rarely addressed anything specifically, except for All Things Alaska. Biden came at her with specific statement after specific statement, and she offered next to nothing in return. Unless repeating that you're a maverick and that Wall Street needs to be reformed = specifics?
I certainly agree with everything you said, but what I'm trying to convey is that I don't think the average American watches a debate with a scorecard. Palin set expectations so incredibly low and managed to get off those bitchy one-liners that she was so good at during the Convention, I think it's going to be perceived as a win. Biden is certainly more knowledgeable and qualified to speak on every issue, but he was in the unique position of dealing with someone who would look good simply by not running off the stage in tears.
Overcoming incredibly low expectations -- set mostly by her horrific interviews recently with Katie Couric -- and not running off the stage crying still doesn't mean she won this debate. It means she survived it. I don't know if "average" Americans score debates or not, but chances are most people saw what they wanted to see. If they liked Palin before, they like her now, and vice versa. That doesn't equal a win either. Her bitchy one-liners are what they are: her only line of defense at this point, because she has no platform, and apparently can't speak well about McCain's. Over and over in the debate, Biden said that McCain is no different from Bush. Instead of explaining how McCain might be different, which could actually benefit the McCain campaign, Palin went after Biden with her one-liners. Ooooh, she's sarcastic, that Palin! Big fucking deal. Still not a win in her column.
I dunno, Razor. The first presidential debate was perceived as a close match, but in the days afterward, the public gave higher marks to Obama. I think the same will be true in this debate as well; Palin may have had the appearance of being prepped, but it was also easy to see exactly what she was prepped to do: golly, shucks, be personable, don't be too ignorant, and keep talking about how change is coming.
It sure is.
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