More about the debate in a second
I did want to note that the annual board meeting of CBS affiliates is October 5th. Put an ear to the ground and see if there are any rumbles.
Final political observations about the debate for tonight are below. Enjoy, or cruise on by.
Anywho, a couple openings for Bush in the next debate if Kerry's stupid and picks up up Edward's talking points. Edwards noted that a long resume doesn't equate to good experience. Two ways for Bush to play that card - one, by noting that he agrees, especially as it comes to Kerry's abysmal voting record. Add to that a zinger about, based on his performance in representing the people of Massachusetts to represent them, evidently a long resume can can me no judgment at all - like the 84 thousand votes Kerry's missed. He can round it off with a comment, that unlike being Senator, you can't skip out on xx% of your job - but then again, that's an experience that most working Americans are probably more familiar with than you.
The other way it can be played - again depending on spin choices, is the notion that it doesn't automatically bestow upon you good judgment, but it does indicate some experience, and you Sen. Kerry, seem to think that 4.5 months 30 years ago somehow gives you more relevant Commander-in-Chief experience than 4 actual years as Commander in Chief. Unless you want to also talk about his experience in protesting a defense buildup during the Cold War.
Other talking points that could have been made by Cheney, but were probably foregone so he didn't appear to mean, was the notion of a Kerry Presidency in which we would be made safer by scrapping defensive systems like BMD, offensive weaponry like bunker-buster nukes, and by fighting proliferation by giving nuclear fuel to Iran.
I also am waiting with baited breath for the day that somebody takes somebody to the woodshed about all this mystical hype about allies by noting that in Afghanistan, where we had the 'world's sympathy' that these mysterious allies still haven't done neither jack nor sh!t.
Final debate thoughts, not that many left-blogs I've found have been liveblogging the debate versus their right-side counterparts. I wonder if that's because they didn't expect a good Edwards showing, or that they, as a base, are just not nearly as energized. Among the left blogs I cruised, the sentiment seemed to be overwhelming that Cheney lost because he was such a great big fat evil liar. This was followed by the occasional assertion that he was also angry and mumbly. I only ran across a few that seemed to be of the call-em-like-you-see-em variety, who tended towards calling it a tie.
By comparison, I did note a number of right-leaning blogs covering it (but hey kids, this ain't a scientific survey at all) which seemed to be anywhere from a minor Cheney win to Cheney ripping the still-beating heart out of the Democratic-body-politic. Of course, you're invited to ascribe that to a higher percentage of rabid idiots on the other side of the aisle, whilst your own are all super civil and whatnot. But what I think that this supports, and has been pretty consistent, is that Bush has a stronger, more motivated base. The Kerry core base is beset by relatively shrill, hysterical folk, who really don't have any use for Kerry, other than to make Bush call a moving company.
How many real insights do you get from the "live blogging" I find most of it to be comedy or shameless cheerleading. Very little in the way of real analysis or insight into how the debate plays with undecided and swingers (the voting kind not the sexual), which is the only relevant question. No one who is decided id changing their mind.
BTW I thought Cheney had the edge, they both told their share of "lies" and the both regurgitated the Talking Points but Edwards came off way too polished and seemed to come off like a meme machine.