16 Oct 08 The McCain Campaign Implodes
John McCain put a bow on the failure of his campaign tonight by presenting a series of positions that focused solely on the core values of his strongest supporters, the so-called Republican base. His smirking, petulant demeanor compounded the negative impression viewers were left with. If you weren’t aware that he’s a crotchety old man before, you surely know it now. Worst of all, he offered nothing in the way of ideas or programs that would appeal to the independent voters in the middle of the political spectrum. Tonght we saw the last hurrah of a grumpy idealogue, a man who is both too unfriendly and too inflexible to be an effective president.
08 Oct 08 “That One” Overpowers Old Whiny One
Last night McCain sounded like a tired, cranky old man, someone yelling at the neighborhood kids for accidently throwing their football into his flower garden. According to a CNN poll 65% of the viewers found Obama more likable, while only 28% said the same about McCain. Viewers also rated Obama as being more intelligent and the clear winner of the debate. What most people will remember about McCain is his sneering, snide reference to Obama as “that one.”
04 Oct 08 The Non-Debate
Thursday night’s performance was a series of sound bites, not a debate. There was no real interaction between Joe Biden and Sarah Palin, just short answers to simple questions asked by the moderator. It doesn’t seem to matter to anyone that some of questions weren’t answered at all.
Juan Cole’s Informed Comment link:
http://www.juancole.com/2008/10/non-debate.html
Judging “how the candidates did” is rather like weighing in on the wittiness of the libretto of “Big Brother” or the pace of character development in the latest episode of “Keeping up with the Kardashians.” The genre of the political review assumes that both candidates are credible in their roles. It becomes self-parody when one candidate is a ditzy nonentity cynically foisted on the public in the same way a ‘reality show’ is, based on a targeted demographic and without regard to quality.
03 Oct 08 Palin Tells A Big Lie
It’s getting harder and harder for Republican liars to fool the American people. Last night in the debate Palin said that Obama wants to “wave a white flag of surrender” in Iraq. We all know that’s a lie, just look at the audience response to that statement:
