From: The Simon
The Presidential Debate: A Clear Kerry Win? Four Opinions on How Kerry and Bush Performed
Our staff all seems to agree: Kerry wins the debate. Read on to see why...
By The Simon Editors Oct 8, 2004
thesimon.com
"As the debate wore on and the arguments about Iraq grew more and more heated, though, Bush transformed from the pleasant but dim guy who can sell you a belt sander at the local Home Depot into a crazed, fire and brimstone carnival barker who was just accused of hosting a rigged game..."
The media, in an attempt to be impartial, might score this debate as “draw” or a narrow Bush victory, but just about any rational viewer could surmise that Kerry wiped the floor with Bush once again. Put simply, Kerry looks intelligent, confident, and in control up there; Bush, the exact opposite. Fighting back like a caged animal, Bush acted rattled and more distressingly, seemed to be completely unable to deal with criticism. Has Bush been living in a bubble for four years, hearing only what he wants to hear from his advisors about some of the most important issues our country has ever faced? I’m afraid I already know the answer to that question.
Time after time, Bush would make a generic, talking points reliant smear on Kerry’s record or policies, only to be completely destroyed by a well-reasoned rebuttal. One glaring TKO occurred when Kerry explained that because of Bush’s incompetence (a word I wished Kerry used more often in addressing the President) young soldiers are getting killed by weapons that we failed to protect. Bush had no answer to Kerry’s charges about defective stem cells, (I’m not sure Bush had the slightest idea what he was talking about when addressing this topic), got destroyed when addressing Medicare, and almost had a near meltdown while trying to butt in on Charlie Gibson.
To be fair, Bush seemed more comfortable, at least in the beginning, with the townhall format. Freed from the clutches of a podium, Bush could address the crowd in his signature folksy style. As the debate wore on and the arguments about Iraq grew more and more heated, though, Bush transformed from the pleasant but dim guy who can sell you a belt sander at the local Home Depot into a crazed, fire and brimstone carnival barker who was just accused of hosting a rigged game.
Perhaps Bush’s fiery antics will rally the base. Personally, I found it to be extremely depressing that this clearly overmatched dullard was ever elected our president. While many might disagree with John Kerry’s policies, there is no debate that if you plopped a Martian into the Washington University auditorium and asked it who he thought displayed all the basic characteristics of a good leader: intelligence, poise, the ability to speak in complete sentences, the Martian would answer: John Kerry.
--Bob Plain
***
"Following a remark about his ownership of a timber company, Bush leered at the audience and said, 'Want some wood?' You bet, Mr. President. Give it to me . . . frontally, please, which would be a nice change for you after taking it hard from Kerry for the last hour and a half."
After the debate, as I watched Dan Rather and some of the CBS pundits discuss the performances, I kept hoping that at least one of them, someone, would have the balls to come out and call Kerry a master debater.
I guess it's too low brow and sexual for political commentators, but as I slugged through a half bottle of Red Label and watched those two go at it, I couldn't help but feel a little sexual charge. Especially when, following a remark about his ownership of a timber company, Bush leered at the audience and said, "Want some wood?" You bet, Mr. President. Give it to me . . . frontally, please, which would be a nice change for you after taking it hard from Kerry for the last hour and a half.
To be fair, the President managed himself more admirably in this debate than the first one -- I think he only complained once about the Presidency being a "hard job" -- but anybody who watched him strut around the stage like a turkey, sputtering about Saddam, blaming
generals for failure to secure Iraq rather than taking responsibility as the President, anyone who thinks that this is the man they want leading our country for the next four years is out of his or her mind.
-- Trevor Thompson
***
"Sadly, I think what we saw tonight is proof of why this administration has been a failure. This president does not like to be questioned..."
Tonight the citizens of Missouri asked, for all of us, the tough questions of the day. Their abilities truly showed that there is much wisdom embedded in the average voter. Unfortunately, the collective wisdom of the room seemed not to permeate into the President of the United States.
President Bush’s answers demonstrated a lack of vision, comprehension, and clarity about the issues that are confronting millions of American families. It is pathetic when an administration can only point to one thing that is better off than when he first took office—air quality. What is more pathetic is that the one domestic accomplishment he touted improved despite his efforts.
Not only did we not receive answers from this president, but arrogance beamed through the television screen. We saw a man who simply does not like to be questioned. We saw a man who feels that he does not have to obey the rules of debate for one simple reason—because he is the President of the United States. Sadly, I think what we saw tonight is proof of why this administration has been a failure. This president does not like to be questioned. He does not like to explain. And he feels that he can thrash people into submission because he has the power.
Senator Kerry, on the other hand, outlined a compelling case for why America will be safer and more prosperous under his stewardship. He answered each question directly, but gave us enough detail to understand what type of policy he would implement. He showed patience and wisdom. When attacked for being a “liberal from Massachusetts,” he effectively countered the charge by pointing out that it was simply an evasive tactic by his opponent.
I proudly voted for President Bush in 2000. I thought Vice President Gore’s class warfare rhetoric was dangerous and divisive. Yet, what I saw tonight far surpassed any fears I had of Gore.
No one can question that both men love their country. Nor do I believe Bush is idiot. They are both smart men. The question at this juncture is who has the wisdom to be president—and, on that point, I think tonight was a decisive victory for the junior Senator from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
-- Eric Siddall
***
“I’ve got an obligation,” George Bush said during a question about importing medicine from Canada, “to make sure our government does everything we can to protect you.”
No, no, no, no, no.
No.
As someone who dislikes both candidates immensely, I watched with little satisfaction as Bush and Senator Kerry debated the same tired crap endlessly tonight. Everything seen in the first debate last week was regurgitated in splendid town hall format, from Bush’s gradual losing of coherence and temper to the obligatory nods to Kerry’s apparent protean stance on issues. If I wanted to see that, I could have just looked at file footage on the Internet.
Pardon me for expecting a little more this time around, but I was looking for questions about Kerry’s position on closing down POW/MIA investigations, something that might anger people if it was actually brought out into the open. On the Bush side, I want to know why the White House is paradoxically leaning on the FBI to cease investigation on the latest Israeli spy scandal coming out of the Pentagon while simultaneously promoting a zero-tolerance policy on suspected terrorists. But what I got was the same old polemics.
While I’ll admit it is amusing to see that famous Texan smirk or Kerry’s Frankenstein-like forehead, the above quote of Bush insisting that the government is obligated to keep us safe caught me completely off guard. Nothing could be further from the truth.
I could quote the same silly statistics and vociferous arguments the anti-Bush contingent likes to trumpet (we’re less safe, our kids are dying, etc.), but the simple fact of the matter is that the government is not obligated to do anything of the kind. The federal government is mandated to provide legal tender, a common defense, and a unified government so the world thinks that we have some semblance of cohesion.
Does that mean the government is required to make sure soft-headed hillbillies get the proper medication, or that people need terror alerts to feel 100% safe as they go about their daily lives? No. Because no one is 100% safe; people die every day. Get over it.
Kerry is just as ridiculous. A health care plan for all? Please. We don’t live in Sweden, we don’t live in Canada. If it’s not guaranteed in the Constitution, it’s optional for We the People.
As this and both candidates’ acceptance of the PATRIOT Act show, neither Kerry nor Bush have a true grasp on what is needed to govern this country responsibly. Kerry definitely came out ahead in terms of rhetoric, and to many his plans will make sense, but as someone who observes the Constitution and not the supplemental legislation that has subsequently dismantled it, neither get it. “Don’t tread on me” used to be the motto of the 18th century “terrorists” that formed this nation. That means leave me the fuck alone. Don’t monitor my library access; don’t hoist expensive plans on me. Do what you were legally obligated to do in 1788 and that’s it.
The government isn’t supposed to make you feel warm and fuzzy. It’s supposed to render public services and provide basic rights. Maybe Kerry will eventually figure that out. I know from these debates that Bush will not. Round Two: Kerry.
--Matt Hutaff
***
"Bush looked alone onstage tonight, small somehow, whereas Kerry always seemed surrounded by the audience..."
For the past few weeks, I’ve defended George Bush. Despite the fact that I disagree with many of his policies, I respected his courage to strongly say what he believed. Say what you will about Bush, but I like a politician who doesn’t equivocate his positions.
Kerry, on the other hand, has always seemed slippery. When he argues it was a mistake to invade Iraq in the way that we did, I always felt he was somewhat disingenuous. Why not just say it? It was a mistake,clear and simple, and stop pussyfooting around. “He’s gotta play election year politics,” friends would say. “But that’s exactly why I don’t like the guy,” I would reply.
Tonight seemed to change all that. For the first time, John Kerry gave a winning performance. He seemed strong, determined, and most importantly, a man of the people.
But the real story is the continuing decline of Bush. He’s becoming like a small town priest whose congregation is no longer listening. The louder he yells, the more he pushes, he disintegrates into desperation. He seems to be squeezing harder and harder, but as he does, it all begins to feel lifeless and forced. Bush often appeared out of breath, his voice sounded gravelly and weak. He looked alone onstage tonight, small somehow, whereas Kerry always seemed surrounded by the audience.
--Russell Brown |
