UPDATED: There's got to be a morning after
News blogs, sports blogs, entertainment blogs, and more from Philly.com, The Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News.
UPDATED: There's got to be a morning after
I'm waiting for my orders from the Politburo on how to spin this thing -- so you'll have to debate amongst yourself for a bit longer. To be updated...
UPDATE: You probably won't believe this, but I do have an excuse for posting so late about last night's debate. I am still awaiting my instructions from Mr. Soros I was getting root canal done this morning. So, of all the third-rate pundits out there, I'm the best qualified to determine which was more painful: Root canal or watching President Obama's debate performance. Let me put it this way: At least for the root canal they numb you up.
My overall opinion hasn't changed since I wrote it up for "the newspaper" 10 minutes after the debate ended: Obama looked like the one who was half-dead in Denver and Mitt Romney looked like he had too much caffeine (which is kinda of funny because, uh, he actually can't drink caffeine...oops), and Romney clearly won the debate.
Romney certainly won on body language -- which to a lot of people is the most important part of a debate -- but he also won, and this is what surprised a lot of people, in exoressing empathy -- which is very important indeed. Where everybody fell flat in was ideas. Both candidates sounded wonky, but when you peeled back the wonkery there wasn't a lot there for either Obama or for Romney.
Call me crazy but I thought the worst momemt of the debate wasn't Obama looking down at his shoes but Romney trying to explain how his tax cut -- the centerpiece of his campaign -- isn't really a tax cut, but...What the hell is it? Seriously, I think you don't need to be a rocket scientist to see that cutting rates while eliminating deductions will benefit the wealthy and hurt the middle class. Why Obama didn't hammer him for that is a big reason why we're all talking today about what a disaster Obama was. You'll be shocked* to learn I've gotten a fair number of emails and calls from Romney supporters gloating about how their man "pounded" Obama. But none of them mentioned any of Romney's brilliant ideas on taxes, jobs or health care. So I guess we did see the same debate, after all.
Most of the time, we all put on a big show complaining that our politics values style over substance. But not on Debate Night oin America, when we make little pretense of admitting that it's anything but a sporting event, only lacking Fox's exploding helmeted robots or an intro song by Pink (but just wait wait a few more cycles). The most famous U.S. presidential debate line of all-time was Ronald Reagan telling Jimmy Carter, "There you go again!" Do you have any idea what the issue was they were debating about? Would it really matter if you knew?
Arguably the second most famous debate question of all time was when Walter Mondale said to Gary Hart in the 1984 primaries: "When I hear your new ideas, I'm reminded of that ad, 'Where's the beef?'"
Great question.
America gets two more chances to see whether either Romney or Obama will ever answer it in 2012.
* Sarcasm.
- This comment has been deleted.
— bil,l atkins - Hamlet, not true. From Dennis Miller:
Obama keeps looking down at his belt buckle teleprompter.
Now that's funny— Origami - Hey Hamlet I near vomit every time I read one of your posts. I can only imagine if I saw you in person. I'd probably get sick all over your friend too. That is if you even have a friend.— RufusG
- "Can you image being at a party with these guys ?"
You probably wouldn't fit in...I doubt any of them would be cool with some little pipsqueak like you bullying teenage girls, calling them all racists. Loser.— bp*philly - "and they definitely don’t get jokes."
Your jokes consist of calling a girl racist because you were too lazy and stupid to actually read an article? Call the irony police again, Hamlets talking about the short bus after he was called out on his idiocy.— RG - The real truth is that Obama is nothing without a teleprompter.— RufusG
- ===]]] I know quite a few of us indepentents that have been doing so the last four years. [[[===
Independents. Lol!— Talking point sleuth - ===]]] walking around with toilet paper hanging out the back of your pants. [[[===
Another day, another scatologically-themed post from bile.atkins.
I wonder that that's about.— Talking point sleuth - Come on lefties take your beating like men will ya?
— bannedrepublican - I love the black review of last night's debate. They are all up in arms about how disrepectful Mitt Romney was towards the president. Can't be dissing my brother in office or I'll ..... or I'll ..... oh yeah or I'll just vote for the black guy.............like I always do 99% of the time.— RufusG
- TPS can't even get himself out of the toilet after last night's debate. His man Obama pretty much flushed his campaign down the loo after his performance on a stage without a teleprompter. Although his suit looked good............— RufusG
- Shelley Winters crapped the bed in the movie, and maybe Obama did the same in the debates last night. lol.— FletcherT
- It is amazing how defensive the left is after their boy Barry collapsed on stage last night. They just don't get it. Obama can't react or act without his teleprompter.— RufusG
- I love reading the Libs trying to explain away a total drubbing in the debate. Shamster and MSL and TPS face it, the end could be near. Next week Binden will poop all over himself in his debate because he just can't help himself. Obama lost fair and square because he is above all of this. And how dare Romney challenge his record. Get over yourselves.— TKL008
- Ummm, is anybody in the Media just a little concerend about the gas prices? I mean we're closing in on $5.00 a gallon in some parts of the country and the silence about this is deafining— Phishface
- Andrew Sullivan
- Blinq
- Blogorrhea
- Blonde Sagacity
- Free Republic
- Instapundit
- James Taranto
- ScrappleFace
- The Corner
- Buzzmachine
- Eat the Press
- Editor and Publisher
- Media (Huffington Post)
- Media Bloodhound
- Mickey Kaus
- Pressthink
- Romenesko
- The Inksniffer
- A List of Things Thrown Five Minutes Ago
- Above Average Jane
- BlankBaby
- Citizen Mom
- Keystone Blog
- Metroblogging Philadelphia
- Phawker
- Philadelphia - America's Hometown
- Philadelphia Will Do
- Philebrity
- Philly Future
- Phillyblog
- Phillyist
- The Clog
- The Next Mayor
- Welcome to Phillyville
- Young Philly Politics
- Afro-Netizen
- All-Spin Zone
- Atrios
- Bad Attitudes
- Billmon
- Booman Tribune
- CorrenteWire
- Fables of the Reconstruction
- iFlipFlop
- Kiko's House
- MyDD
- Philly (Dragonballyee)
- Rowhouse Logic
- Slacktivist
- Suburban Guerilla
- Tattered Coat
- upyernoz
- AmericaBlog
- Andy Borowitz
- BuzzFlash
- Crooks and Liars
- Cursor
- Daily Kos
- David Sirota
- Drudge Report
- Echidne of the Snakes
- Fire Dog Lake
- Glenn Greenwald
- Hullabaloo
- Jesus' General
- Jon Swift
- Josh Marshall
- Juan Cole
- Kevin Drum
- Mad Kane
- Majikthise
- Matthew Yglesias
- Oliver Willis
- Raw Story
- Swing State Project
- Talk Left
- Taylor Marsh
- TBogg
- The Carpetbagger Report
- Think Progress
- War and Piece
- Wonkette
- A Citizen's Blog
- Balls, Sticks and Stuff
- Beer Leaguer
- Dick Polman
- Phillies Nation
- Philling Station
- Shallow Center
- The 700 Level
- The Good Phight
