Seriously: Could the debate have gone ANY BETTER than it did tonight?

[SeveneightyWhoa]

Kerry was smooth. He was knowledgeable. He was confident. He spoke clearly, answered questions convincingly, appealed to Americans emotions and their reason, and simultaneously hit Bush hard while offering his own policies and views.

Most importantly, he was presidential. Very presidential, much moreso than the current president himself.

Even the cable news channels have conceded victory to Kerry -- and we all know how they'd love to call it a draw, if not a Bush win. Kerry was so good tonight, he put "the media that gored Gore" in a position in which they were literally forced to call it as a Kerry win. Even Free Republic was in a crying mood tonight.

And it was quite helpful that Bush was utterly miserable as a debater and as a leader -- worse than even some of us thought possible.

We (well, since I'm Canadian, YOU) should all be happy. And proud. You are all backing a winner. A presidential figure about to knock out the worst leader in American history.

This debate has sparked the beginning to a Kerry victory in November. It honestly couldn't have gone any better than it did tonight, and we have only John Kerry (and possibly Bush's misfiring cerebral neurons) to thank.

Could the debates have gone any better?
I don't think so.

[WLKjr]

1. Part Duece will be better

Even much more better than this. Chimpy is on the run, stay after him.

[Thurston Howell IV]

2. It could have been better, but it was more than good enough.

Kerry kicked Bush's ass, no doubt about it. Bush is still standing, but blood is coming out of his ears.

[Jack from Charlotte]

3. When AWOL kept saying "It's hard work......." I'd wish Kerry would have

brought up those published stats that AWOL was on vaction more than any other president in history. Also, was on vacation when he got the 8/6 PDB warning of 9/11 attacks........

But overall it was..........

Napalm in the morning.

A flat blowout.

[Kanary]

10. That's what I wanted to hear, too.

[dennis4868]

4. The debate went very well.....

for Kerry.....he was clearly the better debater tonight.

The only matter that I was a little bit upset about but not suprised about is that it is now clear Kerry is not going to hold Bush accountable regarding the lies about the threat from Iraq from Bush in the lead up to the war.

Kerry said over and over that Sadaam was a threat. But the fact is Kerry could have attacked Bush on this matter. As we all know, the National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) the year before Bush got into the WH said that Sadaam was no threat, and even Powell and Rice said the same thing when they first took office. But then the NIE prepared right before the war changed so much with regards to WMD and the overall threat from Iraq. Senator Rockefeller said that in closed meetings CIA agents/analysis said they felt pressured from the WH to give them the "evidence" they wanted regarding the Iraqi threat.

In addition, Bush hyped the intelligence estimates before the war over and over, and many agencies said that Sadaam was not the threat that Bush said he was (DOE, DIA, INR, Air Force).

So why does Kerry not hold Bush accountable for the bad intelligence and hyping the intelligence estimates before the war regarding the threat from Iraq?

Instead he simply says that Sadaam was a threat. WTF?

Other than this I was very proud of Kerry and feel much better about the elction tonight.

[blue northern]

5. I hear ya dennis but Kerry had a tricky line to walk here....

If he attacked Bush too harshly and directly on the trumped up lead up to Iraq, wrong wingers would leap on it and hype it as not supporting the troops in Iraq.
Two minutes is not enough time to totally clean shrub's clock on this subject in a presidential fashion.
Kerry looked very presidential tonight.
Kerry did a good job of clearing the mud flung at his position in Iraq.
To steal an overworked line from the shrub (like he has a line that's not overworked):
"We've turned a corner" tonight

[SKKY]

6. Why does Kerry keep pulling punches...

...He had 4 or 5 chances to absolutely drop Bush on his ass and didn't. The ones that jump to mind are when Bush mentioned the 87 billion vote. Why didn't Kerry say, how he wanted to pay for it (tax repeal on the richest 2% of the population), that he wanted to include post-Iraq health care for troops, and Bush threatened to veto it if either came attached to it. Kerry could have had an absolute historical moment when Bush said, "That's not what the Commander in Chief does when he's trying to lead troops." Kerry should have replied, "Mr. President, what on earth could YOU possibly tell ME about leading troops?" Kerry says that and it's lights out. He didn't, so Bush is still very much alive. I thought Kerry looked much more 'Presidential" though. He clearly won the debate, but damn it man, THROW THE FREAKIN' KNOCKOUT PUNCH AND PUT THIS THINGS TO REST!!!!!!!

[librechik]

7. more Bush stuttering and stammering

that's my prediction for debate#2. if it happens.

[Zorra]

8. Bu$h could have actually, well, you know, verbally conceded the election

and acknowledged that Kerry could do a much better job as Prez.

But this was pretty close.

[Artemis Bunyon]

9. Nope.

.

[glaeken777]

11. Two moments...

...where Kerry could have seriously rabbit-punched Bush on rebuttal that sadly never came:

1. When Bush bragged about "100,000" Iraqi police trained, we all know that was a baldfaced lie, since roughly half that number have fully completed training. Kerry, having shown a masterful talent for crunching stats, should have nailed Bush on that point. It would have reinforced the notions of lies and incompetency.

2. When Bush said, "I know Bin Laden attacked us!" I would have cheered if Kerry had quoted his flip-flop about Bin Laden no longer being someone he thinks about. You knew he attacked us, but why did you forget?!

Also, I think it would have been helpful for Kerry to have suffixed the phrase "the murderer of 3000 innocent Americans" every time he used Bin Laden's name.

No matter... Kerry won for sure. I guess I am on a high from so many "stand up and cheer moments" that I was dying for just a few more! :)

[carpetbagger]

12. The waiter could have come out to refill *'s gin and tonic.

Then he would have really been rappin' about sharing the love and leashing the kids.

Seriously, I think one great talking point that we need to pound is that George Bush would entrust red China with securing a nuclear-free and nonthreatening North Korea. Kinda makes a big fat joke out of everything else.

[Carolab]

13. I just wish

the spinners weren't putting words in Kerry's mouth, saying he "admitted a mistake" concerning the $87 billion supplemental...
that is NOT what he said. He said that he incorrectly stated his position on it. HOW MANY TIMES DOES HE NEED TO EXPLAIN THIS--THAT HE VOTED AGAINST IT BECAUSE BUSH DID NOT AGREE TO PROPERLY FUND IT BY RESCINDNG THE "RICH TAX"?

[tom_paine]

14. Pretty damned close to maxxed out on the ol' Goodness Meter!

[Kanary]

15. What I was hoping for would have made it much better....

I was hoping that Kerry, being unflappable, would have made * so mad that he went over the edge and lost it.

*THAT* would have been a great moment.

:)

Kanary

[camero]

16. Yes

They could have talked about something other than foriegn policy.

[AmerDem]

17. I'm not going to micro analyze it

It went very well!