I think Bush* did a lot better last night than the first debate.

[LoZoccolo]

I mean, except for breaking the rules and throwing a fit. Discard that part as an outlier and I think he improved upon his first chance last week. I still think he lost, but he lost by less.

Now that I've got your attention, I want to say something about the media coverage of the two debates. You can tell that the media follows it's viewers' expectations from this whole experience. During the first debate he did all shitty, but there was all this talk of it being a draw. They hadn't really felt out that it was glaringly obvious that people all over the place could see he fucked up bad, maybe didn't want to offend anyone or look biased. Now this time - this is curious - they're more firmly saying he lost, despite him doing better. It's like they're following everyone's reaction from last week! If they said last week was a draw, I'd expect them to say this was at least a draw, but you don't see that.

[blueknight]

1. he had to,

he could not have done worse. the first debate he looked like a crackhead

[LoZoccolo]

4. Yeah, it wouldn't be hard to do better, true.

I thought of this after I posted - there was just a few basic things they could have coached him on about his composure, and delivering his talking points faster, that could have made a great difference in perception. Kind of like how just repainting your house adds more value than the money you spend on doing it or something.

[cali]

5. I thought he was worse

last night. Truly scary. He looked like he was about to lunge at Gibson, yelled throughout, laughed to himself, and yes, still made faces. Scary, scary, scary bush.

[spooky3]

2. good point

[rpannier]

3. Agreed

He looked better. But a decaying pumpkin would have looked better than he did in his first debate. Probably would have smelled better too.
I think they hoped they could ride a wave of positive responses this time. But, I don't think it'll happen. He just doesn't look presidential.

[Drifter]

6. Agreed ... And Novak gave him the win ...

because he wasn't a complete idiot like the last one.

Novak: Lowering the bar for the inept.

Cheers
Drifter

[Orangepeel]

7. who said the first debate was a draw?

I heard stuff like, "it doesn't matter because bush got his point across," "he was tired from helping hurricane victims," "Kerry cheated," and "No fair! bush had harder questions!" but I didn't hear anyone actually claim that it was a draw.

[LoZoccolo]

9. People on here were talking about the immediate pundit reactions...

...right after the debate, and we were surprised how many people were saying it's a draw. I wouldn't be surprised if their story changed the few days after that when the cat was out of the bag that most normal everyday people thought he did a bad job.

[Homerr]

8. I think the press is like a shark smelling blood and they're circling

waiting for BushCo with thier secrecy and lack of White House access to go down in flames. The most secretive president ever is a bad thing for their business. I bet reporters HATE dealing with the Bush administration.

[bullimiami]

12. i agree but they are not sharks.

the news media is more akin to hyenas or vultures maybe even maggots.

they are easily scared off, they hide and wait and go along but as soon as it starts to smell dead and weak and rotten they jump in and start chewing and brag how they made the kill.

[HEIL PRESIDENT GOD]

10. Learned something interesting

A friend of mine with Repub parents/upbringing said that despite all the other things he knew, the talk about "staying the course" strikes an emotional chord with him. It makes it BETTER, in fact, if it was a mistake in the first place! He loves the idea of stubbornly hanging on. He also likes the follow-the-leader aspect.

I think it's some weird Germanic emotional thing that I simply don't get. Then again, I finish things--and my friend doesn't....

[fudge stripe cookays]

11. I'm Germanic.

About 3/4. And while perseverance is a good triat to have, stupidity isn't.

;-)

[bullimiami]

13. is your friend too old to volunteer?

tell him if he is so determined to "stay the course" he should put up or shut up.

[Dob Bole]

14. Well, he couldn't have done much worse than the last debate...

I think that Kerry wasn't as focused last night. A lot of times, I found myself yelling "Answer the damned question!"

Yes, I talk to my TV.

Still though, Bush/Cheney haven't won a single debate yet. And I think part of the reason the media declared a Bush loss this time was him yelling at Charlie Gibson.

[The Icon Painter]

15. I Think * Has Been Gored

Now that we have had more than a week of constantly pointing out the grotesque behaviour of the Incompetent-in-Chief, even the dumber citizens are prepped to look for it. What you really look for, you will see. Remember how we were all trained to look for Al Gore to behave after the first 2000 debate? People who didn't see his actions as objectionable when he made them were convinced by the spin and there he went - down the bowl. Now that searching gaze and pre-decided reaction is aimed at Beloved Cheerleader. How sweet it is to see the Biter bit.

[Boomer]

16. They got his meds right last night

For the first debate, he looked over-medicated or marginally drunk. Slow reaction times, disjointed speech (more even than usual), hesitant. Last night he was his old arrogant swaggering obnoxious self, and since that's the character his Faithful love, I'm sure they considered last night a win.

[Toucano]

17. I think he did worse.

In the first debate he seemed tired and cranky. There was also the stammering and hesitation. It was really bad.

In the second debate he seemed MEAN and STUPID. His voice was almost SHRILL. And he's still playing DEFENSE. That's far worse.

The freedom of movement contributed to the impression I have of him doing worse. He'd jump off that stool like a boxer coming out of the corner and then launch into his shrill defensive rants.

I think I actually winced when he made his "need some wood" joke.

Plus, there is the expectation that he'd have learned from his mistakes in the first debate. He doesn't think he makes mistakes, though. It's hard to learn that way.