Ghosts of debates past

The presidential debates have been the "getting to know you" vehicle of elections since the 1860 election. In our times, some of the remarkable wins and losses were established during the presidential and vice presidential contests, views by tens of millions. Here are some of the knock out punches and suicide statements that shaped the presidency.

1980: President James E. Carter and former California governor Ronald W. Reagan
In response to the image of warmonger and John Wayne hothead that the Democrats tried to build on Reagan, Carter accused Reagan of pushing us to war with Russia. The succinct KO response:
Reagan: There he goes again!

Reagan swept Carter out of office.

1984: President Ronald W. Reagan and former Vice President Walter Mondale
In response to the image of "tax and spend liberal" that the Republicans planted on Mondale, he had this to say on Reagan's proposed tax cuts, juxtaposed to Mondale's proposed hikes.

Mondale: In the end, I will raise your taxes; he will raise your taxes; the difference is that I am going to tell you about it now.

Mondale won two states in the election. Ouch!!!!!

1988 Vice President Danforth Quayle and Texas senator Lloyd Benson
In response to Quayle's frequent references to JFK, and the Republican attempts to show the leftward migration of the Democrat party since that time. The RNC wanted to sell the concept that JFK policies were more in line with current Republicans than Democrats. The Democrats had painted Quayle as an intellectual lightweight throughout the campaign, very successfully.

Benson: I knew Jack Kennedy. He was a friend of mine. And, sir, you are no Jack Kennedy.

The two fisted combination knockout was not enough to save the Dukakis campaign, but it became common to hear that were Bush elected, we must hope he survives his term, and if Dukakis wins, we must hope he does not. Fact checkers later verified that Benson had never actually known Kennedy, profesionally or socially. But that wasn't the point, was it?

2004 Vice President Richard B. Cheney and North Carolina senator John Edwards
After fairly successful Democrat efforts to demonize the VP and paint him as the "the man behind the curtain" in the Bush administation, John Edwards tried to paint himself as a leader with a new direction. Cheney's fierce KO was a stark sobering of the senator. Edwards had commented on his own experience as a senator.

Cheney: In my capacity as Vice President, I am president of the senate, the presiding officer... and I have never met you before you walked on stage tonight.

Fact checkers found that the two had crossed paths at a social function in Washington at some length of time earlier, but Cheney's point was made, forcefully. In fact, with presented with the evidence, Cheney remarked, "Obviously, he made no impression on me."

2004 President George W. Bush Jr. and Massachuetts senator John F. Kerry
Toward the end of the 3rd debate, the moderator tried an off topic question "What have the strong women in your life taught you. Kerry's remarks were largely considered condescending and patronizing, as his stiff patrician delivery had hampered him throughout his public appearances. He comments that he married up, a self-effacing remark in the eyes of most in the public, as he had married a fabulously wealthy widow, Teresa Heinz, and it came off badly, as an implication that he was a golddigger and proud of it. Bush, betraying the folksy image that he lived on, takes the Effus pitch out of the park.

Bush: To listen to them. To stand up straight and not scowl.

The actual comments are not as important as the fact that, after the long campaign season and at the end of the debate, Bush had the room rocking with laughter. People obviously took it home. For all the attempts to demonize Bush and paint him as an intellectual lightweight, he walked away with 3 million more voters that didn't believe it, or didn't care.

Oddly enough, the best debater in recent presidential memory, William J. B. Clinton, scored no great KO's, even on the hapless debate style of Robert Dole. Whatever he did was obviously effective so perhaps he did not need them. Bush also did not score one on the extremely vulnerable Albert Gore Jr. I hope that McCain and Obama, and certainly Biden and Palin, can produce some fire.

Iraq and al-Qaeda

Facts are mean little boogers. With everyone rushing forward to say that Iraq was not complicit in the 9/11 attacks and was not in cahoots with al Qaeda, something rings problematic. Is not the group of terrorists that we are fighting in Iraq called "al Qaeda Iraq"? Did they not especially take that name (with communication directly with Zawahiri, a guy the US military cannot even find, much less communicate with, but this person, Zarqawi, with "no ties to al Qaeda" had immediate communication with him?) shortly after first attacking US troops. The troop surge has quieted the threats significantly, but before that, does anyone else remember the beheadings and frequent suicide attacks? This week, Iraqi troops took control of the volatile Anbar province. Because of the surge, we are beginning to disengage in Iraq, but no one can question why they are there. In fact, the president issued an indictment of Osama bin Laden, and the fourth point in the indictment was that he was cooperating with Saddam's Iraq especially in the development of WMD. But the president was lying, as usual. There was no link, no WMD, no terror in Iraq, the president made it up. So only one question remains:

WHY DID PRESIDENT CLINTON LIE ABOUT THIS???!!!! The indictment in question was handed down in 1998, by Janet Reno, the attorney general serving President WJB Clinton.

Palin scandals

So far, the criticism of Palin has been prolific. How can she take care of 5 kids and a pregnant daughter? How can she take care of a high needs Downs syndrome baby? What if she were thrust into the presidency on day one, because John McCain is about to go to pasture at the ripe old age of 72? What about the scandal with her sister's ex? Can she recover from the devastating revelation that her teenage daughter is unmarried and pregnant?

All I can say is, OMG, the Dems are WORRIED!! With Biden now baring his teeth at any mention of his Iran philosophy, this is the best they could do with 2 days of dredging? An unmarried pregnant teen? Unheard of in 2008! According to reports, they are going to paint the shotgun white and there is no chance that they will abort, so pass the champagne and congratulations to Mr. and Mrs. Johnston. (Note: Obama's mom apparently felt the same, so a gold star for her.) Do the reporters hear themselves asking of this woman should be caring for her children, rather than running for office? Look at the calendar, people, 2008 not 1908. Woman today can work and raise a family. Were Carter, Kennedy, Clinton all able to take care of young children and serve in the presidency? Duh! Has no one ever heard of a nursemaid caretaker? Down's children need special attention and I am sure she will select a professional who can help her care for the baby and be an attentive mother even when she is working, with or without the vice presidency. And for goodness sake, a healthy 72 year old is not imminently going to keel over. And she may have pressured a director to remove a gun and badge from the hands of a violent angry individual. We can't have that! Sarah, back to your kitchen, get those shoes off, and crank out another kid!

OTOH, Obama called off the dogs and declared these feeble attacks off limits. Besides being the right thing to do, it was apparent that Obama was sincerely bothered by the nature of attacks on Palin's family. Whatever happens to his campaign, the man is a class act, in stark contrast to the likes of Kerry and the Clintons. I'd like to see Obama get a bounce just for class.