Every four years most of America is reminded why they don't really pay much attention to politics. Last night's presidential debate may have set/re-set the precedent for getting people excited only to have the majority die of boredom. An aggressively-moderate Mitt Romney may be the most dis-likeable Romney we've seen thus far. At least candid Romney was sort-of funny and genuine.
Let's break this sucker down (Category, followed by relevant tweet, followed by half-assed analysis):
1. Substance ("My vague platitudes are superior to yours?"- Mitt Romney, @FilmDrunk) Depends what kind of substance we're talking about here...How do you like your ambiguity/equivocations? If it's statistics that tickle your fancy, Mr. Mittington certainly had the edge in referencing unfathomable numbers. The effectiveness of Clinton's DNC speech seems to have inspired both candidates to arithmetically elaborate whenever possible. Obama consistently mentioned Romney's "$5 Trillion Tax-cuts", which Romney vehemently denied. According to Politifact and Rolling Stone, Romney & Ryan's 10 year-plan would almost certainly amount to tax-cuts within the $5 Trillion range. Romney's version of this attack was going after Barry's $89 Billion spent on Green-energy (which he falsely claims send money to China?). There really wasn't a whole lot of substance in this debate (color me surprised). Obama mentioned his $4 trillion deficit-reduction plan, Romney mentions the 200 billion-trillion jobs he'll create (in fact, Romney used the word jobs almost 220,000 times in the debate).
Edge goes to: Obama...if only because viscous fact-checking won't damage his rhetoric as it will Romney's.
2. Contradictions: I'm going to give the edge to Romney here, if for not other reason then that he contradicted prior stances so often it made it nearly impossible to keep track of. Whether completely ignoring his signing-on to his VP's tax-cut for the wealthy plan or lying about his health-care package covering preexisting conditions (or his plans for health-care in general), Romney could've probably had this debate with a segmented-hologram of a speech he gave 3 months ago. Perhaps President Obama's apparent "playing it safe" strategy was an attempt to bait Romney into succumbing to making himself appear foolish? A strategy I certainly anticipated he would take.
On the other hand, Obama didn't say enough to contradict himself. Rather than providing specifics for future intentions, he simply repeated what he had done (or tried to do) in the past. So Romney didn't really stand a chance in this category.
Edge goes to: I'll call it a wash. Etch-a-Sketch Romney's more questionable stances will likely go unnoticed by the majority of the public.
3. Memorable Moments: It's not a good sign when the most memorable moment of one of the more publicized presidential debates is the moderator. The candidate's treatment of Lehrer was the most interesting aspect during the two hour snooze-fest. I also liked the premeditated zingers.
4. What was missing: WHY WAS PRESIDENT OBAMA SO RELUCTANT TO ATTACK MITT ROMNEY ON ANY STATEMENT HE MADE? It seemed as though he was trying so hard to avoid looking arrogant/overconfident that he forgot he was in a debate...it was also missing substance AND constant standing ovations.
5. Zingers: Now to my favorite category...the zingers. I GOTSTA give the edge to Mr. Mitt on this one. He brought some serious heat at Barry O and the president sat there and took it like perked-up boxer. Here's a couple of Mitt's Dangerfield-esque burns:
- "you're entitled to your own plane and home, not your own facts" (not hypocritical at all....)
- " You don't just pick winners & losers, you pick losers!" (WHAMMY)
- "I'm actually quite fond of Obama care" (Serena Williams backhand)
- "Mr. President, thank you for tuning in this evening"
- "I love great schools"
And here's a couple Barry highlights:
- "are Romney's plans so secret because they're too good" (a good point and one of the few aggressive statements from the president"
- "I had 5 seconds until you interrupted me"
- "Romney's strategy is just...'never-mind'"
Original King of Comedy: Mitt Romney
6. Gaffs: Along with contradictions, Obama didn't really say enough to get as brutally fact-checked as Romney. I thought Romney's biggest gaff was a freudian-slip towards the end of the debate where, while talking about how much he loved great hospitals, he said "I used to consult with these businesses..errr..I mean hospitals." This probably went unnoticed by most, but it seems like a tick of this sort could end up being Romney's undoing. America is an investment for Romney, and the man DOES NOT invest in something with out expecting to come out better off then he went in.
7. Appropriate Tweets:
"My vague platitudes are superior to yours #derp -Romney" -@FilmDrunk
"It's time for my 2nd question" -Jim Lehrer at 3 pm tommorow -@BlitznBeans
"I should probably look up what taxes are and start this thing over" -@Hadzilla
Declaring a winner, other notes and Closing Remarks:
So here we are...with the benefit of hindsight the Obama's foresight and tranquility now seem to make more sense. There have been an ONSLAUGHT of commercials destroying Romney's credibility, showing his tendency to be a bit of a waffler. Alas, how do we declare a winner in this thing? How can we? Romney was almost-unanimously declared the victor by pundits and analysts (and rightfully so). A presidential debate is like a boxing/chess match. Rigorous preparation is involved and it shows. Romney came out and tested the waters to get a feel for his opponent. Once he realized Obama wasn't going to be the aggressor, he immediately pulled the rarely seen "Romney pounce." However, Romney's choice to be the aggressor and speak freely could eventually be his downfall. Obama may have appeared tired and disinterested, but he was composed and presidential. Appearing presidential is an essential characteristic of the modern president (redundant, I know).
DEBATE WINNER: Mitt Romney
Will it determine the Presidency? Unlikely.
Side notes:
- Reagan was only mentioned twice
- Obama seems to be coloring his hair to get the right salt-n-pepper look, while Romney seems to be trying to go greyer.
- Striped tie vs. Solid, large American flag pin vs. small...Why do people respond to such subtle cues?
- SO...MUCH...AMBIGUITY
- No more veggie-monster?
- The next moderator is going to have to LAY DOWN THE LAW
- Mitt Romney probably believes CBS when they claim 2 and 1/2 Men/The Big Bang Theory are America's funniest programs
- Closing Statement edge: Obama
you're a tool.
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