Dems looking like idiots, at the moment.

[elleng]

We have an incumbent.

Listen to Michael Steele.

[Fearless]

1. Swing and a miss

[marble falls]

5. Buck up. Joe's got this. Be fearless for Pete's sake.

[Fearless]

13. My concern

My concern stems from public perception. What we think here is practically irrelevant just as what people think on right wing blogs is practically irrelevant. At the end of the day the respective campaigns know who's voting for whom from these groups. My concern is for average voters who don't get involved in politics.

Tonight's performance from Trump was FACTUALLY abysmal.

Tonight's performance from Biden was OPTICALLY abysmal.

Not kinda rough, not so-so, both were abysmal in these ways.

Tonight Trump came off as OPTICALLY strong.

Tonight Biden came off as FACTUALLY strong.

The problem with facts is that your average voter isn't happy with the economy and Biden did nothing to instill confidence in that tonight. The last thing the average voter wants is a president who is seen as doddering or weak. This helped Obama beat McCain. It helped Clinton beat both Bush and Dole. It helped Reagan beat Carter. Etc. Public perception is VITALLY important. Optics are VITALLY important.

Unfortunately the average person seems happier with a liar who seem strong than a factually correct man who seems weak.

[marble falls]

16. You seem to make an argument that Joe should have gone TFGish. I think that would be a mistake.

[Fearless]

19. No.

All Biden needs to do was inspire voters. He wins on facts every time. He failed miserably to inspire voters last night.

[marble falls]

22. I don't think he failed. I think the venue and his health failed him. I don't notice too much said about TFG's ...

... performance. I think it was stupid going into this thing (it sure wasn't a debate) without live fact checking and pushing TFG to respond to the questions put to him, Joe Biden answered every question with facts and plans.

It bugs me that an off night for Biden negates his accomplishments of the last four years, but being a convicted felon means nothing about TFG.

He may not have inspired voters last night, but he certainly didn't lose any issues oriented Democrats or independent voters to TFG, either.

I think your heart and mind is in the right place, and I look forward to celebrating Joe's landslide as I know you will, too.

Then we can have the discussion over age we both agree about. We need to put a stake in TFG's candidacy first.

[Fearless]

25. I'm sorry

If you think that that debate benefited him in any way, you really don't understand the vast majority of the people in the country. He can be 100% right on issues and lose.

[marble falls]

26. Then he didn't stand a chance going in. His only resort would have been to out Mango Jebus, Mango Jebus. I was ...

... mistaken: truth, honesty, record mean nothing. Being the biggest asshole in a crowd of asshole is the way to win POTUS.

I guess we're done here.

[Sugarcoated]

11. Yes, you did

[larwdem]

2. what does that mean ?

[marble falls]

4. Put that so called "debate" into perspective. Like Steele says, we got our candidate and we don't need to draft another.

[elleng]

8. Thanks

[marble falls]

10. You're someone I trust to shoot straight. Glad I could help.

[DarthDem]

3. Right on

They're just trying to start talk and come in with a hot take. Ari Melber-type stuff. Tomorrow they'll realize how much silly they sound.

[yorkster]

6. Lawrence had the most rational, reasoned take.

Other than that it's been talking heads on fire.it does seem to be calming down a bit.

[Frasier Balzov]

7. Michael Steele said show Joe what we saw.

What Michael Steele was unwilling to say is that it might persuade Joe to accept a testimonial dinner and a gold watch.

[SarahD]

9. It's OK to panic, but not publicly.

Go to your room and scream into a pillow. Oh, try not to scare the dog, OK?

[Self Esteem]

12. I agree. The Democrats always have the knives out for their own.

Republicans rally around their guy no matter what.

Even if these people thought Biden did poorly, what is gained talking about it to the media? How does any Democrat gain from the media narrative that they are in a panic and want Biden to drop out?

This is insane. Every single Democrat should have said Biden showed himself as a calm leader among the chaos that is Trump.

I don't care if they don't believe it.

And we wonder why the post-debate spin always sucks?

[flamingdem]

14. Agree. Disgusted. Seems some don't know how to play the game

Our guy all the way 100% got his back.

[Lancero]

20. They know exactly how to play the game, they're just not on our team.

[Dem4life1234]

15. Code

Repugs stay on code unlike Dems and it's nauseating.

[marble falls]

17. Just take the "the" off Democrats. It makes you seem not one of us. But you are right: we sometimes panic ...

... and THE Republicans unite behind even their most abysmal candidates.

Joe's a good President and we need to back his play.

[Sunsky]

18. Yes

I don't like Steele but I found myself agreeing with him post debate. This hair on fire reaction is pretty Democratic. This is how we roll and it's ridiculous imo. Trump (the adjudicated SA'er) got convicted of 34 felonies and his party didn't bat an eye. In fact, they rallied around him. Biden has a nonoptimal debate performance and there's chatter of replacing him

[republianmushroom]

21. Wrong, the status-quo hasn't changed.

Don't think this debate has changed a thing.

[marble falls]

23. The staus quo is keeping an effective President in office and the goal is to give him a Congress that will work for us..

... Then we have a big discussion about there being too many politicians that look like me: old white straight males, the most over-represented demographic.

[republianmushroom]

24. If you were going to vote for Biden you will, if,

you were going to vote for the convicted felon you will and if you were undecided you still are. Nothing has changed. Both side will make excuses why they didn't do better.

[Irish_Dem]

27. Michael Steele helped the GOP get where it is today.

He has a lot of nerve calling Dems idiots.

Shame on him.

[elleng]

28. I called 'idiots,' Steele didn't.

Steele's smart, and while still official repug, has much useful to say FOR Dems, and says it often.

[yorkster]

29. Did Steele actually call us idiots?

I strongly agree with what he said last night. I was appalled by what I was hearing on MSNBC after the "debate".

[elleng]

31. No, I did.

[yorkster]

32. Got it. Thx.

[RJ_MacReady]

33. LOL

Concern noted.