Romney Won Using a Debate Technique Called the Gish Gallop

[ThoughtCriminal]

41. In know this strategy well

In my competitive debate days, I was pretty good at it. I wasn't an especially fast talker like many of my competitors - maybe 150-180 words per minute in and activity where 200-350 was common. But I learned that I could shorten arguments to the fewest words possible. I threw in lots of points that, even if they weren't winnable, demanded far more time to refute than they took to present.

It's not hard to come up with short, 10 to 15 second arguments that, while wrong, sound persuasive and take a full minute to beat or at least neutralize. When there are time limits, throwing out a bunch of these can work against even a more talented debater with facts on their side.