Kerry on The Daily Show: "Bush is a great debater, he beat Al Gore and

[Ohio Dem]

Ann Richards." I groaned at first, but I think this was really smart. The only reason Bush "won" any debate is because the bar is so low for him. If he doesn't literally drool and shit himself, he wins. I love the "Bush is a great debater" meme. This way, he has to do more than control his drool and shit. He has to debate. He has to talk. He has to be smart. If Kerry can convince people that not failing miserably equals succeeding on Bush's part, is bullshit, he'll win the debates easily.

I think it's a good move. What do you think?

[Tarheelhombre]

1. Brilliant

We will not repeat the mistakes of 2000, 1988, 1984, 1980.

[redstateblues]

7. That's The Word I Would Use Also- Plus He Said it First

Bush Has to react now.

[Ohio Dem]

19. Exactly. What' Bush gonna say? "No I'm not!"

Bush has to say nu-cle-ar in this debate. No more being "one of the guys." Now, he's a great debater. To deny it is folly.

[Cha]

33. I think it's brilliant, too...the only way to beat

these bastards is to take their game and play it better.

I naively thought telling the truth was the way to go in politics just like in life. Boy did I have a wrong number.

[Moonbeam_Starlight]

2. I think it is a superb move

and I didn't think it was possible, but I admire and respect Kerry MORE with each passing day.

[democrat_patriot]

3. Excellent.

To any repukes: Wel...I'll say this * is a great debater.

[MuseRider]

4. Good move but it kills me

to hear him say it. It just is so distasteful to even think it but it is a great move.

[hang a left]

25. I haven't seen it so I can't judge it in the context it was said, but....

It does seem like a tongue in cheek kind of statement. Was it that way or was Kerry serious? I can't imagine being able to say that without laughing.

[redstateblues]

29. Totally Straight Faced- It worked Big Time

Isn't It true?

[hang a left]

30. Well I'll be damned!

Who is that masked man?

[fearnobush]

5. Bush is a fearsome debater. He chewed up Gore like peice of candy.

He is witty and tactful. He wins no matter what the issue... period.

[John_H]

6. That was absulely perfect. Will Dem surrogates repeat this over and over?

If they do, it's a big step toward fighting this the way the enemy does.

[Ohio Dem]

17. Well, the media has to, doesn't it?

They are the ones that declared Bush victories in the debates, after all. I don't think the corporate media will paint Bush as a dummy this time around. We're at war, remember?

And what will the Republicans say? "No, no, Bush isn't very good at debating at all. To say that Bush can even say 'nuclear' is ludicrous!" They HAVE to agree with Kerry on this one, or they look as stupid as Bush really is.

[kentuck]

Bush IS a great debater.

Everybody says he beat Al Gore in all 3 debates. It will be great if Kerry can hold his own against such a grand communicator with the common man...

[AmerDem]

8. Great move by Kerry

He is already setting the tone for the debates. Many feel ( me included ) that the debates will be the REAL determining factor on how the election will go!

[nolajazz]

9. I think Bush campaign used the same tactic in 2000 too,

saying Al Gore is a great debater, and raising the bar for Gore while at the same time lowering the bar for Bush. Of course, the media helped Bush on this issue too. I am glad to see this time Kerry is turning the table around!

[redstateblues]

28. Yep The Ol' Jujitsu- Pretty cool!

[Walt Starr]

31. And he said it in the perfect venue

Because he broke with so many traditions and chose Jon Stewart to do his interview, he forced the other media to pick up on it. You just know that there were tons of sound bites in that interview that will get play, especially this meme!

[mediaman007]

10. I won't be watching the debates because the Coward of Crawford will

kickin' ass and takin' names...(/sarcasm)

[blondeatlast]

12. Sarcasm? Why, whatever do you mean? If I could give Bunnypants

only one attribute, it his fearsome power of rhetoric, his superb clarity in delivery, magnificent stage presence, and sparkling wit.

Sarcasm? Please explain?

:evilgrin:

[mediaman007]

16. Just didn't want to be labeled a troller

I'm sensitive that way.

[Ohio Dem]

18. Troller! Troller! Troller!

I'm kidding, of course. But I really had to post this because I've never seen "lurker" and "troll" combined that way. :)

Unless, of course, you were fishing.

[mediaman007]

22. Its taken me 2 years to build up to 450 posts. I'd like to get to 1000

with some solid progressive posts.

[hang a left]

26. LOL n/t

[blondeatlast]

11. Damn, sorry--I started the same sort of thread.

I'll alert on mine.

Sorry again.

[Ohio Dem]

13. Hell, I've alerted THIS one.

Because of Pitt's thread. They were talking about this there, too. Maybe this issue deserves its own thread. I dunno. The mods will decide.

Anyway, no reason to apologize.

[ApolloCreedLives]

14. Bush beating Gore is kinda true sadly.

The whole thing reminds me of the Rocky movies and Bush/Gorewas kinda like the first Rocky/Apollo fight. Apollo won, but he was supposed to completely destroy Rocky within a couple of rounds. And because Rocky fought better than anyone thought he would, the crowd came to his side, even though Apollo won the decision.

Gore probably "won" the debates against Bush, but he didn't leave him in a bloody mess like he was supposed to, which signaled to people that maybe Bush wasn't as dumb as previously thought.

Hopefully, the Bush/Kerry debates will be like the first Clubber/Rocky fight, where Bush is completely cocky and sure of his abilities because everyone talks about how great he is, and then Kerry just completely massacres him and sends him to the locker room crying over Dick Cheney's body.

[ibegurpard]

21. Gore's problem was that he took the criticism to heart too much.

Tried to adjust himself to account for it and he ended up not being comfortable.

[Eric J in MN]

23. Bush beat Gore through a pro-Bush media which made

a phony story out of Gore sighing for the week after the first debate.

[ibegurpard]

24. No arguments there.

Absolutely correct. But I think that Gore was wrong to try to adjust himself to answer the criticisms. It simply played into what the media theme was.

[Cha]

34. Right! And listened to his "handlers"...

If Gore could have just been Gore and spoke of his knowledge and treated bush with respect but evisverated with words..life might be different right now..but enough of alternate Universes.

I just saw "The Butterfly Effect".

[Feanorcurufinwe]

15. The reality is, Bush did beat Gore, not on the facts, but performance.

He wasn't smart, but he had his lines down and he delivered them. I think Stewart had a good point, since Bush is not engaging in an honest debate, it makes the equation more difficult.

[Heath.Hunnicutt]

35. I agree; Bush did defeat Gore in the debates, especially the 2nd

I thought Gore might have lost the whole thing when he stood imposingly close to Bush during the opening. Bush gave him a look like, "Hey, you wanta start a fist fight or something?" and completely turned that move around on Gore.

Bush is just intuitively smooth at working people. You don't get this far on scheming if you can't work people like you could a doorknob.

[ibegurpard]

20. yup

Set high expectations for him. What are they going to do, deny it? LOL

[Walt Starr]

27. I was hoping he would do this!

It's a brilliant move. The only way Bush has ever been able to win a debate has been to set the expectations so low that if he doesn't deficate in his pants, curl up into a fetal position, and begin sucking his thumb, he wins.

Now they set the bar high and say it's going to be tough and Kerry expects Bush to win. That Bush has never lost a debate, etc. etc. etc. Then Kerry takes the stage in the debates and wipes up the floor with Bush.

It's win-win. If you go into the debates being expeted to be the loser, you never lose!

[DieboldMustDie]

32. Bush is a master debater...

though Kerry might not want to phrase it exactly that way. :evilgrin: