Did Bush make a mistake putting the foreign policy debate first?

[Quixote1818]

For a while Kerry was not going after Bush that hard on Iraq and it sounded like they had the same plans but now Kerry is on a very effective attack that I think Bush will have a hard time responding to. Bush seemed to think this was his strong point but I truly believe once the public is informed and tunes into the debates it will be revealed that Bush has made one mistake after another. I truly think once people are forced to actually listen to the facts and not just a bunch of short one liners by Bush, they will begin to see the light. The thing about the first debate is that it's the one most people tune into.

[berner59]

1. Domestic was planned 1st...

But Bush team wanted it changed to Foreign policy (their strength they think)...I think this will backfire since Iraq was THE news last week and Kerry was VERY strong on it...HA!!!

[qazplm]

2. well

either:

1. he thought Iraq would be quiet like it was when the debate negotiations were first starting

2. he thinks that by getting to address foreign policy he can con the people into believing things are going better long enough to outlast the latest wave of violence

3. he thinks things are only going to get worse so better to debate it now rather than weeks from now

or

4. he really believes his handlers that things really are getting better

[Quixote1818]

6. 3. he thinks things are only going to get worse so better to debate it now

I think you nailed it here! You can bet that the closer the elections get the more the violence will pick up. The terrorists know that the worse things go in Iraq before the elections the more they can influence policy here. Better for Bush to get this debate out of the way first. Too bad so many people will be tuned in.

[Barney Rocks]

3. they didn't plan on Kerry

coming out swinging on Iraq and Iraq being in the news as being screwed up.

The Bush crowd put foreign policy first because the first debate gets by far the largest audience and they felt that foreign policy was Bush's strongest area (based probably on polls). They were probably hoping that Bush can shut Kerry down right off the bat and the latter debates will not count for very much.

However, the very fact that it is Bush's strongest area makes it the ideal place to attack. Doesn't Rove say that you should attack your enemy where he is strong? If we can score a few good hits on foreign policy we will be in good shape. And the current news is going to help us a lot.

[girl gone mad]

4. I really think it's more a matter of him running..

on his cult of personality.

He's weak on all of the issues, so all he really has is the bravado.

He can't really be marketed as macho on economic policy. I'm sure the latest meme about "security moms" is a product of the Bush campaign. They want to sell an image of a tough, patriotic cowboy who won't hesitate to drop a few bombs and send other men out to die whenever he feels threatened.

[A_Possum]

8. bluster

is an even better description than bravado.

[ohio_dem_52186]

5. When has Bush did something that wasn't a mistake?

I agree, I think once Bush has to come up with more than some "Go team, go!" one-liners he's going to be SOL. If Kerry plays things right and uses all of the damaging facts that are out there in the public, Bush might as well go back to his ranch... I think the public still doesn't really get the true level at which he screwed up. Hell, how many still think Saddam and Bin Laden were buddies...

Saying "America is safer" five times just isn't going to cut it in a debate...

There is an enormous amount of stuff out there in the public, from State Dept. Reports saying that Iran is the top supporter of terror from 2000 to 2003, CIA reports saying Iran has real stockpiles of chemical weapons and real ties to al Qaeda and that Iraq doesn't. Not to mention all of the documentation on the intelligence failtures...

It can't be good for Bush. If Bush comes out on top of this one I think we're screwed. By we, I mean the entire world...

I have a bunch of links on my website to various gov't reports if anybody is interested. (getthefacts.atspace.com)

[Quixote1818]

7. You said: how many still think Saddam and Bin Laden were buddies...

I sure hope Kerry will put an end to this and do it in a way that everyone will remember. Just yesterday Chaney said Saddam and Usama had a relationship. Relationship is such a loose word. For God sake according to the Bible, Jesus and Satin had a relationship but that does not mean Jesus likes Satin. I hope Kerry puts it in a way people cant help but remember.

[ohio_dem_52186]

12. I think your point is key. Kerry needs to drive it home.

Where did Cheney say that about the Saddam-Osama connection? I love it when the Bush team says stupid things...

[Quixote1818]

13. It was on the local news yesterday. He used the word "relationship" again.

[Cha]

9. My burning question is When did

they cement the debate with the "foreign policy debate first"?

[Awsi Dooger]

10. Definitely a mistake

I was amazed and enthused by that gaffe.

The first debate is especially vital for the challenger. Kerry's largest poll deficits are on foreign policy and terrorism issues. To be able to address those first, in front of the largest audience, should allow Kerry to ease those concerns and automatically slice the flip-flop charges as well. That stereotype will lessen once voters are comfortable with Kerry in general and especially as a world leader.

Also, I tape debates and have noticed the foreign policy debates are generally the most serious, probably lessening Bush's supposed edge in likeability. For emample, there is far less opportunity to sneak in a cutesy anecdote about some woman you met on the campaign trail who lost her favorite doctor because of some policy the other guy supported.

[Zen Democrat]

11. His highest ratings are on "terrorism" so he wanted to play to that first

But, I think it's potentially a HUGE mistake. Iraq is disintegrating and Kerry has hit him hard in the last week.

This could be a critical miscalculation for Team Bush. But we shouldn't be surprised ... they have miscalculated everything to do with fighting terrorism.

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

14. If * screws up in a big way, the spinners have six weeks

to make it look like he's a f*cking genius. And since the American public's attention span is just enough to remember who got fired in last week's "The Apprentice", by Election Day they'll have forgotten that * doesn't know what the hell he's talking about.

I was thinking about the Carter-Ford debates in 1976. Gerald Ford was in need of a boost against the challenger, Jimmy Carter. Instead, Ford blew it by stating flatly, "There is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe and there never will be under a Ford administration." Of course, there had been for years, and would be for years to come. A panelist asked Ford if he really meant it. Ford replied that the U.S. does not concede Soviet hegemony — but the intended rallying cry goes down as one of the biggest flubs in presidential debate history. Time.com, "The Great Debates"

Of course, this was a real debate in the days before the 24 hour news cycle, professional talking heads and 32 pages of debate rules.

[moondust]

15. I think so.

The only thing foreign about George Bush's foreign policy is that it is imposed on people beyond U.S. borders. He's still a rank amateur playing with a new toy and fucking up the world for everybody.