The Campaign Trail: Bush and Kerry Follow Debate With Sharp Jabs
As the crowd in Tampa yelled out that Mr. Kerry had bested Mr. Bush in the debate, the senator stopped them, saying it had just been one good night.
“No, no, no, no, no, let me make it clear to everybody,” he said. “We have to win every day from now to Nov. 2.”
mjh’s Dump Bush weBlog: I watched the first debate
The format was better than I expected after reading about the 30+ page agreement between the candidates that made it sound like we wouldn’t know they were in the same city. Instead, they did interact and we did get to see them reacting to each other. Camera angles of Kerry reacting to Bush showed him attentive and alert, sometimes smiling, even conceding a point to Bush. Reaction shots of Bush showed him grimacing or smarmy and fed-up.
New Mexico Politics with Joe Monahan: Kerry Wins Unanimous Verdict
John Kerry won an unanimous decision from our All-Star Debate Team last night, not a knockout by any means, but enough of a score to keep this thing going to the late innings. …
“I don’t think Bush brought his best game to the debate. A telling point was that he wanted to react more in those 30 second extensions than Kerry did. It’s never a good sign when you are on the defensive. It was a clear sign that Kerry was getting under his skin. We are on the trajectory for a repeat of 2000, a very tight race,” concluded [Republican ex-ABQ city councilor Greg] Payne. …
ABQ Tribune political writer Shea Andersen scored it for Kerry because “he was smooth and brought information to every answer. Compared to the President, Kerry looked as though he was having a good time. Bush looked angry and frustrated and seemed to run out of things to say.” … Shea’s final point was on the spin. “Will the Republicans cut a bunch of TV ads about the debate to squash the spin that Kerry has won?” mused the scribe as he returned to the action.
dangerousmeta! ? People will see what they want to see.
Another woeful performance by our President, a reasonable and optimistic performance by Mr Kerry. In any historical political environment, everyone would agree Mr Kerry clearly won the debate.
Mr Bush, on the defensive, hunkered over the podium. Thinly veiled petulance. Reacted strongly to Mr Kerry’s remarks; I assume he thought off-camera, as per debate agreement. Awkward pauses to gather thoughts, subsequently very poorly expressed. A couple of times he’d hit on something he’d rehearsed, and go to town. But very rarely.
Be sure to post your own views on the Web and read the immediate reactions, before the Republican Media Monster rewrites it all. mjh
FactCheck.org Distortions and Misstatements At First Presidential Debate
Summary
In the first of three scheduled debates between Bush and Kerry both candidates sometimes departed from the facts.
Bush glossed over significant problems with US reconstruction efforts in Iraq when he claimed that the US is “spending money” and that 100,000 Iraqi security forces have been trained. And Kerry overstated the case when he said Bush allowed Osama bin Laden to escape from Tora Bora by “outsourcing” fighting to Afghans.
Bush misquoted Kerry, distorting his position on withdrawing troops from Iraq. And Kerry said the Iraq war has cost $200 billion, when the cost so far is actually just over $120 billion.
Cheney Says Kerry Too Soft on Terror (washingtonpost.com)
The hourlong event was held at a country-themed restaurant on the edge of the Twin Cities. A dozen invited small business owners surrounded Cheney and his wife, Lynne.
Across the street, four relatives of a Minnesota Marine killed in Iraq, Lance Cpl. Levi Angell, 20, of Cloquet, protested.
Angell’s grandmother, Lila, called the war a “useless, needless fix we’re in.”
The Lone Star ICONOCLAST – Editorial, Opinion of the Publishers
The re-election of George W. Bush would be a mandate to continue on our present course of chaos. We cannot afford to double the debt that we already have. We need to be moving in the opposite direction.
John Kerry has 30 years of experience looking out for the American people and can navigate our country back to prosperity and re-instill in America the dignity she so craves and deserves. He has served us well as a highly decorated Vietnam veteran and has had a successful career as a district attorney, lieutenant governor, and senator.
Kerry has a positive vision for America, plus the proven intelligence, good sense, and guts to make it happen.
That’s why The Iconoclast urges Texans not to rate the candidate by his hometown or even his political party, but instead by where he intends to take the country.
The Iconoclast wholeheartedly endorses John Kerry.
Be sure to read this entire editorial endorsing Kerry and debunking Bush, not just because it’s from his hometown newspaper, but because it is very thorough and very clear and represents the view of the misled. mjh
From http://www.canines4kerry.com/:
Our “Canines For Kerry” rally is happening this Saturday, October 2nd, from noon to 3 p.m., in the parking lot at the New Mexico Victory 2004 Headquarters at 3301 Central NE (two blocks west of Carlisle in Nob Hill). We’ll have a dog parade, fun contests, great prizes, and treats generously donated by Three Dog Bakery. I’ve attached a flyer with more information which I hope you’ll print and post wherever you think appropriate. We want to get a lot of people and pooches out to show their support for John Kerry and John Edwards!
Continue reading Canines For Kerry
Unlike other states, Maine can split its electoral votes. The candidate who wins a plurality gets two of Maine’s electoral votes; the other two are given to the winner in each congressional district. A candidate who loses the statewide vote could still pick up one electoral vote, and analysts have suggested that more rural and conservative northern Maine, including Bangor, could go for Bush.
Remember that Colorado may become the
secondthird (see below) state to divide electoral votes. mjh
mjh’s Blog: Very Interesting Electoral Development
Update:
Mark –
Nebraska also does the weird-ass proportional thing with its electoral
college votes. (Actually, the rest of us are weird-ass, and Nebraska
and Maine are the ones that are doing something that sorta makes more
sense?)
Cheers,
John Fleck
[Thanks, John.]
I hate to be the one to point this out, but the Iraqis hit the thousand-soldier mark in the first day of bombing. By the time Commander Codpiece landed on the Lincoln, they’d lost over 28,000 soldiers. 28,000 dead soldiers and god-knows-how-many civilians… just to get one guy. And the wrong guy at that.
Somebody please explain to me how this is going to make us safer, because I don’t see it.
Here’s My Offer: I’ll match every sign you put up in your state with three of my own. If Arizona sends me pictures of 25 signs, I’ll go there and put up 75. Same for you New Mexico. You too Colorado. This offer valid for hand-painted signs only.
As citizens of swing states, please bear in mind that the point here is to win people over, not put them off, so let’s try and soft pedal the “Bush = Hitler” stuff, okay? (There’ll be plenty of time for that after he cancels the election and declares martial law.)
Remember, the only difference between me and the rest of you is cardboard, paint, and a willingness to use them, and I think we can all agree that that’s not very much of a difference.
This offer expires October 15th.