#243: Facial Expressions Tell All
Previous debates have seen me go to bed early, meaning I didn't watch the actual debating, just the media coverage. That changed last night, thanks to a day off today. The big difference, I found, was in seeing candidate faces. So, what follows are the three biggest shockers, then my grade for each candidate:
1. Bernie had the bulging eyes and crazed aura of a madman. That frowning, glaring, intense vitriol is surely a turnoff for the average voter. No wonder Bernie has a low ceiling in the polls.
2. Cory Booker has baffled pundits. He seems to be making great debating points, and nobody can understand why he hasn't broken through. But look at his eyes: bulging, intense, disruptive.
3. Andrew Yang is unique in his policies ($$ for everyone) and strategy (ten new signers up to his website receive major $$). But his delivery is jerky and abrupt--hard to see him as plausible.
I Grade The Candidates
A Amy Klobuchar: the Dems best bet to win the Senate (and thus enact a Blue agenda). She was brilliant (an ad-lib Lincoln quote, for example), easily understood (Bernie "wrote the bill; I read the bill"), positive when critical (she noted Bernie's cooperation with her on drug prices), and delivered when exceeding her allotted time (gun control is a Mitch McConnell problem). Her articulate, powerful, turn-around of a probing question (RE: her past record as MN AG) was excellent.
A- Elizabeth Warren: presented a master class in how to deflect unwanted questions. First relax the pacing, which erases the sting of the query. Next, reframe the question, citing the big picture. Then, briefly explain your answer and wrap up in the allotted time. She exuded a healthy, confident, vibe (I think she's been working out). Unfortunately, her brilliant opening statement (in which I detected hints of playfulness, humor, and above all, calm) were followed by an intense grilling on Medicare-For-All, meaning she was on the back foot from then on. Her support for MFA may have originally been necessary, politically (to avoid Bernie having the entire left wing of the party to himself), but it is her Achilles heel (Why? Because of the cost and disruption involved.)
B+ Cory Booker: was unlucky in being called on late in the opening round. By the end of the debate, however, he was among the leaders in speaking time. In general he came across as passionate, yet reasonable, and stood out as noticeably taller than his neighboring speakers. On the other hand, his face was too consistently bug-eyed and emphatic.
B Andrew Yang: clearly had the attempted PR triumph of the night. His $$-to-lucky-website-visitors was a show-stopper. But, it probably came across as a bit cheesy to most watchers. Still, you do what you have to do, and in this case there was a likely reward for being aggressive: a bump in traffic on the old web.
B- Pete Buttigieg: was unlucky in that he kept getting thrown for a loop. First it was having to follow Yang's bombshell offer of $1,000-a-month for ten lucky winners. Then, he was interrupted several times by the moderators with follow-ups, and rather than finishing his sentences, he stopped speaking to listen (perhaps an unconscious power play for both parties). Otherwise, he came across as articulate and sincere, and the fact that his electoral record is limited to his mayoral-ship has now been all but forgotten.
B- Beto O'Rourke: was the recipient of many attaboys from the other candidates; this must have been satisfying for someone who's turned it up to 'over-drive' and left it there. The downside, however, is that youthful vigor can mean loose cannon. Some have observed that Beto has probably lost any chance of winning elective office in Texas as a result of his over-drive (including expletives).
C+ Julian Castro: had the night's biggest surge of combativeness. He called out Biden's apparent waffle (I didn't notice it) on Medicare-For-All (Castro), versus Public Option opt-in/opt-out (Biden). Of course the subtext was that Biden couldn't remember what he had just said. Smart? The tactic might have seemed less mean-spirited if Castro had said it once, then let Biden respond in full, rather than repeating the jab--which never wins. But, Castro gets points for ad-libbing, which is never easy.
C Joe Biden: was in acceptable 'B-' territory if one is willing to tolerate the word-salad approach to public speaking. He has charm, a twinkle in his eye, and a common-guy aura that should be gold. Being in his mid-to-late 70's, though, could be a killer; we'll see.
C- Kamala Harris: seemed to be mourning her summer's rise-then-fall in the polls. She appeared listless at times, and spoke in a let's-try-this-out vein (come on, bash Trump); and, a barely controlled nervousness to her voice (which I take as a warning, in my own life, to stop talking) crept in. But, since she is talented, and a young public figure, there's no sense in looking backwards.
D+ Bernie Sanders: had the misfortune of being hoarse and tired-looking. And he didn't hear his name being called for opening comments. And during that embarrassing pause, he had a perfect frown on his face. And he received a few attaboys--usually a sign that you're not considered a real threat. His admission that he wouldn't want to end the Senate filibuster (and would instead use the Reconciliation process to pass a Blue agenda, relying on a Dem veep to say what could go in such a bill, normally reserved for budgetary matters) makes those who knew what he was talking about shake their heads (Why pretend you're not blowing up the filibuster, when that's what you're doing?)--and most viewers lost him on that one, anyway.
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