I had one eye on the presidential debate last night while trying simultaneously to defend my honor in a grudge match of Chutes and Ladders. Unable to give the debate my full attention, I have only the following general impression: Doesn't it seem that Obama is always the same preternaturally composed person, while McCain, in a desperate attempt to get what the professional commentators call "traction," keeps trying on different personas? Last night he was the attack dog. The wingers probably liked his newest act, but I thought he just seemed grumpy, mean, panicked, and small.
Of course, I am not an "undecided voter."
Reading news accounts this morning, I noticed that McCain's insistence that he is not Bush seems to have attracted a lot of journalistic attention. "If you wanted to run against Bush, you should have run four years ago," he testily informed Obama, who replied by pointing out the similarities in the economic views of the two Republicans. Later, McCain told Obama that Herbert Hoover was the last president to raise taxes during tough economic times. I thought Obama might have responded, "Senator McCain, I am not Herbert Hoover. If you wanted to run against Hoover, you should have tossed your hat into the ring in 1928."
But there is no place for zingers in Obama's style. Zingers are hot and he's so cool.
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