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tonight's town hall debate

HarryKeogh

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not a great week for the President. a drop in the poll numbers, the CIA report and today's job report all worked against him.

What do you think the best plan would be for him tonight? Confront the reports and say how "were doing our best" and "no one said it was going to be easy"? Spin them somehow? Attack Kerry? Invoke Jesus' name? All of the above?

I think Kerry has some good ammunition for this debate. Should be some interesting television
 
I'm concerned about the format. As I understand it, in this "town hall" style debate, all the questions must be inexplicably submitted in advance and anyone straying from their pre-approved question will be cut off. Anyone know if that is, in fact, the case?

Anyway, if it is, the people may not be allowed to ask questions about the reports that came out today or even earlier this week. Of course, that doesn't mean that Kerry and Bush couldn't bring it up themselves.

I dunno. That restriction, if true, really bothers me.
 
Upchurch said:
I'm concerned about the format. As I understand it, in this "town hall" style debate, all the questions must be inexplicably submitted in advance and anyone straying from their pre-approved question will be cut off. Anyone know if that is, in fact, the case?

Anyway, if it is, the people may not be allowed to ask questions about the reports that came out today or even earlier this week. Of course, that doesn't mean that Kerry and Bush couldn't bring it up themselves.

I dunno. That restriction, if true, really bothers me.
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Yeah, pushing that cut-off buzzer is going to be a very tough decision. Whenever it happens, you're going to hear the biggest partisan screaming since a fan interfered with a Cubs home run.

However, I believe the topic is domestic policy. It shouldn't be too hard to work in the "jobs report" issue. The CIA report will be a little bit more difficult.
 
Tricky said:
...I believe the topic is domestic policy. It shouldn't be too hard to work in the "jobs report" issue. The CIA report will be a little bit more difficult.
Click to expand...

actually no topic is off limits...

from www.cnn.com

October 8: Second presidential debate

Location: Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri
Length of debate: 90 minutes, starting at 9 p.m. ET
Topics: No limits on topics, but the debate agreement states that as many questions on foreign policy and homeland security will be asked as are questions on economic and domestic policy.
Moderator: "Good Morning America" anchor Charles Gibson
Format: A town hall forum, with candidates sitting on stools. The 100 to 150 audience members will be selected by the Gallup organization, which will invite an equal number of "soft" Bush supporters and "soft" Kerry supporters. The audience will submit questions to the moderator, who will then choose who participates. At least 16 questions will be asked, with the candidates taking turns answering first. The moderator is to cut off any audience member who strays from his or her approved question.
 
Psychic prediction: There will be those who will say Bush "won" if his performance in the second debate is not as miserable as in the first.
 
Psychic prediction: There will be those who will say Bush "won" if his performance in the second debate is not as miserable as in the first.
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- That's pathetic! You may as well predict the sun will rise tomorrow. :D I am nonplussed.
 
Do you think Bush was wired during the first debate.
And if yes do you think they'll dare do it again in this one, now that the issue has been raised?
 
If it could be conclusively shown that he was wired, what would the consequence be?

I don't mean for his reputation. I mean are there any actual rules forbidding this and what happens if one breaks the rule?
 
TruthSeeker said:
If it could be conclusively shown that he was wired, what would the consequence be?

I don't mean for his reputation. I mean are there any actual rules forbidding this and what happens if one breaks the rule?
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I doubt there are any rules forbidding it, and even if there were, the answer would be "nothing." Debates aren't mandated by law, y'know.

What would happen, if this turned out to be true, is that Bush's credibility would fall slightly. It would lend credence to the idea that he's an idiot and that Rove, Cheney, and Co. are the brains of the outfit.
 
Thanks, Cleon. I don't know enough about American election system to know all the ins and outs.

Appreciate it.
 
There was a great skit on SNL with Robin Williams as Reagan doing this for a press conference. Of course, the usual gig is that the receiver picks up extra signals.

"Well, Trudy, I'm glad you asked that. I just wanted to say that ...there is a 12-15 in progress is a burly male negro, 6 feet 4 and 250 pounds."

"What are you talking about?"

(I was just describing)
"I was just describing..."

(our new ambassedor to South Africa)
"our new ambassedor to South Africa."

"And now its time for a non-stop 'Doors' weekend. 'Hello, I love you won't you tell me your name...'"
 
AtheistArchon said:
- That's pathetic! ...
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It is, rather.

But as a budding psychic, hoping to make my living by fleecing, I mean, advising those who believe in my extraordinary predictive powers, I thought I would start with something easy.

I also sense a very strong vibration in the future continuum telling me that the President will use the word "nucular."
 
I had the joy of listening to Rush and Sean Hannity today. They are both saying how "unimportant" these debates are (errr they hope become). Rush even went on a rant against "undecided" voters. I'm sure he didn't hurt any of his demographic. Hannity was praising Bush for being so polite and "un-Hannity" like in the first debate. I didn't quite understand that either.

Charlie (bring it on - the debate) Monoxide
 
Charlie Monoxide said:
I had the joy of listening to Rush and Sean Hannity today. They are both saying how "unimportant" these debates are (errr they hope become). Rush even went on a rant against "undecided" voters. I'm sure he didn't hurt any of his demographic. Hannity was praising Bush for being so polite and "un-Hannity" like in the first debate. I didn't quite understand that either.
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I understand it. It refers to the Hannity approach of when you are on the losing side to just insult your opponent.

Hannity is saying that even though Bush lost, he still had the dignity to not resort to insults.

Basically, it is an admission that Bush lost it.
 
Brown said:
Psychic prediction: There will be those who will say Bush "won" if his performance in the second debate is not as miserable as in the first.
Click to expand...

Beautiful. If he wins this one, it's just because he is not as miserable as he was the first time. What does that say about Kerry, that he can only win if Bush is having an off day?

I hope I'm the first to say that I just got through watching the debate and Bush clearly won.

Best sound byte(s) of the debate:
When Kerry looks into the camera and says "I will not raise taxes" and a few questions later, says "I will roll back the President's tax cuts". Um, uh...
 
Well, I may be one of the few on this board who can give an on-the-scene report, insofarthat "on the scene" refers to me getting a haircut at D-Zine a block or two away from Washington University, in the Loop (reference lost on everyone but Central, Upchurch, Bikewer, and Stimpy).

Gah! Getting out of there was a bear, since the police kept closing routes.

If ever there was a time I wished I had one of those cell phones with a camera built in, this was it. What I am NOT posting, since I lacked said camera, is a picture I didn't take of a 40 cops walking single file in riot gear and shields from Skinker and Delmar down the street.

Further down Skinker there were HUGE bunches of lines of people marching on the east side of the road with lots and lots of signs. Mostly anti-war and/or Kerry supporters. There were a few pro-war and/or Bush supporters a block down.

I didn't pay too much attention since I
1. badly wanted to get home to south city to take a shower to get that itchy hair off me that was underneath my shirt and
2. was enjoying a tasty yogurt/greenT bubble tea.

Last time they had the debate at Wash U, I actually lived in the Loop. But that is a tale for another time... (cue Conan music.)
 
I've just been checking out various (unscientific, mind you) polls on the "internets" (Bush's word) on who won tonight's debate:

CNN
Bush 16%
John Kerry 83%

MSNBC
Pres. Bush 25%
Sen. Kerry 75%

CBS
President Bush 12%
John Kerry 88%

Fox
President Bush 30%
Senator Kerry 70%

I thought Bush started out horribly, but came on stronger in the second half. Still, it appears he has anger issues. Why was he yelling so much?

Personally, I gave Kerry a slight edge in this one, but the online polls (even Fox's) are indicating a solid win for Kerry.

Let the spin begin...

Oh, wait. I see Pepto has already started. :rolleyes:
 
peptoabysmal said:

When Kerry looks into the camera and says "I will not raise taxes" and a few questions later, says "I will roll back the President's tax cuts". Um, uh...
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"Read my lips: NO NEW TAXES" - George Bush (Sr.)

"When I left you, I was but the learner; now I am the master!" - Darth Vader

"There's only one man who would dare give me the raspberry... LONE STAR!" - Dark Helmet

And, as we all know, Texas is the Lone Star state, where George W hails from; the circle is now complete.
 
zakur said:
I've just been checking out various (unscientific, mind you) polls on the "internets" (Bush's word) on who won tonight's debate:

CNN
Bush 16%
John Kerry 83%

MSNBC
Pres. Bush 25%
Sen. Kerry 75%

CBS
President Bush 12%
John Kerry 88%

Fox
President Bush 30%
Senator Kerry 70%

I thought Bush started out horribly, but came on stronger in the second half. Still, it appears he has anger issues. Why was he yelling so much?

Personally, I gave Kerry a slight edge in this one, but the online polls (even Fox's) are indicating a solid win for Kerry.

Let the spin begin...

Oh, wait. I see Pepto has already started. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

There are efforts by several groups to bomb the online polls. None of them reflect what the phone polls are showing later.

Personally, I think Bush won this debate 55-45 after losing the first one 80-20. What really is a win though? Its what the public thinks it is. I think the general public will scored it 55-45 for Kerry since its being programmed in at this point.

I tried to observe thing I might otherwise miss and I noticed the John Kerry was actually having a difficult night. He mispoke many many times. However, people are programmed now to listen for Bush errors and most likely didn't notice.

Even though Kerry will probably win this debate according to phone polls, who does the debate really benefit? I think Bush proved to his base that he isn't just president uhhh. His base needed a morale boost. Kerry once again failed to deliver home run lines. He needs to be the talk of the water cooler tomorrow.

At the water cooler tomorrow, there will be two lines people repeat and they are both good and bad for bush:
bad: internets
good: want to buy some wood?

But Bush made both of these comments, Kerry needs to be the person people are talking about.

The problem with John Kerry at this point is that he is still not enthralling the public or his own base even though he is winning debates. He needs to not just look better but be the talk of the water cooler. He needs to excite people.
 
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