I hate political debates. They’re not really debates anymore, but more of a performance presentation of over-rehearsed lines and talking points. But I did watch last night’s presidential debate from start to finish and I’m here to report I give it a grade of ZZZZZZZZZZZ!
It was boring. So boring, I actually dozed off for a few moments in the middle of it. All the political and wonkish mumbo-jumbo was a buzz kill and I found it to be a waste of a good 2 hours.
Last night was Barack and Michelle Obama’s wedding anniversary. So from the moment the president took the stage, he looked like he’d rather be out dining and dancing with his wife or cuddled up in front of a fireplace in the White House residence. In short, he wanted to be anywhere but there. He also appeared tired and a bit aged, which is very different from the youthful and handsome man we last saw standing on a debate stage 4 years ago.
By contrast, Mitt Romney was a desperate and drowning man who had a lot to prove. So he showed up ready to rumble, despite the fact that his facts made little sense, was short on detail and turned out to not always be facts after all. Mitt looked like he had pulled a college all-nighter and was cranked up on coffee or some other stimulant. Beads of sweat glistened on his brow and upper lip as he fought back the urge to appear combative, as he did during the primary debates.
Viewers and political pundits were tuned in waiting for that one “ah-haa” moment where one candidate would slip up, or the other would do a double “snap-snap” on the other. It was as if everyone went to the racetrack just to see 2 cars crash and burn and view the site of a bloodied body spilled onto the track. Sad!
Anyway, political pundits agreed that Romney showed the most spunk and delivered the best overall performance (is this “American Idol”?). But no matter who looked the most poised, or had the best pressed suit, or smiled the most, or seemed the most collected, none of that really matters. This is the election to decide the next President of the United States, not the Miss America pageant. So in that sense, this debate probably did little to change the trajectory of the race or who becomes the eventual winner!
