Exactly. It’s like a drunk audience member getting into a battle of wits with a stand-up comic. The comic is prepped and has his responses ready to go.
Cruz walked right into devastating one liners - multiple times.
Realpolitik isn’t the Princeton debate club - it’s blood sport.
Exactly Two! Stand-ups learn very early how to deal with hecklers - and they can be brutal. And they never approach them unless their whole act is premised on dealing with the audience (like Don Rickles). What’s interesting is why did Cruz do it? Does he have an unconscious death wish?
[Rush attends meeting with CEO of iHeart Radio Robert Pittman]
PITTMAN: “Thanks for coming in Rush, your new contact for the next eight years is coming up and we need to have a talk about that”
RUSH: “Ok, lets talk”
PITTMAN: “Well Rush, as you know by now, iHeart Radio is heading into bankruptcy court this year and it’s not looking good for us”
RUSH: “I’m well aware of that, so what is your path forward for my show”?
PITTMAN: Unfortunately, Rush, we have to make some big cuts in salaries in order to stay afloat so we want to renegotiate your contract to help us in that effort”
RUSH: “Just get to the point, Robert, since I walked into your office, I knew that you were about to tell me something that I wasn’t going to like so get on with it”
PITTMAN: “Rush, there’s no need to get abrupt with me, I’m just trying to save my company and, in return, your job”
RUSH: “Just tell what my new contract looks like and get it over with”
PITTMAN: “Ok, since you are sitting aside any form of business formality, your new contract reads as such, first because of our failing company, your one hundred million signing bonus has to be set aside.
Second, we have to renegotiate the length of your contract which will be yearly instead of ever eight years also you will still very highly paid ,however, there will be a small cut in your salary”
RUSH: “You know Robert, from this point on, you can only contact me through my lawyer and, in the meantime, I’m going to make you regret this meeting by what I say on my program and if you think you have problems NOW just wait to see how many stations and sponsors we have left”
Pure unadulterated out of the box speculation because I can’t explain the lunacy I hear coming out of his mouth.