Posted on 09/30/2004 7:48:13 PM PDT by wagglebee
Presidential debate moderator Jim Lehrer showed once again Thursday night why top aides to President Clinton used to call him "our moderator" when presidential debate time rolled around in 1996.
The questions, which Lehrer announced at the outset had been authored exclusively by him, were supposed to help the American people determine which candidate would be a better steward of U.S. national security in a post-9/11 world.
But there were no queries to Sen. Kerry about his long Senate record of voting against defense appropriations; or his sponsorship of a bill to cut CIA funding by 6 billion dollars a year after terrorists struck the World Trade Center in 1993; or Kerry's support of the nuclear freeze movement during the height of the Cold War.
Kerry wasn't asked about why he teamed up with Jane Fonda to protest the Vietnam War while his band of brothers were still on the battlefield, or why he met with enemy leaders in Paris, or why he accused fellow soldiers of being "monsters" and "war criminals."
Most Americans would consider the answers to those questions extremely relevant to the selection of any U.S. commander-in-chief during a time of war.
But not Jim Lehrer. Instead, he focused on Iraq with question after question that suggested Bush had blown it.
Here's a sampling:
"You said there was a miscalculation in Iraq," Lehrer asked the president. "What was it and how did it happen?"
"What colossal misjudgments, in your opinion," Lehrer asked Kerry, "has President Bush made in these areas [Iraq]?"
To Bush: "Mr. President, has Iraq been worth the cost in American lives -10,052 - I mean 1,052 up to today?"
To Kerry: "You've repeatedly accused President Bush of lying to the American people on Iraq. Give us some examples of the president being untruthful on Iraq?"
Despite his focus on Iraq, however, Lehrer never asked why Kerry voted to authorize the war, then turned around and voted against the legislation to fund it. Or why he voted against authorization for the first Gulf War, even though President Bush's father had amassed just the kind of coalition Kerry says the U.S. needs now.
Likewise, the PBS host declined to ask Kerry about comments in recent days from French and German officials who announced they have no intention of sending troops to Iraq, even if Kerry is elected.
That's quite a stunning development, given that Kerry's Iraq policy rests almost solely on the promise that he'll persuade Old Europe to pitch in and take some of the load off U.S. forces.
But not stunning enough, apparently, to interest Mr. Lehrer.
No way Kerry didn't have the questions ahead of time. Absolutely no way.
No way Kerry didn't have the questions ahead of time. Absolutely no way.
Here are my thoughts on this debate:
1. I don't think Bush can loose any support on the foreign policy debate, his base is firmly behind him in the war on terror.
2. I don't think any of the leftist peaceniks could ever be convinced to vote for Bush, they don't want us to defeat terrorism. However, they could begin to see Kerry as too militant and move more toward Nader.
3. Bush was wise to have the foreign policy debate first. In two weeks none of the undecideds will remember any of it. The undecided vote will make up their minds based on how homeland security and Iraq look right before the election.
4. The leftist media has done too good a job convincing people that Iraq is a quagmire, nothing Bush can say will change that. So it's better to deal with this issue now and let it fade.
Carl GETS IT RIGHT!!!!
No way Kerry didn't have the questions ahead of time. Absolutely no way.
No way Kerry didn't have the questions ahead of time. Absolutely no way.
We should never have had Lehrer (PBS Leftist) be the moderator.
Lehrer carried Clinton's water in '96.
Why did the White House consent to him?
Just so you know, there is a HUGE "lag" here tonight, probably due to so many people commenting on the debate. You only need hit post once.
All week, Kerry sounded like Dean. In the debates he sounds more closer to GWB. Kerry will continue the war but accelerate training of Iraqi forces and use more diplomacy. Bottom line, the war in Iraq will go on. That will not sit well with his anti war supporters. Looks like Nader is the biggest gainer in this debate. GWB did not say anything that will hurt him, and Kerry has not score a knockout punch.
Lehrer: President Bush, do you still beat your wife?
Bush: No, sir.
Lehrer: Senator Kerry, do you think Bush still beats his wife?
Kerry: Yes, I do.
Lehrer: President Bush, your response to that?
Bush couldn't win; all the questions were ABOUT Bush.
Thank you - totally agree and said so on the live thread. But it did not matter. The Underestimated one was brilliant. Yes he was irritated. The man has the patience and self control beyond human power because he did not reach over and slug Skerry a few times....out of sheer exasperation with someone who wants to be CIC yet who is daily giving aid and comfort to the enemies of our troops and of our nation.
Will not matter, Bush won hands down.
What? ONE PERSON gets to decide the questions for a US PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE?
And I did see Lehrer wink at Kerry and shake his hand when the debate was over. I didn't see Lehrer shake the President's hand. Did anyone?
A sound point and it just goes to show that there needs to be an end to the "mainstream media" monopoly over presidential debates.
In the future the GOP needs to say to the dems "look, we'll do two debates. You pick any one of your favorite left wing ABCCBSNBCPBS network anchors to do one and we'll pick Fox to do the other."
The alternative, which I know will never happen though I personally think it would be ideal and the fairest, is to bring them both on in a Hannity and Colmes type of a format. Hannity can rip Kerry and Colmes throws him softballs. Colmes can rip Bush and Hannity throws him softballs. But at the very minimum we know exactly where the questions are coming from and exactly how they're being answered. No more of this pretended "neutral moderator" BS because the moderators in this debate and I venture to predict the next two are all open Kerry partisans.
Leher forgot to ask Bush "do you still beat your wife?"
NO I DONT THINK BUSH BEATS HIS WIFE. ITS AN EXAMPLE OF THE STACKED, UNASNWERWABLE QUESTION. GEEZ RELAX. GO FREEP A POLL OR SOMETHING.</FONT>
Either Kerry was very well prepared or he knew the questions beforehand. Either way he did well in managing to hide all the waffling inherent in his positions.
Between now and the next debate the "Pass the Global Test" will be Kerry's undoing as a candidate.
This is a good post. Too bad the people won't think about it.
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