I listened to Limbaugh on Friday and he did not sound too happy with Bush's performance either, no matter how he tried to spin it. There were several instances where Limbaugh said Bush didn't give the response necessary, or simply didn't hammer Kerry like he should. I've listened to Limbaugh for 13 years and he sounded frustrated at Bush's performance. He picked apart many of Kerry's points, but many independents are not as politically motivated as people on this board. They don't pay attention to after-the-fact evaluations. This was a great opportunity for Bush to hold his own against Kerry. He dropped the ball, big time.
I take the White House at its word that Bush was tired and emotionally drained after visiting storm-damaged areas earlier in the day. But while I realize that's part of a president's job description ... I would can the officials who scheduled that on the day of the debate, with all that was at stake as far as the election. Bush could easily have done the storm-damage tour Friday morning, and kept his entire focus on the debate Thursday. I don't think what happened Thursday is reason to break out the cyanide, but Bush really needs to be focused and on his game next Friday. Because IMHO, Kerry can "win" these debates, but that doesn't mean he'll convince the American people to fire Bush and elect him president, as long as the president is in the game and competitive, and I'm sure some folks here will disagree and/or say it's unfortunate, but I think being in the game and competitive realistically includes both style and substance.