Well folks, just got in. Am I given to understand that Bush had a good night for himself? Most everyone appears to be happy, and the media is calling it a draw. If that's the case, Bush appears to be the winner.
Please bring me up to speed. I wasn't even near a radio.
Be Seeing You,
Chrsi
Bush won on sincerity, content.
If many of the undecided viewers tonight were women, Bush won on the last question. Can't explain it, but he touched the hearts of many (speaking about Laura and the girls), and sKerry came across as a heartless prick.
My guess is the MSM will spin it to sKerry tomorrow, but they won't have much to support their argument.
Chris,
Bush won. He did not control the themes or the direction of the debate, but he got in some damned good shots and was presidential. He began the assault on the Kerry record, quite effectively in some cases.
The true measure of the debate, IMHO, was the last two questions: one on the role of faith, one on spouses. Here, Bush shone with joy, optimism, and the hand of God. Kerry, by contrast, looked like a child dropped off at the wrong birthday party... he was elitist, aloof, and a snob. He even had the poor taste of insulting himself and, by inference, his wife.
Scheiffer was a dreadful moderator and made sure that Bush got the worst questions. He also violated the agreed upon rules, question after question -- there were very few 30 second rebuttals throughout the evening.
Bush won, on substance, yes, but on personality, convincingly.