Nobody Won
Lots of folks lost: a debate hangover.
To say Walz appeared weak after last night’s debate performance — ‘debate’ is too polite a term for a hot mic lie fest — is to succumb to the fist fight fantasy of policy debates. After a timorous start, Walz was ‘on point’ and that’s all that mattered: a VP doesn’t set the tone, the President does.
But a Vice President’s performance can hurt the ticket. Republican candidate J. D. Vance gave a yeoman’s effort at throwing shade at Walz’s sometimes meek defense of Harris: Vance mentioned Harris so many times in a negative context one was left scratching their head as to why every tropical depression is not named “Kamala”. Not to be undone, Walz invoked “Minnesota” so many times, I am packing up and moving there this afternoon.
Vance dominated the fantasy space of policy debates. CBS ‘debate facilitators’ abetted. On policy issue after policy issue, Vance refused to answer their questions, revealing his disdain for edification and engagement. Lying and misrepresenting prevailed which was a collective loss for his audience. The man remarkably lacks any substance. Vance could be an inflatable in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Walz seemed to build a tower of incredulity as lie after lie slurped from Vance’s lips. The “Democrats were the threat to democracy, January 6” slur will go down as the evening’s final…
