Wrappin’ It Up

By Kleinheider Posted on October 7, 2008 at 11:10 pm

It certainly was an experience consuming a debate this way amongst the hustle and bustle of the national media just yards away from the actors on the stage.

Watching the reality of the “Spin Alley” you hear and read so much about up close and personal was an eye opener. Listening to local and national political figures spouting out prepackaged, fluffier-than-fluff instant reactions to reporters desperately sopping every tidbit they could to make deadline or get a story instantly up on the web was something to behold.

Is this process really that conducive to the pursuit of truth? Yeah, that’s a rhetorical question.

Anyway, here are some of the quotations I was able to get amongst the crowds of the national and local press pursuing truth.

Harold Ford, Jr.: “Overall this debate will not change the dynamic of race in any meaningful way. Obama is ahead nationally and in the swing states. Obama did good tonight, very good and I think the polls will bear him out as the winner tomorrow.”

State Rep. Beth Harwell: “Senator Obama, while he performed quite well, really contradicted himself in several meaningful ways tonight. For instance on taxes he said things tonight I don’t remember hearing before. I remember hearing the opposite. I think that will hurt him.”

Phil Bredesen: “[Obama] looked like a president out there tonight.”

The one gem I found out there came in the form of reaction to McCain’s proposal to bailout individual homeowners. Both Bredesen and Ford also seemed intrigued by the idea. Their answers seem to indicate either a departure from or a lack of direction from Obama handlers, although I could be wrong.

Bredesen called it “an interesting idea.” Ford echoed that sentiment, “The way he proposed it tonight by sort of throwing it out it there was interesting. It obviously needs to be fleshed out. I don’t know if it is feasible but it certainly requires some thought.”

As for my take, while McCain certainly delivered a capable performance hitting his talking points and staying on message, Obama really did bring it home with some finely nuanced answers to questions.

Just as in the first debate, Obama took no hits and delivered a presidential level performance. Like I said earlier, tie goes to the man ahead. That man is Obama.

With the economy the way it is without a game changer, either in the final presidential debate or somewhere else, it’s pretty clear where this thing is going absent a serious and unforeseen Bradley Effect.

SEE ALSO: More pics from Spin Alley.

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Tags: Barack Obama, Belmont Debate, Beth Harwell, Harold Ford, John McCain, Phil Bredesen  

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