Debate disappointment

It’s probably my fault for turning on the Presidential debate and expecting to see the candidates actually answer the questions asked and discuss their plans for running the country, but I feel so let down today. It took McCain only 8 minutes to ditch the questions and start attacking Obama – off-topic. How is that supposed to prove you are Presidential? All it proved to me is that he is a cranky old guy who can’t let it go (much like grandpa when you change the channel but change it back when he insists he wasn’t sleeping and then he keeps bringing up how you changed the channel ALL freakin’ afternoon).

And since I’m getting picky, what was with the lurching around and the windmill arms? It’s like his body had absolutely no idea what he was saying and was either A) performing some kind of obscure I-wanna-be-President dance or B) trying to escape. And he kept getting closer and closer to the audience when he talked to them (while not answering their questions) and at one point I swear he was going to climb up into the seats and sit on that woman’s lap. She looked positively frightened.

And when asked who he would appoint Treasury Secretary McCain “joked” (because I can’t use the word in this context without air quotes – it was nothing like a joke) “Not you, Tom.” Oh, ha ha ha. Like anyone thought Tom Brokaw wanted to be or was qualified to be or would ever be considered to be Treasury Secretary. Where, exactly, is the joke there, John? Or do you need to learn the rules of comedy as well as the rules of debate?

One rule they have in common – STAY ON TOPIC!

Sarah Palin (wink, wink)

I’m being nitpicky because, well…I can. But first I’d like to say that as a feminist I WANT Sarah Palin to be smart and capable and able to do the job. THAT would be the best thing for women everywhere.

However…how do you “win” or even “hold your own” in a debate where you can’t stay on topic? When asked questions that one can assume she didn’t know the answer to (because she never came near the topic), Palin resorted to reading prepared statements about something – anything – else. Is that really debate? Gwen Ifill chastised Palin about not staying on topic and Palin responded that she might not answer the question the way that Ifill or Biden wanted her to. WTF? Was she given a pass on the rules of debate, which I understand (or maybe I’m wrong never having debated in high school or even college) to be making your argument about THE QUESTION THAT WAS ASKED?

Still, the freakiest part of Palin’s performance was the winking. What is up with that? She would not answer the question, give a prepared, redundant party-line speech, then turn to the camera and wink like “Can you believe I even have to EXPLAIN this to this guy?” when she DIDN’T EXPLAIN ANYTHING!

Besides having to explain to Palin that man did not co-exist with dinosaurs (which reminds me that she kept bringing up the fact that government is the problem and should get out of people’s way and John McCain has been IN the government FOREVER so isn’t he PART of the problem?) someone should explain to her how winking works.

Nobody? OK, I’ll do it. When you give a statement to someone that goes against what people know you really think or you have to explain something to someone that everybody already knows then you turn to us and wink. But since we don’t know what you really think about anything because all you said was talking points from the McCain website the winking just looked like you were trying to get us into bed.

Don’t wink at me like I know who Joe Six-Pack and Hockey Mom are. Don’t brag about how you reduced taxes in your state when I know you were able to do it because your state gets more money per resident from the GOVERNMENT (the same government that is the problem) than any other state in the union. And don’t use a debate to give a speech and expect me not to notice.

Oh, and I lost count of how MANY times you said that John McCain "sounded the warning bell" about Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae but it was Chuck Hagel of Nebraska who led the effort to tighten the regulation and McCain jumped on a year later and you repeating that over and over is reminiscent of Al Gore claiming that he invented the Internet. Learn from the people who held the job before you!