This debate was painful to watch. The intellectual level of the conversation on both sides is, frankly, appalling. When you compare last night's dung show to the demeanor of past candidates like Kennedy, Nixon, Reagan, Bush Sr. or even Bill Clinton, you realize how desperately poor politics has become in general. It's a reflection of the degradation of society at large.
I think that Trump did very poorly. His style is too abrasive and interrupting Biden every 20 seconds is just bad strategy. Let Biden talk, the man can hang himself if you let him. But when you interrupt him left and right, most people switch off the conversation after 5 minutes. It's like we're back to the school yard, even with the childish insults thrown around. Trump has to up his game in the next debates if he wants to appeal to the undecided voters. The faithful bases on both sides are set and won't be convinced by anything, it's the undecided that matter.
The moderator was a third debater in his own right. He let Biden off the hook a few times but that's expected. It will only get worse from now on.
I'm sure it was painful to watch, that's why I would not. They have all pretty much stunk, all the time. Now I might be wrong, but I believe the first presidential debate in the "modern" era was 1976. Ford vs Carter. I'm pretty sure I am correct about that as it was touted as a big deal, being the first debate since Nixon vs Kennedy.
Carter beat Ford with a KO punch, as they say, by informing Ford that yes, Poland was indeed a Communist country at the time. Ford totally blew it as he insisted Poland was "free" since he had just visited in 1975. And that was true, because I was there during his visit and saw his speech in the Square in Krakow and saw Betty entering the University of Krakow that day. Total surprise to us that our President was following us on that trip. But, I digress.
In the early '80s I was in college and even then we mocked the entire event. They've turned the exchange of ideas and eloquent discourse into something worse than a bunch of loud mouths arguing sports at a bar.
It's a complete disgrace and I refuse to watch anymore. I know who I am going to vote for. And I also am old enough to realize that my watching and rooting on my candidate will do nothing for the candidacy. It will only give me more worry and indigestion.
