Umm, no. No, they do not. Obvious question is obvious.
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I should have been more careful about my tossed-off line–if I was being more accurate, I would have said that it didn’t change anyone’s vote rather than mind, because as @gatto fairly points out, one of the reasonable reactions to the debate is to be more comfortable with the idea of Harris becoming President. Does that change anyone’s actual vote at this point, however? I honestly doubt it; speaking anecdotally, it changed the votes of none of the professional women I know, nor did it increase what was already essentially a maxxed out level of enthusiasm to vote these people out. (I’ll cop to selection bias on that point, though, because Harris has been my choice for VP from the moment Biden clinched as well that of most of my acquaintances) BUT, honestly, do you know of anyone who watched this debate and will change their vote?
All the reaction I’ve seen to this debate could have been written an hour before it happened: right-wing media is spinning Harris as being unlikeable and smug, i.e. all of the things everyone knew that they would portray a smart woman as being, and everyone else is pointing out that Pence is a smarmy douche who wasn’t willing to fess up to the administration’s biggest failures.
I should also have been more clear: I don’t consider this to be a bad thing at all. Quite the opposite. Pence needed to do damage to Harris for the debate to have any sort of actual effect on the race, and Harris is far too smart and prepared to have given him that opportunity. This debate reinforced the dynamic and momentum of the race, which is firmly against Trump at this point.
To jam a sports metaphor in, I think its more like scoring a touchdown when you’re already up 10 points with three minutes left in the game than it is scoring the go-ahead touchdown.
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Hi Smulder,
I’m no grammarian, I’m pretty sure I’m using the correct word, though I probably should have written ‘a ten year run’. Still, I think term is appropriate.
Stay well!
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Michael Howard did eventually answer… 17 years later.
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In today’s unhinged president news,
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“Pence successfully pointed out the Democrats’ only plan for the court is to pack it.”
I mean, if the Republicans seat Barrett (which seems very likely) what other “plan” could the Democrats have aside from praying for the early retirement or death of the older conservative judges? Saying that packing the courts is their only plan is like backing someone into a corner and then chiding them for trying to escape through the only opening left.
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I think having more than two viable parties would be the best fix. But for now, I’ll hope that the party that favors some degree of regulation and oversight can get in office and start shutting that shit down while building a more renewable alternative, so the folks who are unwilling to leave their abusive industry can maybe start seeing that there’s a better option.
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The thing that makes me nervous is wondering how many people are seeing this as the real presidential debate? Neither Trump nor Biden look like they have 4 good years in them… To an idiot who was with Trump all the way until X, will they see Pence as a way to get everything they like from Trump without the Trump?
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That sound you hear in the distance is a thousand actual Communists howling in outrage.
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I had this very concern when people were waiting for Trump to die over the weekend. If he dies before the election and Pence runs as the Republican presidential candidate in his place I think he’d win back a lot of the Republicans who have had second thoughts about Trump (not sure how many that is but there’s been some at least). At this point Trump is his campaign’s biggest liability.
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It’s probably from stress from being so close to two women for so long who aren’t mother and his wife.
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I’m willing to bet it’s more of “How dare you state that the only plan left is what we’ve been doing!” type of response.
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Why not, the GOP has basically ignored tradition and decorum to pack the court themselves.
If Republicans are going to insist “we can’t have a new Supreme Court Justice pick during the last year of an administration” when it’s a Democrat in the White House, but push through their own in the last month of a Republican administration, then they’re basically saying “there are no rules except getting what we want” and since “fair is fair” Democrats can play by those same rules.
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If Biden wins, then steps down early, I would hope to see the Dems wake the fuck up in 2024 and nominate someone progressive, someone who actually cares about the issues that matter to society’s most helpless.
I think Biden and Harris share one major qualification for office–they’re running against Trump/Pence.
I will hold my nose with one hand and mark my ballot with the other.
Biden has been a DINO for decades, responsible for or a major player in travesties like the Crime Bill, welfare “reform,” voting for the Iraq War, backing banks against student loan holders, Glass-Steagall, These things hurt communities of color. He stands for the moneyed establishment, for the police and jailers, not the little guy.
Harris’ legacy as a prosecutor and as AG in CA was hardly friendly to minorities, victims of clergy sex abuse, or people defrauded by the likes of Steve Mnuchin, who she chose to not prosecute.
Having a prosecutor in the White House does not seem like a good idea to me, regardless.
edit-moved a paragraph where it belonged
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Mother forgot to wear her mask at the end of the debate. And another fine display of affection from the MAGA side.
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But Pence proved yesterday that he isn’t fundamentally different from Trump. Even to the point of acting rudely at a debate. He’s Trump Lite. All the evil, none of the flamboyance.
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Oh for sure. I just think there are some Republicans who want all the evil with a more stable veneer.
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Heard coming from the fly on Pence’s head, “HELP ME! HELP ME!”
…Immediately before it was crushed.
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