Politics is politics. And it’s an old truism about political debates that if one side says it was a tie, then the other side won.
Given the overnight reactions by conservatives, I think it’s safe to say Pres. Obama won last night’s debate. That was true whether you focused on style or substance. As with their first debate two weeks ago, the candidate who won on style points—who had the best sound bites, who looked and acted more confident—also won the substantive debate.
Debate performances don’t generally swing elections. (If they did, George W. Bush would have lost two national elections and Ronald Reagan wouldn’t have won a second term.) But they matter—like conventions, campaign organization, speeches and rallies—at the margins. By winning last night’s debate on the heels of Joe Biden’s victory last week, Pres. Obama has done what he can to repair the damage from the first presidential debate. Next week’s foreign policy debate is the last time these two candidates will meet. After that (barring an “October surprise”), it’s all a matter of execution by the campaigns.
Crossposted at: http://masscommons.wordpress.com/
