my take on the debate

[michigandem2]

I think Kerry did well...I was a little put off by the Mary Cheney comment..not because what he said was bad..but because I knew they (repukes) would pounce on it..I was not pleased he brought her up...again it wasn't what he said..but the fact that he needed to name her gave THEM ammo...

NOW...Bush was on message LOL...everytime he got asked a sticky question he couldn't answer he went back to education...but the guy hurting for a job to feed his family can't go back and take part in NO Child Left a Dime...it was rediculous...

Kerry was very focused and I loved his line about marrying up...I thikn we have to work EXTREMELY hard the next 19 days to get the job done but he sure made our job a little easier! I LOVED The pundits..they couldn't call it easily for Bush so they call it a draw! LOL but man..they said Bush creamed Kerry last week..too funny

[DoYouEverWonder]

1. He knew they would pounce on it too

I think Kerry and Edwards deliberately brought this up, first to remind Bush and Cheney of their own hypocrisy. Second, it brings out the best in all the homophobic fundies. They are the ones that are trying to AMEND THE CONSTITUTION. So whenever the gay rights issue is raised, just ask, "What about Mary?" and watch their heads explode.

[liberalmuse]

5. I didn't like the word 'Cheney'...

being brought up, daughter or not (I don't know why), but I agree that it was a good thing Kerry did bring it up. Gay rights is a HUGE wedge issue used by Republicans time and time again to divide the electorate. Let's nip this baby in the bud.

[seabeyond]

2. dems need to get out hard and fast and say shame on you

shame on you to seperate mary as human being to see that saying gay out loud is a bad thing. this is our point as a party. we say nothiing in wrong saying she is gay, there is no bad kerry bad, the woman is gay. we LOVE our gay, we dont hide them, arent ashamed of the, so for us to say out loud, defending her rights is a good thing in a dems book

[popstalin]

3. I was kinda disappointed

Kerry didn't pick up and run with the Canadian flu vaccine thing. It's okay for Bush to work with Canada to produce a flu vaccine but they can't import drugs? Other than that, I thought Kerry did an outstanding job.

As far as the Cheney daughter comment, as a lesbian, it didn't bother me. I think it just pointed out the fact that everyone, in some way, is affected by this issue. It also pointed out that Bush can stand there and claim it "may" be a choice but Cheney may believe differently. I felt it was a good move.

The repukes, I don't think, will holler as much as we think about it because then it would be like they are sticking up for gay rights. I think we'll hear about it one or two days then it will be lost.

[DoYouEverWonder]

11. Yes, I agree

I was very surprised that he didn't Bush hard with the flu vaccine crisis. The fact that in the last debate Bush told us that he won't let people buy drugs from Canada because he want to keep us safe. Then we find out that we won't have enough vaccine for this year because the only two sources for it are in foreign countries? This should be a big issue?

BTW: Welcome to DU :hi:

[Mr_Spock]

4. MC comment was deliberately abrasive and totally puts them off message

Very good indeed. The hypocrisy is all that will be left on the table once the FAKE indignation wears off. HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

[Connie_Corleone]

6. I cringed when Kerry mentioned Cheney's daugther, but...

What some people here are missing, is that this so-called "controversy" doesn't really matter in the long run. Some people might not like the fact Kerry brought her up, but will that stop them from voting for him? If it does, then they were just looking for some flimsy excuse not to vote for Kerry and they found one. It's not going to make much of a difference on election day. It'll be forgotten by the weekend.

Oh, the reason I cringed is because the average viewer might not like bringing up politicians' children in a debate. Kerry didn't say anything wrong, but Repugs are desperate right now, so they're trying to rev up this into a controversy.

[ScreamingMeemie]

7. I thought Bush was channeling Nikita Krushchev with all the podium

banging he was doing...MrG and I were waiting for him to take off his shoe. :hi:

[Mizmoon]

8. I thought it was brilliant to mention Mary again

Even if there is some criticism, it's as out there as possible the Cheney has a gay daughter. To folks like us, it's no big deal and who cares who Mary Cheney wants to sleep with. For the Repubs, they have some 'splainin to do to their Rev. Phelps hatemonger types who believe that "them there homosexshuals is runin 'merica".

[asjr]

9. The pundits and Repbs. had to have something to

complain about and they grabbed it. I feel Kerry subtlely was pointing out the hipocrisy.

[DoYouEverWonder]

12. If this makes people uncomfortable

then they need to deal with their own issues regarding homosexuality.

Mary Cheney is gay. This is the truth. There is nothing wrong with the truth. She seems to be quite open about her sexuality. She attended the Republican National Convention with her partner. She was not allowed (or decided not) to go on stage because her family and the Republican Party are ashamed of her. I don't see anything wrong with Dems using her has an example when discussing this issue.

[AussieDave]

10. I agree with you on the Mary Cheney reference -

I thought it wasn't really necessary to mention her by name - "gay men and women" would have done just as well. However I guess it gives the repugs something to whine about - goodness knows they have precious little else to recommend from these debates, and it keeps their hands above the table.........

Three observations about the debate:
1. I couldn't figure out where Bob Schieffer was going with his questions - they just didn't seem to fit in with the format. It was only about a quarter of the way through that I thought I could sense a pattern - he seemed to be in the role of Mr. and Mrs. America, the person in the street asking questions on topics in THEIR words, wanting feelings and emotions, not just dry argument.

2. Of course Bush sounded better this debate than the last, and last time better than the time before - he was starting from such a low base he had nowhere to go but up.

3. I think Kerry wasn't spectacular, but workmanlike - he did just enough to be a clear winner, and in his last job interview (which this was in effect) he demonstrated that he was the best person for the job. The Osama line was sheer genius, same as Edwards' "America can't take four more years of this 'experience'".

[michigandem2]

13. I agree with #2...

i mean if there were 20 debates by #20 he might of pulled ahead..but he didn't impress me much..he looked like he was trying hard to have a smile on his face..."don't get a flu shot if you are a younger healhtier person"

I think Kerry could of addressed more of what GWB was saying but if he did that..his message would of been defending himself against GWB...