If Hillary goes OFF on Obama Tuesday night, what demeanor would you advise him to respond with?

[RiverStone]

Hillary sure threw down the gauntlet with her angry (to Obama) ...lets meet in OH and debate your campaign tactics!

Picture another "Shame on you" moment but this time Hillary lays into him with the same diatribe as we heard a couple of days ago - but this time it is to his face.

How do you think he should respond?

Again, this OP is referring to demeanor only, not content. I am very confident Obama can handle to content piece, but if you were his debate coach - what kind of demeanor and tone do you think he should respond with?

He could laugh it off (silly season again).
He could respond with his voiced raised and slightly tinged with anger - and suggest she stop this bullshit (not BS, but we get it).
He could answer much like he did when she came unhinged at the press conference - rather measured and very calm.

Like he said the other day - better to win with a knock out then on points. Yet at the same time, he does not want to get into a mud wrestling match either. He needs to keep his cool, but not let her dictate to him as if he is being scolded. I'd like to see him respond forcefully - with a mixture of measured and angry (with the emphasis on measured). In other words - he shows he can deal with pressure well.

What do you think?

[goldcanyonaz]

1. Stick his tongue out at her? Cover his ears and sing "la la la, can't hear you"?

:shrug:

[jakem]

2. measured and calm. and truthful.

hillary can sink her own campaign.

[BringBigDogBack]

15. yep

[ericgtr]

17. Agreed 100%

He needs to just keep his cool and take the high road whenever possible. Defend when necessary but stick to the issues otherwise.

[thunder rising]

3. Back away slowly with you arms raised while signaling the SS.

[pbca]

4. How about concerned and sympathetic

like he's worried about her and wants to get her some help?

[Labors of Hercules]

31. sympathetic, strong and straightforward.

Most of all, He needs to know exactly how he is going to respond to anything she may throw at him, and deliver his rebuttals with understanding, clarifying dignity. He knows she is going on the attack him, and the more he can subtly turn her attacks against her while also shedding light on any hypocrisies they contain, (and there will be many), the better he will do.

[Blondiegrrl]

57. She needs an intervention! n/t

[BigDaddy44]

Bemusement

N/T

[Oleladylib]

8. oh you mean the same smug, arrogant manner Barry is known for..got it!

[BigDaddy44]

35. Its about staying above it

There's no need to get into a street fight if you're ahead. And that "smug, arrogant manner" certainly seems to be working for "Barry" so far.

[TheDonkey]

5. Mix of 1 and 3, and he should expect this.

Use humor and calmness to deal with her unhinged demeanor.

He was very effective and knocking her slimes down in the last debate when she tried. His humor and grace to her vile comments made her statements seem 1000x worse.

[babylonsister]

6. He should keep doing what he's been doing, cause it's rattling her

so it's working! Cool, calm, collected works for me.

[gateley]

7. Roll his eyes.

:eyes:

[TexasObserver]

9. "Now, Hillary, you know that's not true. Here's the truth."

1. You supported NAFTA until recently.

2. You did say you would garnish workers' wages to pay the insurance companies for mandatory insurance, and you'd look at other means of using criminal laws to enforce your mandatory insurance company scheme.

[DemBones DemBones]

10. "Goes OFF" on him? You mean, asks him tough questions that

he doesn't want to answer?

[ErnestoG]

33. No, does her usual eye-rolling, vein-bulging drama queen schtick

[Blondiegrrl]

53. He answers them. She just refuses to listen.

[NC_Nurse]

11. He'll know what to do. That's one of his biggest strengths.

He is very good at reading situations and responding appropriately.
I trust him.

[cooolandrew]

12. Barack needs to stay authourative, composed and super gracious and a few funny lines.

[MzShellG]

44. Checkmate! nt

[KittyWampus]

13. Bemusement

[Raejeanowl]

14. He Could Do Anything

Including respond to her in kind. She's a big girl; she can take it. Although I'm sure it would be interesting to see what adjectives will be used to described HIM getting forceful or irritated, won't it?

[sloppyjoe25s]

16. However he responds - it will be a treat!

He always trounces her masterfully in these moments - the hotter under the collar she gets the better!

[Yael]

18. The calmer he is, the more unhinged she will look by comparison

she is throwing spaghetti up on the wall in the hopes that something sticks. He shouldn't address that at all, or even acknowledge it. She will look schizophrenic and off message without any assistance from him.

[RiverStone]

28. Calm in general but...

If - and I think it is a likely if - Hillary goes after him with both guns blazing, the millions of viewers would like to see a little theatrics. Remember, these little debate sound bites are what will be repeated over and over before March 4th.

I don't mind the calm, but as long as he does not seem detached. In the real world, most of us would get pretty damned annoyed - so most of us (even secretly) would enjoy a clean and bold counter punch by Obama.

A little fire in the belly goes a long way to!

In any case, what an intriguing primary season eh?

[Yael]

29. I am probably one of few who liked the "while you were sitting on the board at Wal*Mart"

crack in South Carolina. :evilgrin:

[Lisa0825]

19. Measured and Calm...

The way to control the tone is by not matching or escalating it, but by answering with a cool demeanor.

[Medusa]

20. His usual calm demeanor

she looks unpresidential and he looks VERY presidential in his ability to hold it together.

[Mojambo]

21. Measured, calm. Perhaps even a little bit of pity. n/t

[pnwmom]

22. If he goes OFF on her, how should she respond? n/t

[ErnestoG]

34. She can call him a sexist!

[ekwhite]

36. With a calm, measured voice

and with a measured rebuttal if necessary. The "Tough Hillary" bit doesn't make her look good.

[pnwmom]

50. Yes, I know. Women aren't tough enough to be leaders,

but if they are tough enough, then they don't "look good."

[Blondiegrrl]

58. *eyeroll*

[DemGa]

23. Passive aggressive - condescend : smile

Obama is a natural.

[QC]

24. He should respond in his usual fashion.

You know, get in Poor Pitiful Victim mode.

[Cha]

25. hilary said.."let's have a real campaign..

her anger palpable. "Enough with the speeches and the big rallies..Shame on you Barack Obama..Meet me in Ohio. Let's have a debate about your tactics and your behavior in this campaign." :scared: :scared: :scared: NOT.

[blonndee]

26. No way, he doesn't need to get mad at ALL. He should just

respond with facts, and call her out on any lies or misrepresentations. He might smile calmly, depending on what she's saying (if it's just silly.) This is how a leader deals with pressure and attacks. He can't let her goad him into even looking like he's upset, which she's desperate to do.

[misanthrope]

27. I'll be surprised if she says anything to his face...

...That hasn't been her pattern thus far. She was somewhat forced into commenting on the plagiarism charges by the panel in the last debate.

She seems more prone to smile and buddy up to him in person only to let lose with invective when he's not around.

[RiverStone]

43. She has painted herself into a corner on this...

The talking heads this a.m (Meet the Press, This Week etc.) all took time to show a before Hillary (Obama - I am honored to be here with you) vs a very angry Hillary (Shame on You Obama). The tale of the two Hillarys!

The consensus was she decided that this was her last chance to get any traction - screw the cooperative stuff - lets go as negative as possible. And now millions of viewers are wondering what she meant when she referred to the debate at HIGH NOON in OH to discuss Obama's behavior.

If she is sweet again, it will make her tirade seem even more ridiculous. People are expecting something from her ---- but what?

This is better than anything on reality TV :hi:

[lurky]

30. Amused.

He should have a chuckle at the outlandish attacks she is throwing at him, then calmly refute them.

[keep_it_real]

32. Presidential

[Labors of Hercules]

45. Good Answer!!!

:applause:

[Blondiegrrl]

56. I agree. The pointing and laughing he can leave up to those of us

watching at home. ;-)

[RunningFromCongress]

37. Calm and stoic...if he smiles it will look bad,

[Raine]

38. Answer cool and confident

as he has been doing all along, it's works! :thumbsup:

[RBInMaine]

46. Yup, cool, firm, assertive, and confident.

[sandnsea]

39. You have to score a lot of points getting to the knock out

I think people might forget that little boxing detail.

When she starts flailing, you stand out of the way and let her wear herself out. Any boxer, or even mother, knows that.

[amborin]

40. the same smug, supercilious, haughty expression he had in the debates

[Raine]

59. It's in the "eye of the beholder" call

it whatever you want but it works and that's what's important. :-)

[karynnj]

41. The same one he has used through the entire race

Serious, but with a sense of humor and a smile. His answer to "not being real" is a perfect example. Obama, like Kerry, seems to have the ability to stay cool when attacked - it is an enormous advantage. The more she attacks - and he pleasantly defends himself the better. She is not capable of hiding her anger. Obama has an enormous advantage.

Something about keeping your head when others around you lose it. (I noticed Obama, like Kerry vs Bush, seemed to keep a straight face and wrote notes as HRC spoke - I would so love to see either of those sets of notes!)

[apocalypsehow]

42. Stay calm - this is her last, desperate gambit before her campaign is forced to face reality.

It may truly turn out to be a "strawberries in the wardroom" moment.

[blonndee]

51. "strawberries in the wardroom"?

I've never heard that before. What does that mean?

[NoBushSpokenHere]

47. Calm, cool, stick to the facts, firmly but no anger

I believe she is baiting him to show anger. And also, expect the unexpected - always.

[scheming daemons]

48. What I'd advise him to do and say...

When asked about the "flyers" in Ohio, here's what I'd say:

"Harry Truman once said when asked about his 'give-em-hell-Harry' nickname: 'I never gave anybody hell. I just told the truth on 'em, and they thought it was hell.'

Our campaign flyers are accurate representations of Senator Clinton's positions. If the truth is 'hell' for the Clinton campaign, that's their problem, not ours."

(rousing applause from the crowd)




But.... Obama is a better man than me. And he'll slice Hillary up with more velvety gloves than that.

[stillcool]

49. Laugh.

Clinton's rants are a joke. I think 'winning by a knock-out' is regarding people's votes. Nothing to do with debate.

[Blondiegrrl]

52. He should respond with the same class and dignity he always employs

One of the qualities I most admire about Obama is his ability to handle stressful situations. He knows Hillary is making a fool of herself, so all he needs to do is stand back and watch her self-destruct. Then he can calmly correct her rantings and chuckle quietly at her foolishness.

[Name removed]

54. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[MaineDem]

62. Violence?

Not nice.

Enjoy your stay at DU.

[workinclasszero]

55. Cool, calm and presidential in contrast to Hillary's

screaming fits and red faced rage.

Lets sit back and watch Hillary herself put the final nail in her presidential coffin!:crazy:

Its must see TV!!:popcorn:

[Whisp]

60. he should pull out a Rubiks Cube and hum. nt

[Obamaman2008]

61. He should say somthing simple and calmly that will set her off on stage nt