Thoughts on the First Debate

Romney’s performance was impressive, stylistically. But to say he “won” the debate in a formal sense is probably not accurate.

An actual debate is a contest of opposing views or positions. Lawyers arguing before a judge or jury are debating. The winner is the side that prevails because it persuades the decision maker that its view is better or more correct than the opposition’s.

But political disputations are rarely like the Lincoln-Douglas debates of the late 1850s, nor was the joint appearance of President Obama and Mitt Romney last week.

To the extent that persuasion entered into any evaluation of Romney’s performance, it was in the sense that most viewers were convinced that he was self-assured, knowledgeable and enthusiastic, and certainly not the haughty, uncaring rich guy pictured in Obama’s commercials.

On policy, as distinct from character, matters, Romney was less impressive and more inoffensive. He refused to be drawn into the subtleties of his plans for Social Security and Medicare, for instance.

Although claiming, as he did, that these programs would not suffer under his watch is a politically understandable position, it does clash with the fiscal reality already upon us.

His Five Point Plan for improving the economy was appropriately general and, thus, attractive with no specificity to attack.

In sum, the GOP nominee did a good job, which for now is good enough.

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There is a consensus that Barack Obama is a fine, even great, public speaker. In a set-piece, teleprompter-aided presentation, I agree.

But he’s not particularly able or quick-witted when required to think on his feet. Listen to him carefully. He fumbles and fills pauses with sound (“uh” and “ah“). Polished speakers don’t do that; nervous and/or inexperienced speakers do.

Considering that the President is not inexperienced, his performance is surprising. He needs a speech coach.

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The near unanimity of the media in praising Romney’s performance was also surprising. So give them their due. They undoubtedly would have preferred a different outcome, but the liberal press, either from fear of embarrassment or even the presence of some integrity, did not deny the obvious.