RECAP

Whoops! My wireless had a hiccup around the 35-minute mark of the debate, meaning I only got to riff on the foreign policy portion of the debate.

Here are my quick takes.

--Cheney did marginally better than Bush did.

--Cheney didn't seem to be terribly clear on the concept that putting one's hands between your mouth and your clip-on microphone muffles your voice.

--Oh, and Cheney fucked up the website! Regarding Halliburton, Cheney directed viewers to consult "factcheck dot com" to have the record set straight. The problem? The website in question is factcheck dot org (this site). At the time he said it, fact check dot com went to some sort of placeholder site, but now that my internet is up again and I check it, it's a redirect to GeorgeSoros.com! Try for yourself.

I'm glad to see that Cheney and the Republicans are coming around on George Soros. Did anyone else notice this? Ahh, Kevin did (the wrong url part, not the Soros part).

--Nice to see Edwards run through the highlights of Dick Cheney's legislative career, including voting against Head Start, MLK Day, and a resolution calling for Nelson Mandela's release. Go incarcerate yourself, Dick.

--The main thing I wanted Edwards to do was to come armed with specifics, because as uncharismatic as Cheney is, he's there because the perception inexplicably persists that he's "competent". In terms of being on top of things, at the very least Edwards fought his way to a draw.

--Go vote in these polls.

--And Atrios is right that Cheney didn't even bother to respond to most of the charges made against him (Halliburton, his legislative record, etc). The closest he came was referring viewers to a website . . . the wrong website. By the way, the current lead item on the right website is "Bush Mischaracterizes Kerry's Health Plan".

--On the economy and jobs, Cheney employed, through his snarl, the Tinkerbell strategy (clap! clap!) while Edwards charged for the reddest meat of the debate. Cheney -- again through his snarl -- spouted nothing but fantasyland cheerytalk about the economy, and Edwards let it speak for itself. "I don't think the American people can take four more years of this."

--On interantional AIDS relief, Edwards called for twice the funding Bush did in the 2003 SOTU, and Cheney had no response.

--Edwards' compliments to Cheney about how Dick cares for his lesbian daughter were interesting. I don't doubt John's sincerity. But... while Edwards said them, Cheney had this nervous smile on his face, and it seemed to say "Quiiiiet... not in front of the Istian-chray Oalition-cay".

--I have to go, because I'm headed for a 10pm showing of Fahrenheit 911 at IV Theater, and it should be racous since a large contingent of Campus Dems will be there. But all in all, Edwards looked/sounded good and had his facts generally together, and Cheney, while he held on to his air of competence, was still full of shit. It will probably be a wash. Friday will be important.

More thoughts tomorrow maybe.