Usually, one would look to the actual participants in trying to decide who was hurt most by a debate. Not last night. There were two big losers from the VP debate — one was on the stage, one wasn’t, but neither were Edwards or Cheney.
The Big Loser Runner-Up was PBS’s Gwen Ifill, whose questions at times ranged from silly to bizarre to completely nonsensical.
* “As the vice president mentioned, John Kerry comes from the state of Massachusetts, which has taken as big a step as any state in the union to legalize gay marriage. Yet both you and Senator Kerry say you oppose it. Are you trying to have it both ways?”
I can only hope she misread her notes and meant to ask a different question, because this may be the single dumbest thing ever said at a national debate by anyone.
* “Do you feel personally attacked when Vice President Cheney talks about liability reform and tort reform and the president talks about having a trial lawyer on the ticket?”
This was another gem. With all the important substantive questions that could have been asked, Ifill wanted Edwards and Cheney to answer a question about whether Edwards’ feelings were hurt about criticisms of trial lawyers? This was followed by:
“Without mentioning [your running mate] by name at all, explain to us why you are different from your opponent.”
And this is important, why?
In several instances, it seemed like Edwards and Cheney were both dodging Ifill’s questions to address more substantive issues, but in many of those cases, I didn’t blame them. If the question is dumb, answer a different question.
But if Ifill was the Big Loser Runner-Up, the top prize has to go to George W. Bush. The primary difference between Bush on Thursday and Cheney last night is that Cheney at least sounds like he knows what he’s talking about. Even when Cheney is being recklessly dishonest, which he clearly was last night, he comes across as competent and informed.
In other words, over the last five days, the nation has seen four national candidates engaged in substantive debates. Three of them were engaged, knowledgeable, and articulate. The fourth just happens to be the president.