Cross Town Thoughts
Democrat Debate Night again. This time on the Las Vegas strip. NBC moderators. They hate Bernie according to Vanity Fair. So will the questions to him be fair? Can Amy & Lizzie come out swinging? Will Joe rope-a-dope? Will Mayor Pete join Mayor Mike on the box?
Do or die for Bloomberg as he joins the fray. All punches will be going his way. Can he take the incoming with confidence and sharp jabs?
Fingers crossed while swigging a Big Gulp.
Friday Night Lights. Democrat Debate. No Break Outs. No Break Downs. If there was a winner, it was Amy Klobuchar.
Joe took to yelling as a substitute for articulation or passion. Mayor Pete loses on the race trope. Lizzie Warren has an annoying voice. That’s just the truth. Bernie was strong with the exception of his guns argument. Steyer made the best points about defeating Trump.
Mike Bloomberg looks better every day. Pragmatic. Centrist. Strong.
Last Dem Debate before Iowa Caucuses.
Will Lizzie Warren bait Bernie Sanders or Joe Biden. That’ll be her Ber Den. As they go after each other Mayor Pete can parry from his deck chair. Amy may be lured into the fray with too much tension on the line. Steyer will haul in plastic bottles and scream about climate change. Yang rushes in to clang the bell as AI bots take over the ship.
Wolf sporadically yells over the horn. This is Breaking News!!!!!
Over on PBS. On the impeachment margin. Did you know? There was a Democrat debate tonight. Boring as hell.
Mayor Pete did spar with Lizzie & Amy. They tore him up. Not pretty. Klobuchar strong. Her best night. Warren a bit off her game. Biden still senile. Yang made some futuristic points which nobody on the stage understood. Steyer is creepy. Bernie. Always Bernie. Other than that. Boring as hell.
Advantage Trump. Mayor Mike!! Oprah! Where are you?
Fifth Democrat Debate.
Mayor Pete got his test. Tulsi took him on. He rallied. But. Did not close the deal. So. Against Trump? Joe waffled but didn’t pass out in a puddle. Tom Steyer got too much time. Kamala fakes accent. Amy shaky but funny. Elizabeth too dependent on Fed Gov’t to solve the country’s ills. Yang refreshing. Booker black-ish. Bernie consistent.
Bottom line. Nobody elicited excitement. Pretty boring.
Twelve Democrats on one stage. Too many to have a meaningful debate. But. If you have to rate their performances.
My assessment a New York Times Pick.
Warren- Winner. Took incoming with clarity and aplomb.
Bernie- Strong. Happy to see him so spirited and consistent.
Biden- Better. Didn’t drool or stumble too much.
Kamala- Annoying. Phony as ever.
Pete- Good. Needs to pare paragraphs into sound bites.
Amy- Improved. Positive reviews, moderate in waiting.
The other six- See ya.
John Bolton is a hyper-neo-con from way back and he’s pissed about Syria and getting canned. So. He went back to his buddies at Fox to spill. It seems there are fatal cracks in the infrastructure. Trump falls?
On to tonight’s candidate overflow aka debate. Who should Dems now nominate? And run against? Surely not Pence. Open the gates.
Winner. Warren.
Loser. Castro.
Better. Klobuchar.
Unsteady still. Biden.
Disappeared. Buttigieg.
Most improved. Beto. Booker.
Least appealing. Harris.
Marginal. Yang.
Consistently cantankerous. Bernie.
Test: Who can stand up to Trump one-on-one? Warren. Who can garner a big crowd? Warren. Who can win a general election? Hmmm.
Debates done. Take-away. Pre-game speech by Garlin Gilchrist. There’s the political guy of the future. Michigan’s Lt. Governor. He slayed.
After two nights of scrappy scrums. Elizabeth Warren the most energetic and authentic. Crisp and clear in her policies and beliefs. The losers. Moderate Democrats. Therefore. The big winner. Trump.
The only answer is Oprah.   My comment a New York Times Pick.
Breakout- Julián Castro
Stayed the course- Elizabeth Warren
Assertive- Bill deBlasio
Most improved- Cory Booker
Lost ground- Beto O’Rourke
Muddled- Amy Klobuchar
The other four
Side Trek . NYC 