Mike Masnick: Once again, debates don't matter... www.nj.com/news/2024/06...

Once again, debates don't matter... www.nj.com/news/2024/06...

First post-debate poll reveals startling results in Trump-Biden battle: Who would’ve predicted this?www.nj.com Seems the President's performance wasn't really that bad at initial glance

welp

I keep going to this. (Wiki, I know).

This was the debate where Reagan had his own dementia moment and the only person to talk about it in the media was Jesse Jackson on SNL. Ron Reagan Jr. believes his dad first showed signs of dementia 3 years into his first term.

Or maybe the pundit reactions were just completely overblown?

Two things can be true NB: I would expect debates to matter if something extraordinary were to happen (within context, not applicable here), and/or in more local races depending on how they are conducted

Agree. I just thought in this case the extraordinary amount of pearl clutching on display was a bit much, to put it mildly. Most "normal" viewers saw Biden struggling at the beginning and improve later on and also didn't ignore the lying elephant in the room reminding everyone he killed Roe v Wade.

Oh, agreed. Heartily and in entirety!

I think people are underrating how insane Trump sounds to people who aren’t political junkies. 50% of the noises he makes are references to very deep cuts from Newsmax shows from 4 years ago.

Especially not this time when both parties were well-known quantities.

This is an extreme case but it’s plausible that the people who watched the debate live were committed to a candidate, and the uncommitted folks hearing about it afterward are saying “Yeah, yeah, Biden’s hella old, Trump’s a crazy liar, I knew this.”

Color me surprised that a bunch of powerful assholes who wanted a certain outcome basically invented one and normal people didn't really notice or care

It all comes down to turnout. There are way more of us than there are of them.

pikachu shocked face dot png

The GOP time and again have been given obvious opportunities to rid themselves of the felon and not taken it. This poll shows once again they have a chance. After Biden's poor debate pretty much any other republican candidate could beat him. I'm thankful they are really this stupid.

@mmasnick.bsky.social neither do polls. Vote.

Or, they do matter because all of a sudden, the stakes become clear, and some of the former "hmm, I don't know if I can vote for Biden because [reasons]" set start openly acknowledging they'll vote for him.

Jesus debates in his home turf, talks as bout the poor Romans and yes gently crucifixion l think we struggling with this What if Jesus lives Rapped about goodness Im in the auditorium

🤔Is Biden the best choice by the DNC to nominate in August & ✨WIN✨in November is the 🔥ONLY🔥 question going forward. Context: HRC in 2016.

wow wow wow i cannot believe it.

As much as I want to believe this, do polls?

I think it matters, but mainly because a few million absolute dimwits who hadn't previously been paying attention and thought Trump's batshittery was exaggerated saw his awfulness on full display.

By far the most effective thing Democrats can do is run clips of Trump, at his most unhinged and horrifying, at every single network TV station break nonstop from September on. The election will be decided by the low-information "undecided" dumbasses.

As my high school teaching sister likes to write at the end of her grading notes on student essays: for what purpose & to what end?

It's just one point...though I wouldn't trust poster's to not thumb the scales irregardless: open.substack.com/pub/sethabra...

By Obsessing Over TV Visuals Rather Than Listening to Words, Voters Just Got Conned By Donald Trump—Againopen.substack.com This report analyzes what President Biden actually said at the debate, rather than how he looked saying it. What we see in doing so—in focusing on how to govern rather than how to perform—is stunning.

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