I'm for Howard Dean and plan to caucus for him on January 19th.
But he is one terrible debater. It is incredible to me that he always seems: 1) unprepared; 2) uncomfortable; 3) unable to get much beyond stump speech rhetoric.
On the other hand, we have all these guys from Congress who are used to debating, used to making speeches, used to talking about policy and details in a cogent way. In my opinion, every single one of Howard Dean's opponents ran circles around him tonight.
As for his getting cute with his question to one of the other candidates, I found that the most ludicrous moment. It was an unbelievable slap-down because I was certain they would get the audience member to a microphone somehow. But Lester Holt was adamant. Then Dean tried to engage him in an argument about it, which was also rebuffed. The Dean was left looking like a scolded child, who could only plaintively says 'we should move on.' Wow, what a horrible miscalculation. If you've agreed to a particular format, man, stick to it!
I've never seen anyone as uncomfortable in a debate situation as Dean is, except maybe Dan Quayle. That deer-in-the-headlights empty expression that many of us remember from Quayle vs. Bentzen in '88 is Dean's standard face. This should not be.
And as far as the stump speech goes, I'd hate to think that's all Dean knows or thinks. The worst evidence of it came with Edwards' question to him about payday loan sharks and high interest on credit cards. Dean inexplicably took this as an opportunity to pull his corporate-morality string. The answer was blatantly disconnected to the real pressing issue in the question.
Last, his inability to come up with some kind of middle-class tax answer. Bizarre! He said he wouldn't have anything for the middle-class on taxes until the budget was balanced. But in the debate the other day he said his plan to balance the budget wouldn't be effective until the 6th or 7th year of his administration. That is putting it off too far. The topic of some payroll tax relief came up but he didn't take the opportunity this gave him to offer actual solid relief.
Anyone who goes in these debates rooting for Dean, as I do, should be disappointed.