I watched this debate on CSPAN. I read the live blogs by Jed Lewison and askew. Harry Reid cleaned her clock.
Of course thats not how the MSM will report it. I'm sure CNN and their 14 person expert panels will analyze it and come to the conclusion that it was a tie. There were enough comments on this site even that suggest many here thought she at least did well enough to tie, because she didn't stutter or claim Mexican muslim communists were infiltrating the State Department and fictional town of Frankford, Tx.
But come on. There were two people in this debate. One was a senior statesmen, who clearly understands policy and communicates it an accurate, albeit sometimes boring kind of way. He will legislate, negotiate, and work for the interests of Nevadans and Americans. The other person is a teabagging amateur who has no clue what the F she is talking about. She will grandstand, make occasional embarrasing comments, and do whatever Sen. DeMint tells her to for the next six years.
I pride myself on being able to pick up on people's body language, tone of voice, and speech patterns when they are public speaking. I can tell fairly quickly when someone is uncomfortable, ignorant of the topic they are presenting on, and bullshitting. Angle's posture was awkward indicating she didn't want to be up there. She didn't stumble over words, but she did stumble over sentences - bouncing from one topic to the next awkwardly and without reason. It was clear she has no deep understanding of the policies she supports. If this is not clear to the independent and moderate (sane) Republicans in Nevada, then I've lost hope in humanity.
There's a number of teahadists in this election and past elections and all have had their moments of stupidity and ignorance. But each I think brings a different personality to their crazy right-wing views:
- Sarah Palin: plays the folksy, anti-intellectual character. doesn't know anything about policy, but can work a crowd
- Rand Paul: too smart for his own good. he tries to make the world fit into his extreme Milton Friedman libertarian view of the world
- Christine O'Donnell: says crazy shit for shock value, but in a charming kind of way.
- Michelle Bachmann: says crazy shit for shock value, but in a I'm really sinister kind of way.
- Sharron Angle: just plain stupid.
Yes, thats the conclusion I've come to about Sharon Angle. No ulterior motives or hidden agenda behind her. She wants to privatize social security and save it at the same time. She wants Americans to have a choice of health care plans like federal employees do, but is against the health care bill that gives Americans a choice of plans like federal employees have. She wants to criticize Harry Reid for unemployment, then tell him its not his job to create jobs. She sees nothing contradictory about any of these statements.
Sharron Angle: just plain stupid for Senate.