Posted on 10/02/2012 8:43:56 AM PDT by fourth and three
In the second debate, Sen. Scott Brown had a consistent message: I’m independent; Elizabeth Warren wants to raise your taxes. Warren was put on the defensive when she was dealt a bad hand by moderator David Gregory. He made her Native American heritage the lead-off question, the second time that’s happened in two debates. The result: Brown declared, “She was white until she turned 38.” Crude, but memorable. In a nutshell, that’s how Brown handled himself.
Brown also punished her on her outside legal work in an asbestos case where she represented Travelers Insurance. Again, this was a question that came up in the first debate and her answer was no clearer than it was then. Either her campaign or Warren herself was not prepared for a tight, strong answer. She finally declared (too late) that it was a case of one insurance company suing another insurance company.
Warren wasn’t as poised as she had been in the first debate. She lacked a consistent theme (other than Brown’s siding with billionaires and millionaires). But her real problem was missing several chances to go after Brown for political blunders.
One of the juiciest may have been his embarrassingly sloooow answer when he was asked who his favorite Supreme Court justice is. When he finally said Antonin Scalia, Warren seemed audibly amazed, as did many in the live audience. Warren said Elena Kagan, but neglected to say Brown didn’t vote for her even though she was from Massachusetts.
Another blown opportunity occurred when Warren let Brown skate on explaining his silent support for Mitt Romney as a matter of geography. “He’s campaigning all over the country; I’m campaigning here.” In Brown’s world apparently you can only support someone if you happen to be in the same state as your candidate.
Warren not only didn’t pin Romney on Brown, she didn’t pin the GOP on Brown. What about Todd Akin? Should we assume Brown supports Claire McCaskill?
Brown doesn’t mind repeating himself. In fact, he seems to find comfort in the litany of energy sources he supports, like Clarence Darrow in “Inherit the Wind” reciting the books of the Bible. Again, Warren let him off the hook on his refusal to support wind energy and siding with big oil while claiming to be a friend of the motorist.
Brown declared, without challenge, that he’s a union member — what a fat pitch that was! He’s a member of AFTRA-SAG, the actors and artists union from his modeling days. He wasn’t exactly a Teamster driving a beer wagon.
Warren needs some new material. “Fighting for middle class families” is a poll-tested cliché that has no edge. Who’s against middle class families?
Brown has an instinct for nativist rhetoric, using Warren’s ancestry as an attack on affirmative action, opposing the DREAM Act for letting illegals jump the line, finding ways to inject “Harvard” and “professor” into his snide answers.
The good news: Warren will get better. The bad news: If she doesn’t, Brown will get away with not paying a price for being a Republican in a state where the GOP candidate for president is going to get creamed.
She didn’t “pounce”!? “Pounce” on what? Did she keepum too quiet? Should she dance like elk on white hot flame?
I saw the first half of the debate. Warren almost had a stroke in trying to maintain her Granny Clampett persona. She was dying to let her real inner shrieking liberal get out. How dare Brown criticize Her Wonderfulness! How dare Brown question her life of lying to get ahead! How dare Brown find any fault with Her Wonderfulness’ Wonderfulness! Now, Romney needs to so the same to The One.
He's not a "union member-union member".
He's not a "legitimate" union member.
Nothing like an “objective” report from a local media hack.
The last paragraph is actually laughable.
The last sentence. Not so sure it is factual would not be surprised to see Brown win and Romney win also either on his own as he did as gov there or on Browns coattails.
I agree. I’m in MA and get a sense that Romney could win here. Obama has really energized a lot of right-leaning people to make up their minds to get out and vote on 11/6. It could be ‘veddy eenteresting’.
Look for her to run hard, hard left now.
First Shoot All the Bankers! Death to Userers!
Do not slay me on a Cross of Gold!
etc. etc. etc.
Despite what happens, one thing I’ve learned in this race is that Brown is a damn good campaigner. He is good on the stump, he is good in personal appearances and he is good in debates. All this despite an audience that is naturally hostile to Republicans.
I was never a fan of Scott Brown’s, even in the days when he was driving around in his pickup truck. But he is a thousand times better than Warren, and at least he will sometimes vote with the party in the Senate.
In fact, if we can somehow manage to get some better leadership, he may even vote with the party whenever it counts, which is what we need.
That used to be the custom, before the GOP leadership really went to the dogs. Let him vote liberal when they have enough votes to pass something, and MAKE him vote conservative when they need his vote.
Maybe she just didn’t ululate enough when lunging at him to take his scalp with her ceremonial Tomahawk....
“Now, Romney needs to so the same to The One.”
Yes, he does.
However, get ready for the day after the debate response from the MSM. The leftist talking points will be that Romney was mean and disrespectful to the president (and 9 out of 10 Americans don’t like that).
Pray for America
“Warren not only didn’t pin Romney on Brown, she didn’t pin the GOP on Brown. What about Todd Akin? Should we assume Brown supports Claire McCaskill? “
I am 99% certain Brown had condemned the Akins statement within 24 hours of them being uttered.
If the author going to quote from a movie, he can at least attribute it properly. It wasn’t Clarence Darrow who recited the books, it was Matthew Harrison Brady, the thinly veiled pastiche of William Jennings Bryan.
There is a reason why Warren wasn’t poised, seemed off her game.....She was waiting for Brown to ask her about hew lack of a Mass law license. THis story has legs..lots of people are loking into it..it’s a HUGE problem for herand I suspect that Brown will hit her with in in the the next two debates.
Brown won becauswe SQUAW SPEAKING BULL was speaking BULL
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.