Lehrer Stacks Deck Against Bush

newsmax.com ^ | Sept. 30, 2004

[ArmyBratproud]

Presidential debate moderator Jim Lehrer showed once again Thursday night why top aides to President Clinton used to call him "our moderator" when presidential debate time rolled around in 1996.

The questions, which Lehrer announced at the outset had been authored exclusively by him, were supposed to help the American people determine which candidate would be a better steward of U.S. national security in a post-9/11 world.

snip-

Most Americans would consider the answers to those questions extremely relevant to the selection of any U.S. commander-in-chief during a time of war.

But not Jim Lehrer. Instead, he focused on Iraq with question after question that suggested Bush had blown it.

[Sthitch]

I agree with this 100%. The questions were a total set-up to make for Lurch look good, and the President to look bad. That being said, I think that most of the debate the President did well, I wish he would have landed a few more blows, but that is really not his way.

[An American In Dairyland]

That was my immediate reaction.

[AmishDude]

I read this on another thread. The fact is, the questions to Kerry were pretty conventional and predictable. Bush got weird questions like the character one. Kerry answered each question as follows: Give a one-sentence response to the question, then blather on about what you really want to talk about. He looked as if he knew the questions because he knew the answers, independent of what the questions were.

I reject these conspiracy theories. I wouldn't be surprised if somebody at PBS wanted to copy the questions and send them to Kerry, but I doubt it happened. Lehrer has his biases but he's not as insane as Rather.

[Slyfox]

The truth is debates usually don't sway anyone's votes. They tend to make each one of the candidate's feel good about their guy. You know, maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing letting Kerry think he won the debate. Kerry looks better when his face is all puffed up anyways.

[Wild Irish Rogue]

At the end, when everyone was up on stage, Lehrer turned to walk off behind the curtain and I swear he winked at Kerry.

[KoneZone]

Everybody knows that lea rah is a LIBECRAT! I cant stand to watch him on the OPB channel here in Oregon. He sucks and the fact that Public TV has been hijacked is not lost on me. I wont even call they're fund raiser's unless I wish to ask why they push the Pro Homosexual, Pro Socialistic, Pro Tree-hugging anti Christian Anti Semite views that I oppose. "W" made me proud to be an American tonight and He's true Class.

[harpo11]

Lehrer..who?? He's so yesterday...like Dan Rather...
Leftists..to the bitter end, but..
hey, obsolete...very much so.
While they try so desparately to help their pal democrat candidates..
Their candidates are and woefully so...like the fogging mists
that fad so fast in the brilliant light of truth.

[TNCMAXQ]

I'm surprised the Republicans agreed to these rules and this set of moderators. They should have known there would be bias.

[Resolute]

One example in particular: Kerry used the term "colossal misjudgments" and then Lehrer followed up with a question that used the exact same term. Quite a coincidence, if Lehrer, as purported, made the questions in advance ...

[cookcounty]

I kept hoping Bush would turn to Kerry and say "Senator, since you believe the war was a mistake, how will you ask someone to be the last man to die for a mistake?"

[LisaMalia]

Lehrer did everything but kiss Kerry's feet.

I'm wondering if maybe debates should be a thing of the past.

I was very impressed by President Bush, as he spoke from the heart.

Kerry was well rehearsed, and obviously had been fed the questions beforehand.

Just another reason to hate the MSM.

[MissAmericanPie]

Oh gee, ya think?

[Salvation]

Kerry had far too many facts, more than he does on the road campaigning.

Do I smell something fishy here?

[toupsie]

Why wasn't there any real questions about Kerry's senate career and foreign policy?

[a_screen_name]

I think he did have the questions because at one point, early on, he said to the moderator, something like "that has to do with homeland security but we'll talk about that later". I'm not sure of the exact quote.

[Wonderama]

I think Bush did GREAT! He won, because he was real. He was experienced, he was direct and to the point. Kerry was full of fluff and pomp. Bush kicked butt. Don't listen to the pundits, think for yourself. I turned off all media after the debate and digested it all and I think he did great.