25 thoughts on “How’d Kerry Look on MTP?”

  1. He was wearing a Hillary Clinton mask? 🙂
    Seriously, how about some elaboration on that? I’ve been putting up shelving for the last hour or two, and I usually skip MTP anyway.
    Moe

  2. Yes, can you elaborate? I was watching Stephanawfullest interview Tony Blair.
    By the way, I’d take T.Blair over either of those guys.

  6. You would not believe how bored and disgusted I am with this “gotcha” confrontation based main stream journalism. I have not watched any of the Sunday talk shows in weeks. Every day, I pay less attention to the newstalk channels.
    TV reporters and commentaters cannot seem to hear a sentence spoken, and immediately repeat it. They are no longer capable of listening.
    Russert nauseates me.

  7. ” I don’t think seeing the interview would change the mind of many fans or nay-sayers.”
    I think there’s a pretty good chance that there has never been a morning talk show performance in the history of TV that would change the mind of nay-sayers. Fans, maybe. . if it’s a really terrible performance. I expect only a carefully scripted speech has the power to create respect for someone, and that rarely.

  8. Kerry did quite well. First, the one-on-one format suits him, and there was very little of the stiffness you so often get at a podium (which is interesting, given that this is also Bush’s favored debate context). Russert didn’t make much of a dent — I think he’s wildly overrated in that regard anyway — and Kerry was not only very well prepared, but managed to sound as if he was engaged in something other than offering up memorized slogans and talking points. (He is, after all, held to a higher standard than the Prez. We expect him to be coherent.) Given that Bush is already tip-toeing over to Kerry’s internationalism, the latter played well. And Bob Woodward’s book, cited on several occasions, gave him some fresh opportunities to point out the admin.’s various failures when it comes to diplomacy.
    He knocked the police action/military action nonsense out of the park. He made it clear that he’s not going to cut and run, on the contrary, if we need more troops to bring stability to Iraq, so be it. Oh. And he’s got a nice tan.
    Edward’s right.

  9. It’s worth noting that Jim Lehrer is far superior to Russert, George S., and the incredible shrinking Schieffert.

  11. Man. I hope the rest of America saw the same interview Edward did. Or even Von. Cause all I kept doing was thinking “We nominated him? Nuts.” Every time I thought he was going to take a real stand on something he either didn’t, or he took the wrong one, or wussed out while taking the implied wrong stand (see his responses re: Israel). I had to stop watching when he chuckled and said along the lines of “Now, atrocities… ho ho… what a crazy word, ‘atrocities.'” Man.

  12. He was wearing a Hillary Clinton mask? 🙂
    snicker, snicker…
    Kerry was, as Harley noted, coherent. If you were prone to disagree with him, you may not have been swayed much, but if you had been feeling weighed down by the drone of the GOPs attacks lately (as I had) you were likely to be elated that not only is the man clearly intelligent, he’s quick, tough, and getting better and better all the time at cutting through the rhetoric, addressing the charges against him with candor and convincing answers, and distinguishing his stand on the issues from that of Bush in meaningful ways.

  13. Kerry made only a few gaffs, and overall he came across as “presidential”, which is what is needed. A better response on the atrocity quote would have helped (and no grin).
    MTP isn’t very appealing for the well informed. But lots of people across America get their Sunday dose of the big picture from these kinds of shows. The local news 30 second snip is what lots of people get for national stories, so this was lots of exposure.
    I’d say he hit a double or triple, given Russert’s mania for finding something to do a gotcha with. Russert didn’t score any substantial negative points.

  14. MTP isn’t very appealing for the well informed. But lots of people across America get their Sunday dose of the big picture from these kinds of shows.
    And that right there is why I think he’ll be the next POTUS. Compare his performance with Bush’s last Tuesday…
    Which one looked like he had a good grasp of what’s going on? Clearly I’m partial, but Kerry looked presidential (in every sense of the word)and to “lots of people across America” that’s a very important thing.

  15. I’ll say this for him – he looked and sounded relaxed and even and “Presidential” (and tan). And much more Presidential than Bush did in that abomination of a press conference. But Kerry’s never had a problem looking statesmanlike. His problem is overcoming the impression that he’s the politician’s politician, that he’s running for president to be president, that he’ll say anything to get a vote. I don’t believe any of that’s true about him, but that’s the conventional wisdom about this man – and he did little to overcome it today, every response a tangle of words leaving calculated maneuvering room.

  16. One point I’d make about MTP is that, if you pay attention, you notice that quotes from the Sunday talk shows and Pumpkinhead especially wend their way into print stories throughout the week. In a sense, the chattering classes take their weekly cues from these Sunday interviews.

  17. Tangentially, but on the topic of Kerry and words about him on air and portrayals of the man, possibly one of the fine folks here might be interested in blogging on the latest latest fine words from the most popular right-wing radio broadcaster in America.
    And while we’re dropping the “H” word.
    Because here is a truly respectable characterization of leading Democrats.
    And, after all, the order of the day is repudiating what someone said, or pointing out when it doesn’t happen, isn’t it?

  19. I need to get me either some of Edward’s rose colored glasses or Harley’s blinders.

  22. I hardly think everyone “on the right” listens to or admires Limbaugh, Slarti.
    But he is, as he will remind everyone from time to time, the most popular radio talk show host in the nation, he’s the man the Vice-President will sit down with to exchange views on current events with, and he’s the man who explains at length that Hillary and Bill Clinton are engaged in a plot to get Hillary the Veep nomination and then, should they win, have John Kerry assasinated, just as they had Vincent Foster killed.
    That seems rather remarkable to me, if not to you.

  23. Might I suggest next time Kerry appears he doesn’t have a RNC hack do his makeup. Just a suggestion.

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