The Battle on the Strip
The sign on the Strip read “DEMOCRATS DEBATE.” It should have said the first “HEAVYWEIGHT THRILLER IN VEGAS” as five of the six candidates walked on stage primed to battle. The one candidate not ready for the “main ring” was Mike Bloomberg, who seemed annoyed, unprepared, and disdainful of the other candidates, all of who were lined up ready to jump him from the top rope.
Hard to imagine Bloomberg didn’t prepare, but he wasn’t. It’s not that his staff isn’t “expert” enough to know what was coming, they’re the best money can buy; but the candidate himself just hasn’t been in the spotlight enough to know. Like any athletic event, there is nothing like the standing actual “ring” to prepare for the competition. Mike wasn’t ready on Wednesday; even his billions didn’t buy experience.
Don’t expect that he’ll stay muddled. While Bloomberg doesn’t ever look to be an “outstanding” debater, he will improve.
Scoring the Bout
As far as the other candidates are concerned, Senator Sanders seemed in a “tough” mood. He took his fair share of shots from the others as well (though only about half of what Bloomberg got) but Bernie always came back to – we’ve got to change, and we’ve got to change everything: join the revolution or join the billionaires.
Senator Warren attacked Bloomberg, and defended women both herself and Senator Klobuchar. She also shied away from any attacks on Bernie. Warren, as usual, had an answer for every question. It’s hard to judge whether she got all the attention from the moderators, or they simply let control of the discussion slip into her hands.
Joe Biden had has best night yet – perhaps his desperate electoral situation is focusing his skills. The obvious contrast of Biden and Bloomberg may well put the former Vice President back in the hunt for the nomination. Bloomberg’s media campaign has influenced a lot of voters, but his tentative and haughty performance in Vegas might just put Biden in play for Nevada, and more importantly, South Carolina.
Amy Klobuchar had another strong debate, making her case as a strong Presidential performer. While it’s hard to see her path to the nomination, both financially and electorally, she’s demonstrating that she belongs.
Player or Referee
And Mayor Pete Buttigieg fell into a different role in the debate. Tom Steyer seemed to be the candidate/moderator of the last debate, directing the discussion back to the core issue of defeating Trump. Thursday, Steyer was absence from the stage, and Mayor Pete seemed to take on the “Greek Chorus” role. His statement, burn it down (Sanders) or buy it (Bloomberg) was supposed to leave “Pete” as the only remaining choice. I don’t think it achieved that goal, but it did present Democratic voters with some stark choices.
Overall rankings: Klobuchar, Biden, Warren, Buttigieg, and Sanders, with Mayor Bloomberg coming in last with a rookie performance. Tune in again in South Carolina.
On the Under Card
But the debate wasn’t the only news Wednesday.
Richard Grenell, avowed Trump loyalist, Fox contributor and Ambassador to Germany has been appointed acting Director of National Intelligence. Grenell has no intelligence background at all, and retains his Ambassadorship as well.
While he is only an acting appointee, and is unlikely to receive the permanent appointment due to the Senate on March 11th, it seems that the President is making another statement about the value of the intelligence services. In light of the impeachment and the whistleblower report, Mr. Trump is showing his disapproval of the intelligence community, a Presidential attitude that goes back to the Intelligence briefing on the Steele Dossier in January of 2017, before Trump even took office.
And speaking of Russia, Julian Assange, founder of Wikileaks, is claiming that former Congressman Dana Rohrabacher offered him a Presidential pardon if he would deny Russian involvement in the stolen Democratic National Committee emails. While Rohrabacher was in the House, he was nicknamed “the Congressman from Russia” for his undying support for the Russian side on every issue.
If Assange was really offered a Presidential pardon it would be a huge story in American politics. But the reality is, Assange is willing to say anything, true of false, to avoid extradition from the United Kingdom to American courts. And while Assange has a willing following in the United States, it isn’t likely that this story will gain much traction. Both Assange and Rohrabacher could also be tools of Russian disinformation.
President Trump has already distanced himself from the story and former Congressman Rohrabacher, saying, “I hardly knew him”.
Of Pots and Kettles
And finally, Acting Chief of Staff and “man no longer allowed in the White House press room” Mick Mulvaney complained that Democrats are unconcerned about the growing US deficit. It’s what my mother would have called, “the pot calling the kettle black,” as Mulvaney not only wrote the Trump budgets that increased the debt by trillions of dollars as Director of the Office of Management and Budget, but was a “deficit hawk” as a Freedom Caucus Congressman in his previous career.
And that was only Wednesday.
