The Al Smith Debates

I've watched these several times (each time someone new walked in the room!). This was a real "debate," equal time, uninterrupted, and free-form. Best of the series!

Romney cut deep into the quick with a velvet sword, smiling and looking almost bashful. If Mitt stumbled, it was when he delivered a harsh punch line too quickly, as if he didn't want to be too cruel to poor old out-of-his-league Barack.

Obama practically did Romney's work for him, but old golden throat's timing did not compare; he stuuuhhh-ttered twice in the first sentence. His audience was not as properly responsive as his usual sycophant squad. He really only seemed comfortable with those few good jokes that were not at his own expense.

Romney was self-effacing and genuinely funny; Obama, painfully, reminded us at practically every turn of everything that's wrong with himself and his abysmal administration. It wasn't so much funny as it was astonishing that he didn't incinerate on the spot from embarrassment.

That one point (1:08 in the video above), before O goes into the Cuomo joke, turn up the volume. He could be just kind-of saying uhhhhh real low, but he growls! I'd almost think this was comparable to a newsreader who was just handed a story, the behavior of a person who hadn't seen any of these jokes until he was in the middle of delivery! I got the impression he was ready to eviscerate the writer, but give the old faker props, he masked it all the way through a remarkably self-destroying speech.

I even wondered if they had the same speechwriter!