It is a challenging thing to do. This was my second trip facing the state-wide TV cameras in four years. I did like this one better for the 350-person live audience, giving me humans to talk to. However the debate between two of us facing only cameras and crew in 2006 allowed for a lot more thoughtfulness from each of us and better expression of our differing points of view.
The one thing that did not change was the racing pulse and difficulty bringing the right thoughts out in a coherent way. I came away with a bunch of shoulda-said’s and critical self-analysis, but have come to feel I did okay for who I am and what I represent.
You can see the debates with links to each candidate’s websites here: http://idahoptv.org/elections/2010/gen/gov.cfm
The really good news is that I have received quite a bit of positive feedback from friends and strangers. I did manage to express positions that were fresh, interesting, sensible and, best of all, persuasive. I picked up votes from folks who had never before considered me or the Libertarian party.
The moderator unfortunately got her clock wrong on my closing speech and cut me off immediately after the 30-second warning clicked. She did a great job in all other ways and I did not resent it at all. But I sure meant to point people to my website before she destroyed my train of thought.
In the Take-Away Post-Debate event, three pompous PhDs blabbed on about what they comprehended. The trained top dogs of the government school monopoly finally inspired the only really good speech I gave that night. I finally got a “10” from me.
Check out The Takeaway: Post-Debate Analysis second down on the left column from this page.
