Clint Eastwood at GOP convention.

[slingshot]

I read that too about Clint.  He said he didn't know for sure what he was going to say until he was in waiting to go on stage.  That troubles me.  There is a bit too much trust involved there from the standpoint of the Republicans.  You can't afford loose cannons during a convention even though I felt some of the speakers at the DNC were rather "loose".

[ArfinGreebly]

You know, I listened to pundits ridicule, criticize, and snicker about Eastwood for a whole freaking week after he delivered that "improv" piece.

It was the single most discussed and reviled and revered presentation of the entire convention.

It eclipsed everything else, took the country by storm, and energized a whole segment of the grassroots that wasn't reached by anyone else.


Man, those loose cannons, those are such a hazard to politics.  You have to really manage your political presence.  You can't have people just speaking from the heart, tellin' it like it is, or gut-punching the opposition.

That's just so . . . unrefined.

[TommyGunn]

Funny things come from unusual places.

[Doggy Daddy]

Funny things come from unusual places.

"Liked" and "Shared"

[MrsSmith]

Man, those loose cannons, those are such a hazard to politics.  You have to really manage your political presence.  You can't have people just speaking from the heart, tellin' it like it is, or gut-punching the opposition.

That's just so . . . unrefined.

This, times a hundred. Have we forgotten that one of the reasons Obama got elected is because he speaks so elegantly? Really people? Y'all come down on Eastwood for not being a good public speaker, does that mean you'd rather have Obama (and all of his ilk) up there telling you pretty lies than someone speaking from his gut? Welcome to brain-washed America. Where we want to turn you into a smooth politician because that's what we expect to see because it reassures us that the speaker is sane and confident and worthy of our mindless devotion.

[SADShooter]

This, times a hundred. Have we forgotten that one of the reasons Obama got elected is because he speaks so elegantly? Really people? Y'all come down on Eastwood for not being a good public speaker, does that mean you'd rather have Obama (and all of his ilk) up there telling you pretty lies than someone speaking from his gut? Welcome to brain-washed America. Where we want to turn you into a smooth politician because that's what we expect to see because it reassures us that the speaker is sane and confident and worthy of our mindless devotion.

I just watched the panel discussion on Fox News Sunday. The consensus was that Romney made the better argument on repairing the economy, but that Obama still maintained a lead in favorability. There was no clear explanation for this. My best conclusion is that, at least among the poll population, style and presentation are more highly valued than substantive argument.

[slingshot]

One of the things that I chuckle about that Obama said is that you (the electorate) elected me to tell the truth.  His truth reflects Bill Clinton's speech at the convention that no president could have repared all the damage to the economy in one term.  The operable word is "all".  It is a sweeping generalization that is by design true. 

I go back to Clint's on stage discussion with the empty chair....  what?  I can't do that to myself...  Obama has been an empty chair.  It is time to lay him off and hire a new coach.  Let's not forget...  give me some time to get pass this pesky election and I will be more flexible...

[Monkeyleg]

My best conclusion is that, at least among the poll population, style and presentation are more highly valued than substantive argument.

Very true, and the reason why NJ Governor Christie and Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindahl could never be elected. Too fat, and too weird-looking.

[longeyes]

No one said suffrage should be a suicide pact.

But in this culture it is looking more and more like that every cycle.