Willful exclusion of facts vs. reason and intellect

Eleanor Clift nails it:

The contrast could not be greater between Bush, a man who passionately believes in the rightness of his convictions to the point of willfully excluding facts, and Kerry, a man who operates by reason and intellect. Before Thursday night, Bush had made a mockery of Kerry, using ridicule and sarcasm to turn his opponent into a cartoon figure. That will be harder now that voters have gotten a fuller picture.

Big John rules

To paraphrase Bill Murray in the first (and best) "Ghostbusters":

He came, he saw, he kicked his ass.

Kerry absolutely ruled in tonight's debate. Ron Reagan said as much. Even the mediawhores admitted it. Even Joe Scarborough (!) admitted it. Hell, even Andrea Mitchell admitted it.

Kerry was informed, articulate, concise, smart, and tough. He looked like a commander in chief. He looked...presidential.

As for the other guy....

Not even Karen Hughes can spin this into a win for Bush. If Dubya's floundering responses had not done him in, the reaction shots would have. All that smirking and eye-rolling...hell, all Al Gore did was sigh, for crying out loud. (Not to mention that deer-in-the-headlights moment when Bush asked for a rebuttal -- and stood there saying "Uhhhhhhhhhh...") And the Bushies wanted to lead with foreign policy, because they thought it played to his strength -- which means that from where they sit, it only gets worse from here.

For some time now, it's seemed to me as if Kerry would have to beat not only Bush, but the media -- which insists on glossing over the smirking chimp's painfully obvious inadequacies. Tonight should make a huge difference. Only an idiot could contend that Bush even managed to hold his own on that stage. Kerry blew him away.

BUT -- since Al Gore was initially judged the winner in the first debate of 2000 -- only to fall victim to media backlash/spin, I urge you to follow Digby's advice and serve as a media watchdog to make sure we consolidate the victory. Go on over to Hullabaloo and be prepared to enter the fray.

(I was so wound up, I allowed myself a cocktail when it was all over. A Cuba Libre -- the combination of rum, Coca-Cola and lime juice that was served in the White House during the FIRST JFK administration. I'm feeling the effects -- and so to bed.)