I'm feeling a little embarassed

Last night, I blogged the debate just after it ended, and I declared Kerry the winner. Looking back at the overall event, I have to say that I was taken in by the apparent smoothness that Kerry demonstrated, as compared to the President's somewhat stulted delivery. Perhaps on style, Kerry may have won the debate, but on substance, and by substance I mean soundbites, Bush is going to come out ahead.

The big gaffe that Kerry made last night was to admit that he would use a "global test" to determine whether to use pre-emptive action against a threat to US national security. The President called him on it, and let me assure you, he is going to regret that comment. This is exactly what we all knew Kerry believed, but was unwilling to admit until last night. This is the reason, above all others, that John Kerry is unfit to be President. He has now, on national TV, admitted that he thinks the US needs permission from the UN/EU to act in its own self defense. The President is going to hammer him mercilessly for that statement, and well he should.

The other glaring contradiction that jumped out last night, was when Lehrer asked Kerry about his 1971 Senate testimony where he said, "How do you ask a man to be the last one to die for a mistake?" and if the troops that have died in Iraq died for a mistake. Kerry had already stated repeatedly that the Iraq war was a "collossal error" and a mistake, and he was forced to contradict himself in a vain effort to not seem to denigrate the sacrifice of our brave troops that have given their lives for their country. The President called him on that one too.

Two military issues that Kerry either lied about, or showed that he has no clue as to what he speaks are the Tora Bora comment, and the doubling of special operations forces. I posted this on the issue of doubling up SOF. As to the Tora Bora issue, Kerry said that we "outsourced" the job and therefore missed an opportunity to kill UBL. Tell that to the SF A-Teams that had infiltrated Afghanistan, trained and led the Northern Alliance into battle within a month of 9/11. The Unconventional Warfare operation conducted by the Army in Afghanistan will serve as a textbook example of how to conduct UW ops into perpetuity. Tell that to the CCT guys that were dumping air on Tora Bora, stacking up CAS 10 layers deep. Tell that to the SEALs who spent 9 days searching the caves for signs of UBL and finding only fingernails and tooth chips left from the bombing. Wrong answer, bitch! The invasion of Afghanistan by SOF affiliated with local fighters will go down in history as a marvel of military strategy and execution. What was Kerry thinking, that Bush was orbiting Tora Bora in an AC-130 making radio calls and personally directing troops in the field? Those comments were a slap in the face to the SOF community and to General Tommy Franks. He should definitely be called on this because this is more conclusive proof of his utter disdain for our military.

Overall, even though the President's answers weren't as complete as they certainly could have been, but he did not say anything at all to damage himself. The clips from the debate will be shown over and over in the coming days, and Kerry's gaffes provide the most juicy fodder for the MSM grist mill. Of course, they will try to spin the style over substance argument, but that will fade, as the President's resolve, and Kerry's leftist tendencies are on display. Fear not, for the poll numbers are not going to change as a result of this debate. If anything, the President will solidify his lead, further confounding and demoralizing the left.

I will be at the beach this weekend, so no promises on blogging, but I will do my best. Froggy OUT