Father Knows Best

That old show came to mind last night as I watched Dick Cheney hand Edwards his head on a platter time and again. Without doubt, the most memorable line was the reminder that Edwards has missed 70% of his votes on national security issues, which explained why Cheney met him only last night. It was one of those blows that will stick to Edwards long after the debate, akin to what Lloyd Benson did to Dan Quayle ("You, senator, are no Jack Kennedy,') or Reagan's line about Carter, "There he goes again."

That's part of the risk of running a younger man on the ticket, I suppose: when an older opponent lectures him, it inevitably reminds everyone of their domestic life.

More importantly, Cheney laid the groundwork for Bush to go on the offensive Friday night. Aggressiveness is the lifeblood of debating: if you're explaining, you're losing. Bush must get some rest, put on his game face, and go after Kerry's abominable Senate record this round while arguing that the modern economy has produced more wealth for more people than anyone could have imagined only 20 years ago. Paint Kerry as the economic reactionary he and so many others of his generation are, and warn of the dangers of trying to return to horse and buggy days in the name of old time nostalgia.

What of Edwards's much-vaunted (and clearly successful) career as a trial lawyer? Where were his debating skills last night? As a Southerner, I'd posit that tugging the heartstrings of a jury hearing a malpractice case in which a child was harmed or killed requires a different set of skills than what's needed for taking on a man like Cheney over national issues. It's a bit like a debate between Oprah and a skilled professor: the former can emote and appeal to the audience's heart all she wants, but a skilled debater who knows a few things can eviscerate the showman.

"Here's a free car for you! Why? Because I'm a warm, wonderful person, of course? Didn't you already know that?"

"That's fine, ma'am. No offense intended, but now, folks, you're going to owe $7,000 in taxes, and you were invited here only because you're already broke. Are you sure you're getting a deal?"

The one time that Edwards left Cheney flustered last night proves this rule: Cheney's failure to respond to Edwards's compliment to the way he's handled having a lesbian daughter was less a calculation on the VP's part, I think, than the result of Edwards's ability to score points on a matter of the heart. It was the encounter closest in nature to the courtroom setting in which the North Carolinian excels, and he won it. Cheney needed at least to respond to Edwards's charge that the administration is dividing the country, but his heart wasn't in it, thanks in part to the way Edwards framed the issue. Make it personal, make everyone feel the pain of the defendant, and win the jury's vote. But it wasn't enough by any measure to turn the debate to Edwards's favor.

Other blogs are of course following the story: Allah has the most exhaustive round-up I've seen; Pejmanesque has long blocks of quotations from the debate interspersed with pithy commentary; Power Line weighs in with typically cogent commentary; Captain Ed records the remarks of left-leaning pundits to show that even they agree that Edwards was whipped; and Wizbang notes that Tom Brokaw, having called bloggers "political jihadists," hosted Wonkette and John Hinderaker of Power Line last night. Sometimes you gotta get dirty to get the story, I guess.