Cheney’s debate slam dunk

The NY Post analysis [LINK] shows even the liberal press agrees Cheney handily put away challenger John Edwards in their one-time-only debate in Cleveland last night -- and effectively put away John Kerry as well:

Once again, Vice President Cheney showed his boss how to debate — same as 2000, when he helped turn around momentum in the campaign.

Cheney looked calm and almost grandfatherly as he used his debate with veep wannabe John Edwards to take aim at top-of-the-ticket John Kerry and paint him as a flip-flopper who lacks the credibility to lead and win in a time of terror.

"You're not credible on Iraq because of the enormous inconsistencies that John Kerry and you have cited time after time after time," Cheney said.

"Whatever the political pressures of the moment requires, that's where you're at. But you've not been consistent and there's no indication at all that John Kerry has the conviction to successfully carry through on the war on terror."

There in a nutshell is the Bush-Cheney case against Kerry — but it's a case that Bush barely made in last week's first presidential debate. In an era when safety is the first concern for many voters, that was a key point.

Cheney pulled no punches as he nailed Edwards for not showing up for Senate votes. Commenting on his ‘nearly every Tuesday’ appearance in the Senate, Cheney proclaimed that the debate was the first time he had ever met Edwards.

Perhaps the most stinging blow was Cheney’s charge levied against both Edwards and Kerry (individually) for caving into then rival Howard Dean’s anti-war position on Iraq during the Democrat battle for the nomination:

"So they, in effect, decided they would cast an anti-war vote and they voted against the troops. Now if they couldn't stand up to the pressures that Howard Dean represented, how can we expect them to stand up to al Qaeda?" Cheney said.

Another searing moment came when Cheney accused Edwards of demeaning the sacrifices made by Iraqis for their own country:

"For you to demean their sacrifice is beyond the pale," Cheney said to Edwards.

Clearly a win was scored overall by Cheney and perhaps a foot up was given to his boss for the upcoming Friday presidential debate in St. Louis.

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