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Notes -
I largely agree, I didn't think it was that bad but the split screen was killer. Significant portions of the debate Biden was staring off (at the wrong cameral?) slack jawed with a blank look on his eyes while Trump did normal Trump faces. I don't know what view the CNN panel had and the other channel commentators but I think there was major social momentum around "panic" that swept through a lot of elite democratic circles in the first 30 minutes.
If they had circled the wagons it probably wouldn't have been so bad but you had Anderson Cooper asking Kamala Harris tough questions. Now tons of Democrat talking heads are on record saying this is a disaster, and if that keeps momentum in the elite circles Biden could come under pressure.
Man, Kamala Harris is so incredibly unlikeable on camera (I hear she's fine in person). But yeah, you know that in private, almost every Democrat is going to be thinking to themselves "why can't Biden just step aside like we all secretly want him to?" These thoughts don't come up unless they've been simmering for a while, and I think they have.
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