Monday, November 12, 2007

Sound-biting

In the last Democratic debate, I learned that Hillary is neither for nor against issuing drivers' licenses to illegal aliens. Or is she both for AND against it? It's hard to tell.

Yesterday I watched Obama on Meet the Press and he is no less a weasel than Hillary. The problem is that anything a candidate says can be taken out of context, turned into a sound bite, and played over and over again. Think Howard Dean and his yell, or Dubya and "Mission Accomplished". The only way to avoid being bitten is not to say anything biteworthy.

And so we have this strange sport of debates and interview shows where the reporters try to get their sound bites, and the candidates try to run out the clock without answering the questions. Watching a debate is like going to a car race and hoping for a crash.

The only candidates who can say anything interesting are the ones without a chance, like Dennis Kucinich or Ron Paul. Being sound-bitten would be a step up for them. (One of the reasons that I'm confident that I can sell Ron Paul short is that if Paul gets anywhere near being a serious contender, the other candidates will sound-bite him back into obscurity.)

No comments: