Panic is a choice, not an emotion. I’m old enough to remember 1984. Ronald Reagan was over prepared and lost the first debate against Walter Mondale. Today the only thing anybody remembers that year was his comeback in the second debate with the clever line about he would not use Mondale’s age and inexperience against him.
Some wise person said that the way to watch a debate was with the sound off. On that basis Biden lost the debate in the first minute, not unlike Nixon in 1960. First impressions matter. Apparently, lies don’t, nor do issues.
It’s too late in this process to panic. The stakes are too high. It’s time to buck up, not to jump off a bridge or move to Canada. The poll junkies are going to have a bad week, me too. Maybe, just maybe the cavalcade of lies from Trump will matter.
The spotlight will now turn to Vice President Harris vs. Trump’s pick.