Time Has a Liberal Bias

There's one big reason for Kerry's victory that hasn't been mentioned much. Bush has been able to score lots of points in controlled, friendly fora; and his surrogates are viciously effective in the 20-second sound-bite wars. But last night, for the first time, we had a 90-minute discussion of foreign policy.

In sound bites, it can be effective to say things like "9/11 changed the way we think about war" or "You've got to be tough to win the war on terror." But, as the West Wing once said, what are the next ten words? He doesn't have any other thoughts.

And--this is critical--it's not just that Bush is an idiot. It's the whole movement behind him. He's a 10-second thinker, and neoconservatism is a 10-second philosophy. Put him in a 90-minute debate, and he's like a dandelion in a hurricane.

A very grumpy dandelion, with much better things to do than answer questions for the people of Dandelion Land.