It's Kind of a Long Story... about THE DEBATE

I saw what I saw.

Hey Drama Goblins,

I didn’t think I was going to post today. I’m traveling and have been up to my eyeballs in a lot. Fun, work, and the constant overstimulation that IS New York City.

However, last night chilled me to the bone. Not only the V.P. debate, but my fellow democrats who didn’t allow themselves to see what I saw.

This week isn’t so much a long story as it is an Op/Ed I’m bashing out while the thoughts are fresh before I dash out to work. Please hear me out, and do everything you can to keep JD and the D as far away from the Oval Office as possib,e

I’m so glad you’re here,

Lara

I’M KIND OF A KNUCKLEHEAD

Short Story

Going into the debate, JD Vance was the most unpopular national figure since Lee Harvey Oswald. He came out a winner.

Long Story

I’ve been having a lot of fun in New York and usually like to make the most of my time when I travel, but I felt compelled to stay in last night and watch the V.P. Debate. I said to my host, “I feel compelled to bear witness.”

I had no idea how right I was.

It should go without saying, but I loathe JD Vance. I have since I read Hillbilly Elegy in 2016. He’s a lying, racist, sexist, narcissist with mommy issues up the wazoo. He’s creepily and terrifyingly fixated on birthing. I’ve said many times I hate him more than The D and have struggled to be able to articulate why.

Now I know why.

Last night, he came off a cool, calm, collected, smart, sure, informed and even… and this seems almost impossible… compassionate.

Did he lie? Of course. About a lot. Did he evade questions? Of course. So did Tim. Tim came out of the gate avoiding a very direct question about Israel.

The point of a debate isn’t to answer questions truthfully. The point of a debate is to know your audience and perform for them.

As is true in almost all of life, it doesn’t matter what you say, it matters how you make people feel, and the primary thing people want to feel is safe.

JD made his fellow Elephants who don’t feel safe with The D feel safe with him. That’s all he had to do and he did it beautifully. Almost perfectly.

That is terrifying. He knows how to code-switch. He knows he makes people uncomfortable in person, but he can make them feel assured on stage, especially when he’s debating against a someone who he feels superior to.

Undecided voters are not undecided between The D and Kamala. They are undecided about voting.

He gave voters who are unsure about The D, but who will never vote for a Dem - much less a Black Woman Dem - cover and comfort.

Before last night, I didn’t think anyone would follow JD out of a burning building much less toward a dystopian future. Last night, I saw how and why they would.

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And Tim? Tim looked and sounded out of his league. The callbacks to Minnesota grew tiresome. It doesn’t matter if the facts were true, he sounded like the guy who moves to your town and doesn’t stop shutting up about how great his old town was.

He set his face somewhere between angry and sad. His mouth was perpetually downturned. He looked older than his 60 years. His persistent note-taking gave the impression he was unprepared. Compared to JD’s smarmy smirk, it didn’t work.

There are countless facts, quotes and policies that he could have used to nail JD to the wall. In more stilled hands, JD may even have been rattled. Instead, he agreed with him over and over again. He humanized him. He made him seem like an equal with whom reasonable people can disagree on high-level policy issues, not the malignant and dangerous racist, sexist, creep that he is.

And handing them the soundbite, “Sometimes I’m a knuckelhead” didn’t help make the case that he can go toe-to-toe with Putin.

JD is a terrible campaigner and an excellent debater. Tim is the opposite.

And yes, this all matters.

People are fond of saying, “Debates don’t matter” and “no one votes because of a V.P.” That’s nonsense. Everything matters. Politics is a long and layered game of PR. PR and image and messaging work under the radar. Emphasis on work.

The V.P. debate is watched by a small slice of the electorate. What happened on stage will get distilled and diluted into small soundbites and vibes as it expands from who watched to the voters and would-be-voters on the outer circles of media consumption, but it will get there. Quietly. Insidiously. Without people even been fully aware of the messages they’re getting or why they feel the way they do about the candidates.

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Does that mean this is over? No. Hell No.

Someone said to me, “There are no undecided voters. There are voters and non-voters.”

I don’t believe that for a second. I believe that GOTV (Get Out the Vote) efforts matter a lot. The margins are slim and a precinct and state can be turned my a very small number of votes.

Please, do everything you can to turn out as many votes as you can.

Our future depends on it. Now more than ever.