It's always a little hard to judge these things when you're watching them in a room of people who aren't exactly favorably disposed. Additionally, I experienced the DNC Convention from the arena hall, and that's a profoundly different vantage point. But tonight felt pretty...eh. Start with George W. Bush. This might have been profoundly naive, but I expected him to give a powerful speech. He's risen to the occasion many times before, and touch Americans in a powerful way. But tonight he didn't simply phone it in. He text messaged it over. He was garishly bright on the jumbotron, standing incongruously outside before, yes, two brilliantly white, Roman columns. His address was a desultory affair: An endorsement, not a speech. It may indeed be that he was trying to do John McCain a great favor by simply being forgettable. And he was forgettable, tonight. But he was also recorded. He looked at the camera and said "we need John McCain as president." You'll see that clip again. Fred Thompson was better. He's a drowsy speaker, his voice sinks deep into his throat and slows all the way down, as if preparing itself for bed. But the content was objectively powerful, if familiar: John McCain was a prisoner of war. The story was well told, but it's testament to McCain's reluctance to speak about his war record that by this point in the election, the mute can tell it, the forgetful can recall it, and the blind can sketch it. That said, if you were unaware of McCain's history as a POW, and it will swing your vote, consider your vote swung. If not, not. And ah, Joe. Eight years ago, you were the vice presidential nominee. Four years ago, you were begging Democrats for their presidential nomination. Two years ago, you were defeated in a Democratic primary. Now you're at the Republican convention. Lieberman is at the Xcel Center for much the reason that pet goldfish spend their days in a neon castle: He has nowhere else to go. He's a political outcast. His speech was fine. Good, even. Lieberman is a comforting presence on the stump, and he spoke emotionally of his friend John McCain, and passionately (and condescendingly) against that "eloquent, talented young man," Barack Obama. It's not hard to imagine Lieberman genuinely loathing Obama. After all, within four years Obama has captured what it took Joe Lieberman his whole career to fail to attain: The Democratic presidential nomination. It's not hard to imagine his speech having some effect, but it's hard to imagine it having much effect. He's simply not an impactful orator. Indeed, he's still Joe Lieberman. A droopy white guy people have been seeing on their televisions for years. That makes him comforting, and trustworthy, but it makes it hard for him to change minds. He's a famed old Washington player assuring the audience that his buddy, another famed Washington player, is the guy who can really change Washington. There were a few threads running throughout the night. Hurricane Gustav is very sad. John McCain is a POW. Sarah Palin is great pick, a great great pick, we totally love her and are not lying and the Democrats must be very scared because she is very experienced. And Barack Obama is inexperienced. The first message emerged sharply. So did the second. The third argument sounded tinny and defensive, particularly when Fred Thompson said the other side is in a "panic." Note to Thompson: You're an actor, not a Jedi. These were the droids we were looking for, and Palin is still on the cover of US Weekly, looking like Mama Spears. The attack on Obama was clear, but delivered without much passion. Even so, on day two of the Democratic convention, the Democrats weren't exactly hitting it out of the park. The Republicans still have the bulk of their time left. Maybe, if they can turn off that awful green screen they've erected behinds their speakers, they'll be able to make something of it.
