Warnock vs. Walker post-debate analysis

The Saturday Sentiments!

Nobody asked me, but…

*It is tough, very tough, to debate anyone who has a weak grasp of facts and a tenuous hold on the truth. In that regard, kudos to Sen. Raphael Warnock for staying calm and deliberative onstage despite his opponent, Herschel Walker's, constant attempts to deflect, distract, and deviate from debate norms.

*I submit off the bat that most Georgia voters had already made their minds up about who they plan to vote for long before they clicked on the live stream for last night's debate; the majority of Democrats will vote for Sen. Warnock, while the majority of Republicans will vote for Walker.

The issue, then, is what impact did the hour-long session have on Independent voters who could prove pivotal over the next few weeks? That answer hinges greatly upon whether the Independent voter considers themselves center-left or center-right, as Warnock's Senate record and onstage responses--and the few coherent responses that Walker gave-- show that both are firmly entrenched within their party's ideological camps.

*When I write "coherent" regarding Mr. Walker, I am not referencing his articulation per se—anyone who has watched him over the years already knows that the man struggles with diction, projection, pronoun usage, and subject-verb agreement. And yet, all things considered, I thought that Walker cleared the VERY low bar that he set for himself by sticking closely to the canned answers that he was coached to give, especially the "Warnock votes with Biden 96 % of the time" refrain.

No, coherent in this context is the one or two times that Walker answered the posed question without being an "inartful" dodger, as I list below:

Sen. Warnock (record and debate rhetoric)

A. Touts Infrastructure improvement;

B. Voted tax relief for middle class;

C. Supports a woman's right to choose;

D. Supports a "livable wage;"

E. Supports lowering energy costs by holding energy corporations accountable;

F. Fought to lower costs of insulin and other prescription drugs;

G. In favor of sanctions against Russian Dictator Vladimir Putin;

H. Supports student loan relief;

I. Combats Black voter suppression efforts;

J. Believes that "Black Lives Matter" and combats excessive use of police force against all Americans.

Herschel Walker (Rhetoric)

A. "Warnock votes with Biden 96% of the time;"

B. "Warnock votes with Biden 96% of the time;"

C. Opposes abortion and says that his ex-girlfriend 'dem are lying about abortions that he paid for over a decade ago;

D. Does not support a livable wage and wants to leave wage increases to the discretion of corporations;

E. Opposes government regulations on oil and energy companies to lower gas prices;

F. Does not support government regulation of prescription drug costs and believes that the answer to insulin prices is for diabetics to "eat right;"

G. Responds to questions about standing up to Vladimir Putin by saying that Sen. Warnock won't stand up to Sen. Chuck Schumer or President Joe Biden;

H. Is opposed to student loan debt relief, but has no response to corporations and Republicans who wrote off billions in PPP loan relief. Claims that he would move to eliminate federal financing for any college that raises tuition.

I. Doesn't believe that Black voter suppression is an issue.

J. Believes that police brutality against Blacks is not nearly as bad as "the liberals" make it out to be.

*Scrolling my social media timelines, many who observed last night's debate felt as is Sen. Warnock didn't crush Herschel Walker as he should have on stage. I offer a different take and posit that Sen. Warnock had little to gain from last night's session—but he had so much to lose if he came across as being mean-spirited or nasty to his opponent. You see, there are potential Georgia voters who may disagree with Walker's politics, but when they listen to "how" he speaks, they see their kin, their friends, or maybe even themselves. Thus, staying above the fray and avoiding condescension was a net positive for Warnock, in my estimation.

Similarly, Sen. Warnock was wise to avoid pressing Walker on his prior payments for abortions and domestic violence, as those in the know (or wanting to know) realize that Walker has been lying about those issues (in addition to lying about being class valedictorian, a corporate guru, and a police officer, which Warnock did effectively call out after Walker lied about the Senator's record and beliefs about law enforcement).

So, with the "debate" now done, the race to the finish in Georgia will be fascinating to see what turnout looks like for Democrats and Republicans in the Peach State. While the debate provided some head scratching moments and a few laughs, the outcome will be no laughing matter for Democrats if Walker takes the seat from Warnock and, by so doing, makes the likelihood of a successful second half for the Biden administration far less likely.

Stay tuned...