Tonight on the John Batchelor Show, I’ll give a quick rundown on the California gubernatorial debate between Meg Whitman (D) and Jerry Brown (D). If you don’t already know, Whitman is the former CEO of eBay (who has “invested” more than $120 million of her own money into her campaign), and Brown is the former two-term governor, three-time Democratic presidential primaries candidate, and current state attorney general. The debate, the first of three scheduled meetings between the two candidates, will be held at UC Davis. The “festivities” are scheduled to kick off at 6 p.m. PDT
According to the Los Angeles Times, “Each side has been actively trying to lower expectations for their candidate's performance Tuesday night. Whitman's campaign has pointed to Brown's debate experience dating back to his days on the debate team at St. Ignatius high school in San Francisco. ‘Jerry proved his oratorical abilities by winning the Freshman Elocution and Sophomore Oratorical contests, being chosen on the Silver and Gold Medal Debates,’ reads the text under his yearbook photo. Whitman's only debates were during the Republican primary against Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner.”
Most experts aren't expecting much - neither one is stellar when it comes to public oratory (these days) and both are in desperate need of charisma. One wrong word, stumble or major inaccuracy, however, could come back to haunt the candidate. The media will be, of course, looking to pounce on whomever goes off-script or can't handle the line of questioning. But since most of these affairs run according to note, little is likely to be accomplished tonight...
I’ll be on the John Batchelor Show at 9:50 p.m. PDT. Check the show's website or local listings for details...
I hope to see you there!
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