I have a few thoughts after watching the televised debate the other day. Both Biden and Palin appeared to hold their own, even if they occasionally also seemed to disregard the questions they were asked in favor of whatever they wanted to talk about.

My only gripe was with something that is already so ubiquitous in candidate-ese you think I would be used to it by now: the patronizing. It’s the way a candidate directs a statement to the listening audience as if we are just a little bit slow. The vast majority of us have not been anywhere near the Harvard campus and we will never have the kind of pressure that comes with being elected to office.
But we can also see through you.

I get it. We, the Joe Six Packs of the world, are important. You want us to like you. But please stop patting us on the head like a vote for you means we get a gold star and an extra treat in our lunchbox tomorrow.

* * *

Leaving the candidates alone for a moment, I can’t help but call out the handful of people who have expressed support for one candidate or another, first and foremost, because they feel as though they could sit their living room and “talk to them like a buddy.”

It’s certainly not a detriment to a candidate to be congenial—I would guess international relations could get pretty prickly if the leader of the free world lacked basic social skills. But I also don’t think it should sit atop the list of criteria for casting your vote a particular candidate’s way.

I’d like a strong sense of ethics and a cool head under pressure. I’d like the President to exhibit the selflessness to put the good of the nation ahead of whatever his or her legacy might be.
I don’t care how die-hard a Red or a Blue you are, you are never going to find a candidate that is going to call every shot the way you want them to. But consistency is another value I’d prize.
Being able to shoot the breeze is nice, but I already have enough buddies.

Just give me a president who can get the job done.