Was Third Time the Charm for Bush or Kerry?

By: E&P Staff More than one American watching the close of the third and final presidential debate must have sighed, "Finally." Many of them were likely reporters who had heard most of the tightly scripted lines on the stump too many times to count. Nevertheless, they weighed in with reports Thursday on the intemperate debate in Tempe, Arizona.

As with the two previous forums, the scientific polls afterward favored Kerry. He carried the CBS sample by 39% to 25% and Gallup's by 52% to 39%. He outdistanced Bush by 10 votes to 7 with a CNN group of undecided voters. He also edged the president at ABC News by 42%-41%.

Dan Balz and Jim VandeHei of The Washington Post wrote that the two candidates "clashed fiercely over domestic matters ... with Kerry blaming Bush for vast job losses and Bush seeking to keep the focus on Kerry's legislative record. The two men sparred over flu shots, education and taxes."

Mary Dalrymple of The Associated Press summarized many of the key issues before observing that "Bush was on better behavior" than in the first debate, which had a similar format, "and there was no grimacing and scowling this time when it was Kerry's turn to speak.

"The debate was also a policy wonk's dream -- a blizzard of facts and figures, references to 'budget caps' and other terms meaningful only to Washington insiders. Taxes was a particular flash point between the two men."

The New York Times observed that Bush's "happy face" performance "was his most appealing presentation so far, but it was so at odds with his others that some voters might be left puzzled by the inconsistency."

Julie Lawrence and Judy Keen of USA Today called the debate "personal from the start," as Bush and Kerry "argued over flu vaccines, health care, education, trade, 'outsourcing' and fiscal responsibility."

Their colleague at the paper, Susan Page, offered analysis, observing that the candidate "didn't only thrust and parry for 90 minutes. They also displayed their strategy for the next 19 days." Bush mocked Kerry as a liberal while Kerry "depicted Bush as a tool of powerful corporate interests."

It was a night of "broad brush strokes, hammering attacks and political stereotypes, a sign that both candidates felt an imperative to energize their core supporters in the last weeks of a campaign that remains too close to call," she added. "Bush's conservatism was unshaded, and Kerry was more populist than he has been during his Senate career."

Michael Tackett in the Chicago Tribune declared that "if the country were electing a debater-in-chief, after three rounds, most would give the title to the Democrat."