Walter Shapiro

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

It’s not just presidents. Gary Hart dropped out of the 1988 race, missed maybe six debates, and then rejoined the field in early 1988. He was suddenly a terrible debater because he had been on the sidelines while his rivals were getting better. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

@david_darmofal I am not an expert on congressional procedures. But with the House adjourned until January 7, I assume the senators are safe to campaign through mid-January. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

@dkahanerules Ford’s comment was in 1976. That said, regardless of the outcome, the media tends to over-hype debates. But presidential primary debates do allow voters to be a sense of the candidates even though gotcha moments are over-rated. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

Thanks for being on the right side of how the DNC has misused evanescent early poll results. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

@rachel_x_graves All I can say is that unhappy campaigns in which the staff feel mistreated leak constantly (see Harris, Kamala). But there have been no leaks from the Klobuchar effort. Not conclusive, but certainly a good omen. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

RT @newrepublic: .@MrWalterShapiro: “In the pre-dawn darkness after a presidential debate, the glib certainties of the previous night becom… — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

But won’t those staff stories now go under the heading of “old news”? Sure, they’ll be discussed, but they won’t warrant the breathless coverage of new revelations about, say, a wine cave. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

RT @newrepublic: The biggest beneficiary of Pelosi’s impeachment delay is probably Klobuchar, writes @MrWalterShapiro. https://t.co/iulB7lV… — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

Without Trump, the churches would be ruins, scavenged for their wooden pews for firewood. God would not only be dead, but he would probably also have turned into a socialist Democrat in despair. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

@Charlie27Cy @TomPerez That was the effect. It was obviously inadvertent. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

If anybody things this headline is belittling, I want to stress that I am a great fan of vaudeville, which I wish I could have seen in its heyday. In fact, I wrote a book about my con-man great uncle who started as a vaudeville agent. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

@Charlie27Cy @TomPerez I wasn't promoting Bennet so much as taking an advantage of a recent interview that I had with him in Washington. Had I sat down with Booker, he would have been the lede of the piece. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

@Charlie27Cy @TomPerez Can't keep responding. But quickly to the last point: There have only been six contested Democratic nomination fights since the 1984. And two of them (2000 and 2016) only had two real candidates. Tiny sample size. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

@Charlie27Cy They've never had to choose between two nights of debates. But the Democrats who will participate in Iowa and NH are pretty committed to making wise decisions. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

@Charlie27Cy Two responses: 1). Yes, the field has been historically big. But it also includes candidates like Marianne Williamson and Tulsi Gabbard, who is barely a Democrat. 2). The networks would accept two debates in January since the ratings would still be better than other programming. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

I am heartbroken over the death of Ward Just -- a great novelist and even a greater companion across a dinner table. Please as a tribute read one of Ward's novels like "Echo House" or "Jack Gance." https://t.co/tLGgcNoJMW — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

Since Klobuchar had another strong debate, I am taking the liberty of reposting my campaign snapshot from Iowa about her that went up at @newrepublic earlier this week: https://t.co/9dRK3I6IVc — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

Two questions coming out of the debate: "Can Warren, who seemed invisible during the first half of the debate, restore the luster of last summer? " "Is Bloomberg capable of scrambling the race with an orgy of spending unknown since Croesus ran for king?" https://t.co/5rrdxoMCby — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

A big question coming out of the debate: "Is Buttigieg real or is he Memorex? (That is a reference to a 1970s ad campaign for Memorex recording tape featuring Ella Fitzgerald. And, yes, the 37-year-old Buttigieg wasn’t yet born.)" My @newrepublic wrap-up: https://t.co/5rrdxoMCby — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

But boy do we have questions going into January. The biggest: Can Klobuchar, after another strong performance, ascend to the top tier? — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

"Instead of awarding letter grades from the debate, it is more useful to see the candidates as a vaudeville troupe, each candidate with an increasingly familiar specialty act." I assess the race for @newrepublic after the debate: https://t.co/5rrdxoMCby — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

Tom Perez, the stubbornest man in the Democratic Party, just increased the DNC's requirements for the January 14th debate in Des Moines. (Somehow Perez is unlikely to be on Cory Booker's Christmas card list). My piece from yesterday: https://t.co/iBS0XLEiiT — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

RT @BriannaWu: When asked what they’d apologize for in the #DemDebate, both women gave heartfelt reflections on their personal failings ..… — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

I think we are at the stage that grades or a list of winners and losers doesn’t quite capture the complexity of the competition. All five serious candidates had their own tactical needs which get in the way of rigid scoring. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

Hell of a close for Warren. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

RT @NormOrnstein: The odds of a Congress with 51 or 52 Democrats in the Senate, a Democratic House and a Democratic Senate enacting Medicar… — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

@VBass Story of my life. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

Whoops. Here comes Medicare for All. Is there a single new word to be said? Sanders’ answer just illustrates this repetition. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

Can I say how thrilled I am that we have not had another predictable and debilitating debate over Medicare for All. — PolitiTweet.org

Walter Shapiro @MrWalterShapiro

RT @HickmanPolls: Democratic candidates nationwide will spend the holidays finding new locations for fundraisers they’d scheduled in wine c… — PolitiTweet.org