Dem Debate Prediction

Tonight's Dem debate in Las Vegas will feature Hillary's desperate attempt to stop the bleeding from her last debate and the various campaign gaffes that have occurred since then. She really needs a good performance tonight to turn things around.

She won't get any breaks from moderator Wolf Blitzer after her campaign threatened him the other day. I'm sure he'll have a tough question or two for her, and probably won't by shy about pointing out discrepancies in her positions. If nothing else Wolfie needs to prove to this fellow newsies that he can confront the Hillary machine. If he doesn't, he'll be a laughingstock.

Obama and Edwards need to hit hard if they have any chances of keeping her downward momentum going. According to Rasmussen today the race in Iowa is basically tied between the top three. Hillary's numbers have slipped significantly since the last survey.

How will the mainstream media report the event? If Hillary does not come off as a complete babbling idiot she will be reported as dazzling the crowd with her brilliance and wit and turning her entire campaign around. The media is still desperate to annoint Hillary and they'll use any opportunity they can to redeem her flagging campaign. The spin will certainly be that all of her problems of the past three weeks are now forgotten.

However, the new media is still out there and it won't be quite so easy to sweep Hillary's troubles away.

UPDATE: It looks like Wolfie is ready for a fight:

Blitzer, who said he had not been directly contacted by the Clinton campaign, called the New York Democrat “a sophisticated, strong politician.” But he also issued his own veiled warning.

“If she can’t handle the heat during a Democratic contest, wait until the Republicans really start going after her,” he told TV Newser. “If she’s the nominee.”

Blitzer also defended Russert against criticism by Bill Clinton.

“I think Russert was doing his job,” he said. “He was trying to follow up and be Tim Russert. He asks tough questions. That’s what people want. I admire him.”

Finally, Blitzer took issue with Bill Clinton’s complaint that six “boys” — a reference to the other Democratic presidential candidates —ganged up on one “girl,” his wife.
“Hillary Clinton is the front-runner,” Blitzer said. “No matter if it’s a boy or girl, there’s a tendency to gang up on that person. It’s a natural phenomenon.”