Kerry wins on points but can't get the KO

My take on Friday's debate is that Kerry blew a great opportunity to knock George W. Bush out of the ring. Will Saleton outlines it in painful detail here, as does John Judis here. I couldn't believe that Kerry let Bush get away with the ridiculous argument that the Duelfer report in any way bolsters the administration's rationale for going to war in Iraq. Nor did Kerry mention Paul Bremer's remarks from last week, nor did he mention Friday's dismal jobs report. He also let the rightward leanings of the women who asked questions about stem cell research and abortion throw him off, resulting in muddled answers on issues where his position is clearly favored.

But both ABC and CNN post-debate polls showed narrow Kerry wins among debate viewers, and the latter poll had more Republicans in it than Democrats. Perhaps those polls suggest not so much that Kerry won the debate, Judis argues, but that he is actually winning the race.

Can Kerry close the deal on Wednesday? The original conventional wisdom on the debates was that domestic policy was Kerry's strength, but it turns out that foreign policy is where this election is being fought and it's where the President is the most defensive. Bush seemed to do better in the domestic portion of Friday's debate -- ironic, since he really has no domestic policy -- but seemingly relieved to be off the subject of Iraq and into an area where he can fall back on liberal-baiting. I think Kerry has his work cut out for him on Wednesday.