General 2028 Election

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The left must be flawless, the right may be lawless.

The media has become complicit in this ridiculous double standard.
Better to stumble now than in a primary debate. Bernie had some downright bad FP answers in 2016, so good to see the leading left candidate taking it seriously.
 
It was a potentially costly stumble for AOC in part because it highlights a weakness for her generally (lack of foreign policy chops), but Trump gives fumbling answers like this pretty much daily and it is frequently glazed over by a press trying to force coherence on his rambling.

I think we should have a higher standard for political knowledge and discourse, but one stumble is hardly disqualifying (well, maybe the “what is Aleppo” moment is an exception), but all current and potential leaders should be held to the same scrutiny.
 
The problem is that Trump has gone through his entire life bullshitting his way through questions he can't answer. So he's practiced at talking while ignorant.

AOC, by contrast, likely keeps quiet when she doesn't know. So, when put on the spot, she's unpracticed at bullshitting. It was the silence and "ums" that make her look bad. In reality, the content of that silence and most of what Trump or Vance have to say is more or less the same.
 
The problem is that Trump has gone through his entire life bullshitting his way through questions he can't answer. So he's practiced at talking while ignorant.

AOC, by contrast, likely keeps quiet when she doesn't know. So, when put on the spot, she's unpracticed at bullshitting. It was the silence and "ums" that make her look bad. In reality, the content of that silence and most of what Trump or Vance have to say is more or less the same.
Worse in that they fill the void with drivel and nonsense that 1/3 of American believes to be true.
 
It should also be said that the question put to AOC was entirely improper. First, it's as much a military question as a policy question -- the American response would almost certainly vary depending on the circumstances of the hypothetical attack. Second, the American policy regarding Taiwan and China is so delicate, mostly interstitial and without any official formulation, that any statement coming from a member of Congress could have significant repercussions. I wonder if her pausing and stammering reflected that she was in real time processing how to deal with these factors.

What she should have said was, "I cannot make any statement about that. It's a question for the commander in chief after consultation with the Joint Chiefs of Staff. I don't want to say anything that might be construed as a commitment either way. All I can say is that I won't at this time give a definitive answer either way." Something like that. She'll learn.
 
It should also be said that the question put to AOC was entirely improper. First, it's as much a military question as a policy question -- the American response would almost certainly vary depending on the circumstances of the hypothetical attack. Second, the American policy regarding Taiwan and China is so delicate, mostly interstitial and without any official formulation, that any statement coming from a member of Congress could have significant repercussions. I wonder if her pausing and stammering reflected that she was in real time processing how to deal with these factors.

What she should have said was, "I cannot make any statement about that. It's a question for the commander in chief after consultation with the Joint Chiefs of Staff. I don't want to say anything that might be construed as a commitment either way. All I can say is that I won't at this time give a definitive answer either way." Something like that. She'll learn.
 
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