Something seemed off to me about Scott Brown in tonight's debate. Like, he hadn't slept, or was a little groggy from cold medicine or something -- that kind of off.
He seemed, to me, to be having trouble concentrating. It was particularly noticable when he wasn't talking, which unfortunately for him was captured by WBZ's extensive use of split-screen. At one point, while Elizabeth Warren was speaking, Brown clearly zoned out for a few seconds and then aggressively blinked himself awake.
Then, after the debate, Brown sent out a spokesperson rather than do his press availability -- which, when asked about it, the spokesperson attributed to Brown having had a long day.
This is not like Scott Brown. He's a guy in tip-top physical condition -- he runs marathons, for cryin' out loud -- and he can drive himself around to events and talk to voter after voter after voter without sagging in the least. He isn't wiped out from a long day at 8:15pm, in normal circumstances.
Regardless, I don't think he gave a terrible performance -- sub-par, but not terrible.
The thing is, a lot of people were tuning in to see how Elizabeth Warren would do in what was, we need to remember, her first major high-profile extended appearance as a candidate.
And she did pretty well. Not a home run, but a solid base hit; maybe some will even say extra bases.
But that's a lot easier to do when you're facing a pitcher who doesn't have his stuff. And I think that's what Warren lucked into tonight.
So, I wouldn't judge the rookie based just on this outing, and assume that she'll be fine from here on out. Because, maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think she's going to have as easy an opponent once Brown shakes off whatever was bothering him tonight.
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