Your humble correspondent, as diligent as ever, carefully checked out much of the post-debate analysis and spin last evening. Perhaps the highlight of all such activity, chock full of drama, was this heated exchange between Dick Morris and Alan Colmes on FOX News. The first part of this video shows Morris giving effusive praise of Sarah Palin's performance in last night's debate. The sparks begin to fly soon after the two-minute mark when Colmes cuts in to robotically attempt to run through his list of obvious talking points which Morris took great offense to (emphasis mine):
SEAN HANNITY: The author New York Times best seller, "Fleeced," starring Dick Morris. Why do I know this is probably going to be the debate we agree on here? What did you think?
DICK MORRIS: Well, last time we disagreed. I said Obama won and you said he lost and the polls agreed with me. This time we both agree but we disagree with Colmes probably. This was an unbelievable win for Sarah Palin. In fact I think that it unveils a level of skill in communication that I really have not seen since Ronald Reagan. She is a superstar. Her ability to bypass the conventional wisdom of Washington. Her ability to speak in a tone, and a genre, a style that was so authentic and so outside of the mainstream. It was just unbelievable and Biden looked like he was on downers. I mean every time he was talking I was wishing that I could hear Palin instead.
HANNITY: But I gotta tell you. On every issue. On Iran. On Iraq. On energy. On the economy. On tax cuts. What I thought she did very effectively that maybe Senator McCain didn't do in the last debate, she was reminding America about the record and the statements of Senator Obama. Did you think that was effective, Dick?
MORRIS: I thought it was but I thought more effective was that she did a much better job than John McCain ever has in explaining McCain's positions. When she talked about the "all of the above" option on energy. I never heard McCain explain it that articulately. It was well down. When I heard her speak about the anti greed on Wall Street and that stuff and how it infects Washington. I thought it was just terrific. And when she said at one point in that debate, "I just don't understand how Washington works. How can you guys claiming to vote against something when in fact you are voting for it?" Over the Iraq War resolution. It was just brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. The loser in tonight's debate was Hillary Clinton because there is a new woman out there who's going to be number one in this country.
Ladies and gentlement! Please fasten your seatbelts to prepare for the fireworks explosions about to happen when Alan Colmes cuts in:
COLMES: Well as I said, she has to get elected first but anyway, Dick, some of the things she said about McCain were just not true.
MORRIS: She already has been with no assistance from her husband.
COLMES: Some of the things she said were just were not true. You never miss a chance to take a slap at the Clintons. They're not in this race. She talked about the middle class. John McCain repeatedly 19 times voted not to raise the minimum wage. John McCain repeatedly voted not to have renewable energy.
MORRIS: Alan, why do you insist on using sentiments with me to get reading practice on your talking points? Save that for Republicans who you talk to. Why don't you talk to me about it because I said...
(Crosstalk)
MORRIS: Hey Alan! You going to have me talk or have another guest on? If you're going to have me on you're going to listen to what I have to say. As far as I'm concerned in the last debate I said that I thought Obama won and this debate I think that she won. And I don't think that objectivity and fairness deserves your just spewing the talking points that you've been handed.
COLMES: I'm not spewing the talking points. I'm saying the truth about what the actual McCain record is that you're in denial about.
MORRIS: You're incredible, Alan. You're absolutely incredible. Is it that you can't think or that you only know how to read those talking points? Unbelievable performance, Mr. Colmes. Unbelievable.
HANNITY: By the way, Dick Morris, I tell you.. I've been around and watched a lot of presidential debates. A friend of mine wrote a note and I said at the beginning to our audience. This is the debate equivalent of sort of Sarah Palin's shock and awe.
MORRIS: This was unbelievable and anybody with a brain looking at it would conclude that which does not include your co-host I might add.
(Laughter)
HANNITY: All right, Dick Morris, the author of the New York Times best seller...
COLMES (interrupting): Hope the anger management works out for you, Dick.
Wow! I guess Alan Colmes felt a bit singed by the fireworks explosion he inadvertently set off by attempting to read DNC talking points without even addressing the issue of Palin's debate performance.
