WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – In case anyone doubted the high stakes of the second presidential debate, both sides began firing even before the starting gun went off last night.
Aides to Al Gore sniped that GOP rival George W. Bush’s positions were as squishy as a Krispy Kreme doughnut, while Bush advisers hyped the Democrat’s sighs, lies and rolling eyes.
But there was no debating the fact that the two foes went into the second face-off with their roles reversed – Gore slipping and Bush riding what his dad once called “Big Mo.”
Gore’s 6- to 11-point lead has vanished over the past week, and Bush was ahead by a point or so nationally. Meanwhile, Gore’s lead in California, the largest electoral prize and a must-win for him, is slipping.
So the heat was on Gore to once again reinvent himself, and avoid the fibs and flubs that overshadowed his performance in last week’s Boston debate.
Gore vowed to be on his best behavior last night, to quit the theatrics and stick to the facts – no more tales about deskless schoolgirls, penniless old ladies and Texas trips with federal disaster chief James Lee Witt.
But that didn’t stop top Gore aides from sticking in the knife, even jibing that Bush was well-suited to Winston-Salem, the home of Krispy Kreme doughnuts.
“The governor has gaping holes in his policy. Maybe he’ll fill them in tonight, but I suspect they’ll be like a jelly-filled doughnut – very squishy,” Gore spokesman Chris Lehane cracked.
Before the debate began, a relaxed Bush gave the thumbs up as he left his hotel to check out the stage, and vowed to “tell people what’s in my heart and mind.”
Bush spokeswoman Karen Hughes wasn’t shy about saying what was on her mind. Hughes, when asked if Bush intended to raise Gore’s little white lies, shot back: “The vice president does a pretty good job of doing that himself.”
And Bush aides organized an office pool to guess what debate laugh line Gore would come up with to try to defuse the fib flap.
“I understand James Lee Witt is on his way to Boston tonight to declare the site of our first debate a national disaster area,” was one favorite.
The Bush camp also mocked Gore’s new TV blitz slamming Bush’s record as Texas governor and aimed at changing the subject from his own failings.
“How come 321,666 Americans moved to Texas while George W. Bush has been governor? If Texas is such a bad place, why do so many people want to move here?” said Texas GOP Sen. Phil Gramm.