More National Post:
Last week in Toronto, Samantha Power, the Pulitzer Prize winning author and former adviser to Barack Obama, was uncharacteristically downbeat. In the green room, following the inaugural Munk Debate, the normally plucky Ms. Power crumpled herself up into a lounge chair. Nursing a glass of red wine she interspersed a flurry of brow furrowed cell phone calls by beckoning passers-by to explain to her the debate’s unexpected outcome.
And, an unexpected outcome it was... Going into the Munk Debate on global security and the U.S. election, only 21% of the assembled audience agreed with the motion that “the world is a safer place with a Republican in the White House.” Two hours later this mostly liberal and deeply anti-Bush crowd had a profound change of heart: 43% ended up voting for the motion.
Ms. Power is right be concerned about the causes of this unexpected shift in public opinion, in the microcosm of the Munk Debate, because of what it says about Obama’s candidacy and the coming U.S. general election.
The debate previewed three highly effective arguments — put forward with devastating effect by the formidable Charles Krauthammer, and historian Niall Ferguson — for why America, Canada and the world will be safer if John McCain and the Republicans form the next U.S. administration.
That is impressive. Wish I had been there.
