Election Follies and Funnies #19: That was a debate???

Twitter is concluding that the Leaders Debate Thursday evening was possibly the worst moderated debate ever seen in the history of the nation. 

And that's really too bad -- Trudeau needed some momentum from a positive and upbeat debate performance and he's likely not going to get any. Then again, neither will O'Toole or Singh.  

The moderator, Shachi Kurl from Angus Reid, appeared to be under the impression that she was running for office too. She acted like Canadians had tuned in to watch her as she interrupted and stopped leaders from answering questions, while she preened.

The only leader who came out of this looking OK was Green leader Annamie Paul and who cares, because Paul isn't even going to win her own seat much less give help to any other Green candidates so in the end it doesn't matter what Canadians thought of her. 

Blanchet did OK too - and again, who cares, because it doesn't matter to him or to anyone else what Canadians outside Quebec think of him. Though of course it might affect Liberal performance in Quebec, if anyone there was watching,.

The only real question I had about Blanchette or Singh is how they would decide whether to endorse a minority Liberal or Conservative outcome.  Nobody bothered to ask.

We liked when O’Toole was asked how many Conservative candidates had taken horse dewormer and he stomped his foot three times. #Elxn44 #Debate2021 #cdnpoli #elxn2021

— Oak Bay Gazette📰 (@OakBayGazette) September 10, 2021

Paul keeps insisting that Jody Wilson-Raybould should be in the leaders’ debate. When did she run to lead a party?

— Dale Smith (@journo_dale) September 10, 2021

She is the only person with an indigenous connection that Erin O'Toole could find that feels any antipathy to the Prime Minister and it's personal for her. The vast majority of first nations leadership supports Justin Trudeau.

— Unbranded (@Unbranded63) September 10, 2021

A reminder--the Conservatives asked Trudeau to fire JWR mere months before she resigned.

— John Mark Taylor (@jmt_18325) September 10, 2021

It seemed like the moderators thought they were auditioning to host Jeopardy.

— Ron Paquette (@Ron_Paquette) September 10, 2021

No no. YOU yourself have had the most time tonight. pic.twitter.com/y6KrT6XlUb

— Jason Pugh 🏳️‍🌈 (@TheJasonPugh) September 10, 2021

"You have five seconds, Mr. Trudeau and then I'll be coming back to...me" #Elxn44 #Debate2021

— Scott Reid (@_scottreid) September 10, 2021

This thing feels longer than my career. #Debate2021

— Charles Adler (@charlesadler) September 10, 2021

Yes, that format was ridiculous.
Except for the guy who muttered "oh, shit!"

— Cathie from Canada 🇨🇦 😷🏳️‍🌈 (@CathieCanada) September 10, 2021

Now the moderators are interrupting each other. Brilliant.

— Emmett Macfarlane (@EmmMacfarlane) September 10, 2021

Kim Campbell is vindicated

— Tasha Kheiriddin (@TashaKheiriddin) September 10, 2021

This is horrific. It is providing no value. It feels like the miasma that is Twitter, converted into a live TV show.

— Mark Corey 💉 (@markanada) September 10, 2021

I’m not watching, but from the looks of my Twitter feed, so far the moderator is winning the debate.

— Barney Panofsky's Best Intentions (@mynamesnotgordy) September 10, 2021

Does Shachi Kurl realize she is the moderator for a National Leader’s debate for Prime Minister & not a reporter at a hostile presser? #awkward #cringe

— Jenni Byrne (@Jenni_Byrne) September 10, 2021

I can understand her many friends in B.C. defending her, but Shachi Kurl is the worst moderator in the history of these debates. She has failed to understand her role. #cdnpoli https://t.co/eMn4io2WQd

— Bob Price (@kammornanchor) September 10, 2021

Someone has called it Debate ‘Survivor’. I concur.

— Myles Leach (@myinwit) September 10, 2021

I am not watching the debate for the moderator. Just like I don't watch hockey for the refereeing, and baseball for the umpiring. If the moderator wants to editorialize and debate the candidates, run for office. This is awful. #debate #cdnpoli #Elxn44

— Neil Before Zod™ (@WaytowichNeil) September 10, 2021

There will be a few confused voters when they can't find any of the moderators names on the ballot. #Elxn44 #Debate2021 https://t.co/jaaUoqmtm1

— Asif Hossain (@asifintoronto) September 10, 2021

Not even close to being on the same political team as you but you are correct. No one had time to present platform policy. We could have just scrolled the leader’s Twitter timelines to get the same result.

— Robert 🇨🇦🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 (@NICKLEnDIMEu) September 10, 2021

And let the pollster wars begin:

I think Sacchi Kurl is a competent pollster. Not brilliant but competent. I have some doubts about the ideological orientation of the 'institute' she leads. Nothing blatant , but some doubts . Why she would be chosen to moderate a debate of this significance is a huge question .

— Frank Graves (@VoiceOfFranky) September 10, 2021

The reason you had to post this statement, after a very biased moderation, speak volumes about your leniency and credibility. It also highlights your association with certain groups. No reason denying that.#cdnpoli #debate #Canada

— 𝕾𝖆𝖑𝕶𝖍𝖆𝖓 🇨🇦 🇵🇰 (@WiseWmn) September 10, 2021

well it sure as hell wasn't for her neutrality or moderating skills, what a horrid debate! Nothing new, might as well have been watching O'toole and Singh's media ads! horrid! #raisethebar #Elxn44debate #liberalmajority needed to clean up this mess!

— Catherine Whelan Costen author/artist/talkshowhost (@ClarityWhisper) September 10, 2021

And this is the way the media summed up the debate:

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, facing potential defeat in a Sept. 20 election, used a key leaders' debate to take aim at his main rival, portraying him as weak and ineffective https://t.co/IefftiJt4K pic.twitter.com/OZg9JmE4B4

— Reuters (@Reuters) September 10, 2021

Conservative Leader @erinotoole voted against the UNDRIP, along with wanting to criminalize Indigenous dissent that’s expressed through blockades or protests - So if O'Toole was Prime Minister, how could Canada build a respectful relationship with Indigenous people? pic.twitter.com/A1vDHJu7vp

— APTN News (@APTNNews) September 10, 2021

I’ve been following the drinking water advisories since 2015. Trudeau is correct. The progress is outstanding. To say otherwise is an outright lie.

— Susan Healey (@LostTogetherCda) September 10, 2021

Political cartoonist @deAdder highlights Erin O’Toole’s desire to hide his close connections to the gun lobby, while still keeping his promise to repeal the assault rifle ban. #cdnpoli #elexn44 #Debate2021 pic.twitter.com/EBkBdzOy3S

— Blake Brown (@RBlakeBrown) September 9, 2021