Richardson’s performance didn’t impress pundits

The consensus today generally seems to be that Gov. Bill Richardson’s performance at Thursday’s Democratic presidential debate was mediocre.

MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough wrote after the debate that Richardson is “underperforming” and also “fighting his tongue as well as his Nixonian flop sweat.”

Blogger Joe Monahan called Richardson’s “a pedestrian, but not a damaging performance.”

The Santa Fe New Mexican’s Steve Terrell wrote that Richardson “looked uncomfortable, both when he was answering questions and when the camera caught him in random moments. He was sweating. He never smiled.”

Even a Richardson supporter, on the site America for Richardson, wrote that the governor “showed his substance on the issues, but we didn’t see as much of his energetic and confident persona as one might have wished.”

“The good news is that none of the other candidates really dazzled either,” the Richardson supporter wrote.

“The most important thing, in my view, is that many more people got exposed to Bill Richardson, and heard his views,” the supporter concluded. “He didn’t make any major mistakes and, while he was not his usual charming and likeable self, he showed that he has the experience and knowledge to be a serious candidate. While we may not have gained any significant ground last night, we didn’t lose any either. As BR gains more comfort and confidence in debate settings, I have no doubt that he will begin to shine, as we know he can.”

The Richardson campaign, on his Web site, claimed that the governor’s foreign policy experience “dominated the first Democratic presidential debate. He went further than every other candidate by calling for the removal of all troops this calendar year.”

The Albuquerque Journal did a nice article on Richardson’s performance. But most of the national media outlets included little about Richardson in their coverage of the debate, further indicating that his performance didn’t set him apart.

To be fair, it also partly indicates the mainstream media’s obsession with the Big Three – Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards.

If you missed the debate, you can watch it by clicking here. You can also rate the candidates’ performances by clicking here.