debates. what s going to be the headline on october 4th, the day after that first presidential debate in denver where they attack domestic policy? sn i m not great forecasting e futu future. i think a lot of people will resort to cliches. that s what we always do. quote, there were no knockdowns unless one of the guys punches out the other. who is on the defense is the big question. given the current terrain, the question will be, will mitt romney be able to refocus the country and say, you know what, we do want an alternative, he in this debate showed he was up to it. it s always an advantage to a challenger to be on stage with the incumbent president because there s an equality just by the two of them being there. it s also important to remember sometimes debates don t produce a radical change. john kerry got back into the ballgame in 2004 because he probably bested bush in the debate but bush went on to win. i suspect barring a shocking