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Aired approx. 11PM, December 13th, 2006

Brit Hume: Well, ladies and gentlemen, you�ve just seen what will certainly go down in history as, if not one of the most informative, certainly one of the most entertaining Presidential debates of recent memory. We saw Kyle Fitzgerald position himself as a moral crusader, Stephen Coyle as a cold, calculating policy wonk, and Mace Windu walking a line right in between them as an independent and realistic populist.

Here with reaction and analysis is our panel. Joining us are Fred Barnes and Bill Kristol of The Weekly Standard, Mort Kondracke, executive editor of Roll Call magazine, and Juan Williams of NPR.

Fred, what do you make of all this sound and fury?

Fred Barnes: Well, I think that the American people certainly saw three very different candidates up there today. I think all three candidates are trying to position themselves as the candidate representing the current political pulse of America, and I don�t think any of them have any idea what they�re doing.

[General rabbling]

No, no, hear me out. Stephen Coyle assumes that the American public, after the emotional and ideological administrations of recent years, wants a detached policymaker in the White House; Kyle Fitzgerald sees the exact opposite and thinks America wants the same thing they�ve had from Republican administrations in the past; and Mace Windu sees an American populace fed up with �the establishment� and wanting a third choice. I�d submit that none of those analyses are particularly correct.

Hume: Well what do you think the prevailing sentiment is, then?

Barnes: Well it�s hard to sum up in just a few words, but I think the American public wants someone who will be strong in the War on Terror, and who won�t mess with an economy that is still growing strong. Kyle Fitzgerald talks about �protecting America�s legacy,� but the voters don�t care about America�s legacy, they�re concerned with the here and now.

Juan Williams: I would disagree with that assessment. The American public doesn�t want someone who �won�t mess with the economy� because for the vast majority of the American public the economy isn�t doing very well. Mace Windu talks a good game, but the only candidate who put forth any substantive agenda for economic change tonight was Stephen Coyle, and I think the American public saw that.

Hume: Let�s talk for a second about charisma, which is so important in these debates. Mort, what did you see tonight from these candidates?

Mort Kondracke: Well without a doubt Mace Windu is the most charismatic of the group. He was friendly but firm, prepared, collected, and I think his �Big Mac� jokes were well-played and perfectly timed. Kyle Fitzgerald didn�t do too poorly either � I suppose he�s trying to tap into the cowboy attitude that got George Bush elected. Stephen Coyle was simply too cold. Reminded me a bit of John Kerry, standing up there and rattling off policy proposals.

He put half of America asleep tonight. [chuckle] Not good for his electoral chances, I think.

Bill Kristol: I actually thought Senator Windu was much too pompous. On a number of questions, he listed off the positions he�s held and only mildly relevant things he�s done without giving a single policy proposal. He also talked way too much about the Hard Liquor Ban. He�s beating a dead horse, especially when there were so many other questions he could�ve asked Senator Fitzgerald with the last question of the debate. I mean, don�t you think the American public has heard enough about the Hard Liquor Ban?

Barnes: Absolutely they�ve heard enough about it, and I think Senator Fitzgerald passed up a number of good opportunities to say that. He could�ve said so much in response to the �social reactionaries� question, but instead decided to give a terse ten-second response about the �decay of moral values.� He also wasted a good opportunity in the question about the issue itself. There were two questions in the debate that he could�ve completely called his opponents out on about it, and he passed up both of them.

Williams: Personally, I don�t think the American public has heard enough about Fitzgerald�s social policies, and I don�t think they can hear enough about them. I mean, if this man supports banning all alcohol � which he certainly did at some point, if not now � then what other crazy ideas might he have? That�s the ploy here by Windu and Coyle � not to press that issue itself, but the entire idea of Fitzgerald and Yoshida as crazed authoritarians.

Hume: Senator Fitzgerald definitely raised a lot of eyebrows when he said that he would �hold [Iraqi terrorists] by the nose and kick them in the ass.� You think he won any votes with that bold statement, Bill?

Kristol: I think he absolutely did. The only way we�re going to get any significant victory in Iraq is through continued strength and resolve�

Williams: That�s ridiculous.

Kristol: No, seriously, progress is being made daily. But it�s still a very heated and sectarian climate over there � there�s no way Stephen Coyle, or anyone, for that matter, would be able to negotiate any sort of political agreement between the sects, and Mace Windu didn�t offer ANY proposal, he simply criticized the others.

Williams: Where do you get your information from? I mean, seriously, Iraq is a mess, and both Fitzgerald and Windu are completely denying it. The only one with any idea how to fix things is Senator Coyle�

Hume: Let�s move on before we get into fisticuffs here. [chuckle] Judging by the audible gasps from the audience, Kyle Fitzgerald made a pretty heavy impression when he referred to the Chichester Accords as Neville Chamberlain-style appeasement. Mort, do you think there was a positive or negative reaction to that bold statement?

Kondracke: Well, it was his second WWII reference of the debate, and I think there�s only so much Naziism the populace can take. [chuckle] Really, though, this is just Fitzgerald again trying to grab attention and play the Texas cowboy card. I don�t think the American public wants to see all-out nuclear war, though, so I think this was a bad issue for him to attack Senator Windu on.

Barnes: No, no, no, and no. That was really a knockout punch for Fitzgerald. He went out on a limb and I think the American public would like that, if he weren�t so extreme on every other issue.

Kristol: I think it�s safe to say that for the most part, the American people aren�t pleased with appeasement.

Hume: You think the Chichester Accords are appeasement?

Kristol: No, of course not. But if Fitzgerald can frame the debate in that way, then it�ll be huge for him.

Hume: Mort, what do you think? Can an Independent win the Presidency?

Kondracke: Absolutely I think Mace Windu can win this race. After tonight, I would think that the race is probably split three ways, and at this point, it�s anyone�s ballgame. None of the candidates have entirely locked up their base, and none of them have secured a significant portion of the undecideds.

Hume: Who do you think won tonight�s debate?

Kondracke: Windu. Without a doubt.

Williams: I think Coyle presented the best vision for America, with Windu a close second.

Kristol: I think Senator Fitzgerald did the best job of playing to his base with this debate.

Hume: But who won?

Kristol: I dunno � let the American people decide. [nervous chuckle]

Barnes: I don�t think anyone won. For having three choices, the American public is rather disappointed. You just watch � turnout will be low. Really low.

Hume: Well, you heard it here. Join us next time on Special Report, and stay tune for news � fair, balanced, and unafraid. I�m Brit Hume; thanks for watching. [wink]