Cleveland, OH

Oh no! Another debate! Where’s the Valium? John Blumenthal

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Normally, I’m a fairly relaxed person but during Presidential debates I often experience severe panic attacks. I first experienced this acute anxiety during Michael Dukakis’s debate loss to George H. W. Bush in 1988. Dukakis made an ill-advised remark that nearly made me choke on a pretzel. It haunted him throughout the rest of the campaign and arguably contributed to his defeat.

Since then, whenever my preferred candidate stumbles during a debate, my heart races, I perspire uncontrollably and my hands tremble. I frequently yell epithets at my flatscreen if my candidate gets stuck or misses an obvious opportunity to dispatch the opponent. I punch the air if my candidate nails the other debater with a zinger.

An award-winning novelist and former magazine editor who co-authored the movie, “Blue Streak,” John Blumenthal is a regular contributor to The Plain Dealer and cleveland.com, for which this was written. 



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