Word: tonight
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...event will introduce a new twist to the campaign, a chance for Dukakis to enter the livingrooms of a huge number of American voters--about 20 percent of whom the polls say are still undecided--something he has not done since the Democratic convention last July. Dukakis's appearance tonight will give him the opportunity to do what he could not during the debates--engage in dialogue with the voter rather than reciting prepared phrases...
...thing for your opponent to call you liberal; it is another to display your liberalism yourself. Whose constituency is larger remains to be seen, but after tonight it will be impossible for Dukakis to depend on support from those "Reagan Democrats" he hoped to lure back through deliberate vagueness on certain issues. So tonight's appearance can, if Dukakis doesn't exploit it properly, backfire, and may very well determine whether Dukakis will have to kiss his Presidential ambitions good-bye or be able to step back on a path to the White House...
...question after tonight is what George Bush's response will and should be. The simple fact that he declined ABC's offer already hurts him somewhat. He should, and will, wait for the reaction to Dukakis' performance. If Dukakis is seen as having botched things up, or as not having turned the tide, then Bush will be able to ignore the incident, do nothing, and ride his momentum to the White House...
...Dukakis performs well tonight, Bush may have no viable option besides submitting to a similar, though preferably shorter, appearance. Bush's "propensity to gaffe" should rule out a 90 minute one-on-one with any panel or news anchor. Appearing on a different network might allow Bush to save some face at the expense of ABC and Ted Koppel...
...short, if anything is evidently clear about Dukakis's appearance tonight, it is that the novelty, scope and timing of the event make it a critical make-or-break time for him. Barring any glitches or changes of heart Dukakis will appear tonight on Nightline; barring any glitches or changes of heart, though, he stands a good chance of losing the election. Tonight allows him to put precisely such a glitch in the plans of Bush, a modernday Croesus...