Mitt Romney's brilliant performance in the first presidential debate shocked and dismayed the chattering classes who, for four years, had been telling us and each other how brilliant Barack Obama is. Whether or not Obama is brilliant, the debate was a wipeout.
I wasn't surprised. Last week I interviewed George Gilder, author of the classic "Wealth and Poverty," and a man who worked for Romney's father George, and knew Mitt as a young business executive at Bain Capital.
I trust George Gilder as a straight shooter. His assessment of Romney's abilities as a business leader and "turn-around artist" was so glowing, it might sound like a campaign infomercial. But Gilder describes what he saw: a brilliant man with a high level of knowledge and skill when it comes to the economy.