Texas Governor George W. Bush and Vice-President Al Gore walk out on stage and shake hands before their second presidential debate in a North Carolina university hall.
Mr Bush is wearing a red tie and Mr Gore blue. 'It seems Mr Gore has adopted the blue-tie tactic . . .' the CNN pundit helpfully reports.
As absurd as the comment may have sounded, it highlights how the old craft of political debate has fast become a science during the closest presidential race in decades. Every nuance, no matter how minor, is monitored for its counter-effect, regardless of relevance to the vital questions.
Every conceivable aspect of the union was considered with care by both camps. For yesterday's second of three debates, the height and style of the chairs had been mutually agreed, along with the distance they would be set apart and how much 'swivel' they would provide. The room temperature was set to a strict 65 degrees Fahrenheit.
In such a tightly choreographed setting, of course Mr Gore's tie selection was no accident. Blue, the pundit went on to suggest, was the colour chosen by Mr Bush's running-mate Dick Cheney in his restrained and dignified encounter with Senator Joe Lieberman last week, a more modern take on the traditional presidential uniform of deep red tie and navy blue suit.
What followed was not a night of blistering spontaneity. The debate itself yielded few surprises and little clear early impact on a see-saw race that many major polls suggest is a statistical dead heat with less than a month to go.
