According to the New York Times, Romney has spent months polishing and rehearsing some of the “zingers” he hopes to spring on  President Obama in their first presidential debate on Wednesday.

And on Monday, Brown helpfully provided an example of how not to zing: After Warren gave a long, three-part answer, plus “icing” for a total of four, about how Brown has been less bipartisan than advertised in voting against jobs bills, he let loose with this: “Excuse me, I’m not a student in your classroom. Please let me respond.”

Brown routinely addresses Warren as “Professor,” and misses no opportunity to remind voters that Warren teaches at Harvard, but that line seemed both churlish and defensive. In asking, in effect, that she stop patronizing him, he put himself in the role of a subordinate demanding to be taken seriously by the boss. And worse, he again undercut the “nice guy” image that has been such an asset.

The verbal equivalent of stomping his foot, it was an interesting reversal of a gender stereotype, but not too senatorial.