It appears that I’m most impressed by a candidate who I’m almost certain can’t win. What a dilemma.

Every so often a candidate runs for president and ends up on the debate stage who so alters the thinking about not only the issues but also what it means to be a political thinker. This year that person is the entrepreneur Andrew Yang.

I first met Yang a couple months ago on the set of “Real Time with Bill Maher.” We guests stood in a gaggle just before showtime and made nervous conversation. He struck me then as completely relaxed, comfortable and sure of himself, not full of himself or trying desperately to impress.

You may think this a small thing, but I have been in journalism all my adult life, 26 years, and from the experience of meeting countless politicians I can tell you that this is rare. There is something overbearing about them. Greasy is the way I describe them: too slick and too slippery. They are also too forward — too in your face and in your space. What they consider connecting with people I consider glowering over people. What they consider their winning smile looks to me like a scary clown.

So yes, just the way he carried himself signaled that there was something different about this man. And during his opening interview on the show, while I was watching from the wings, I remember thinking to myself: This guy is impressive.