Debate Live Blog

While waiting for the debate to start — will Palin be on the GOP ticket in November? Or will she decide she needs to spend more time with her family?

McCain really is one of the whitest guys on the planet, isn’t he?

McCain isn’t being specific about what he wants to do with the fiscal package.

Did McCain just say he was going to vote for the plan?

Why is he talking about D-Day?

McCain: Heads will roll.

Is there a connection between Washington spending and the financial crisis on Wall Street? It’s all earmarks’ fault.

So far McCain is not addressing the questions he’s been asked. However, I’m not sure if the average viewer would understand that.

McCain is smirking.

How do you think the two are coming across? McCain isn’t being honest or on topic, but would a less informed viewer know that?

Oh, please, most liberal voting record in the United States Senate my ass.

McCain is just talking about cutting costs, but not what he would do.

Spending freeze?

McCain is thinking old technology.

He’s still going on about the taxes. How many times does Obama have to repeat his tax policies?

We owe China a lot more than $500 billion, btw. It’s closer to a trillion, I believe.

Lessons of Iraq!

Please, ask McCain what “victory” in Iraq means.

I’m still not sure if a less well-informed viewer would be able to pick up on the problems with McCain’s answers.

McCain is repeating W’s talking points. “Central front in war on terror.”

Does McCain know that we’re having some, um, issues with Pakistan lately?

Bomb Bomb Bomb Bomb Bomb

Sending marines into Lebanon. Yes, John, remind us how old you are.

Do most Americans give a bleep about “victory” in Iraq?

We don’t like the UN, so we’ll create a counter-UN.

McCain is just about to explode.

McCain: Let’s do stuff just like W did!

McCain’s getting a bit worked up. Blow your stack, John.

McCain keeps saying Obama doesn’t understand this and that.

McCain doesn’t want to go back to the Cold War. He wants to battle the Old Russian Empire. Czar Putin?

McCain is claiming credit for the 9/11 Commission?

Largest re-organization of government. If McCain thinks that was done well, he’s nuts.

John, dear, al Qaeda doesn’t need Iraq to establish bases.

I believe Obama is correct that China is holding $1 trillion of our debt.

Good; make connection between $10 billion/month in Iraq and lack of money for domestic needs.

McCain is trying to connect Obama to Bush?

Hasn’t McCain voted against money for vets?

The fact checkers will be working on this for a week.

McCain was a POW? I didn’t know that!

Re fact-checking, Think Progress already has a lot of stuff up.

Post Game Show:

Matthews says that Obama seemed more presidential.

However, we’ve got Pat Buchanan and Norah O’Donnell saying McCain won. What’s going on on the other channels?

However, Buchanan admitted McCain seemed mean.

Joe Biden is on all the cable networks. Sarah Palin has been locked in her motel room.

60 thoughts on “Debate Live Blog

  1. BTW, when I said “make snese” that should be “make sense”. See, we Americans just don’t make snese. 🙂

  2. One final thought: do you think it’s wise for McCain to keep using that line about not being elected Miss Congeniality when one of the notable things about his running mate is that she actually WAS elected Miss Congeniality?

    I’m just sayin’…

  3. Craig, I take your point, but I just don’t think the average voter is going to get a transcript. I don’t think the thought would even cross their minds. For stuff like the 1982/83 lie, we’ve got to hope they’re smart enough to check sites like factcheck.org, or that the media calls him out on it. If neither of those things happen, for a lot of folks, his comments will be taken as fact. Sad, but true.

  4. Alto2, you make an excellent point and I appreciate it. But I never concede anything when I’m being lied to. As just one example, a lot of young people discover blogs all the time. And they get their eyes opened. Maybe one or two will discover this thread and see my comment and see your comment and go check out factcheck.org. You see, you’ve already made a difference tonight!

  5. One final thought: do you think it’s wise for McCain to keep using that line about not being elected Miss Congeniality when one of the notable things about his running mate is that she actually WAS elected Miss Congeniality?

    Thta’s why he uses it, to refer to his VP as if that was a plus for him (it is the only way he can hustle up a crowd of more than a couple hundred). But the claim that Palin was Miss Congeniality at the 1984 Miss Wasilla Alaska pagaent is only according to Palin’s Wikipedia page (you know, the one they scrubbed). According to Amy Gwin, who also competed in the 1984 Miss Wasilla Alaska pagaent that Palin won, Gwin was Miss Congeniality.

    They’re like Bush and Cheney that way too, reflexive lying — even over inconsequential trivia. Funny how the wingnuts have forgotten their “it’s the lying!” mantra.

  6. I was kinda hoping McCain wouldn’t show up, and that Conan O’Brien would set up a cardboard cut out of McCain with the space for a real persons lips and do a mock debate. In my sarcastic little mind I thought that would be entertaining.

    Imho, Obama won, although when he said numerous times that McCain is right, I viewed it as two guys fencing, and when the opponent droped his foil, the other guy flips it back to him like a gentleman and a scholar to continue the contest….
    Rule #1, ALWAYS bring a gun to a knife fight…
    However, had Obama simply slaughtered McCain, as he could have, that would have been viewed as unmercifully beating a war hero and senior statesman . Hard to win that contest.
    Rest assured, McCain and the RNC will use this to portray Obama as weak and naive in regards to dealing with foreign nations and adversaries.

    I was sorely dissapointed by the views of BOTH candidates regarding the following issues:Pushing Nato onto Russa’s border
    Afghanistan / Pakistan
    The Republic of Georgia
    Unconditional support for Israel
    Demonizing/marginalizing Ahmadinajad
    I beileve Obama is the better of the two.If we had him for president the whole world (except racist Americans) will breathe a sigh of relief, he at least seems to be more inclined to talk instead of just drop bombs.

  7. #47 I hope Obama’s people are putting together an ad with McCain telling lies. I hope it has a big ol’ red stamp saying LIE over his face, and the final line being he wants to lie his way into the whitehouse.

  8. Interestingly, Neither candidate said anything regarding how the financial crisis will effect / affect The war funding or foreign aid.
    How can one fight expensive wars on multiple fronts with the economy in shambles? How can we continue to throw billions at the governments of Pakistan, Israel, Egypt, Georgia, and Afghanistan ( to name a few) while the “paper market” locks up?

  9. Some morning-after stats from CBS, which I think of as the network for older, undiscriminating, conservative viewers:

    WHO WON THE DEBATE?
    Obama – 40%
    McCain – 22%
    Tie – 38%
    (Sounds about right to me.)

    RESPONDENT’S OPINION OF OBAMA AFTERWARD:
    Better – 46%
    Worse – 7%
    Same- 46%
    (Looks like he helped himself after all.)

    WHO WOULD MAKE THE BETTER DECISIONS ON ECONOMY?
    Obama – 68%
    McCain – 41%
    (Not my typo; CBS’s figures add up to 109%. Even if it’s 58/41, that’s still pretty decent.)

    Specific comments to CBS mentioned Kennedy/Nixon quite a lot, which may have been because last night was the anniversary of the first K/N debate in 1960. Obama came across as direct, willing to make eye contact with McCain, Lehrer, and the camera (the TV audience). McCain came across as shifty, unwilling to make eye contact with anyone.

    This info is posted over on Daily Kos. Sorry, I forgot to grab the link. Caffeine hasn’t kicked in yet.

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