Live-Blogging the US Presidential Debate
10:45 PM — I’ll end by noting that I have always liked McCain. For this point in our history, however, I think Obama is the better choice for president. I do think that we have two good choices this year, though. I wish McCain had run a more positive campaign and I wish he had not chosen Sarah Palin as his running mate, but I still think he would make a decent president. What I really wish, of course, is that he had defeated Bush in the 2000 primary. Obama succeeding president McCain would be a much better world than the one we have.
10:39 PM — I would call this debate a draw in debating terms. In terms of how the American people will respond, I think it is a clear win for Obama because he escaped unscathed and is well ahead in the polls. I think Obama responded very well to the Ayers and ACORN accusations and he sounded like a moderate on abortion. He kept his composure, he seemed to know a lot of policy details, he was courteous, prepared, eloquent, presidential. McCain didn’t embarrass himself, but I didn’t quite buy his claim of hurt feelings over John Lewis’s remarks, so he didn’t always come off as sincere to me. McCain sometimes seemed like the smaller man, although I may be influenced here by my strong support for Obama.
10:30 PM — McCain says “good job, good job” to Obama as they shake hands at the end. The candidates and their wives look good up on stage. American democracy in action! What we saw tonight was two heavy-weights slugging it out, and I am proud to be an American right now.
10:27 PM — Did McCain just forget Obama’s name at the beginning of his closing statement?
10:25 PM — Does McCain think that Palin’s child has autism? Trig Palin has Down Syndrome…
10:23 PM — Obama is taller and better looking. It just struck me anew.
10:17 PM — McCain points out that “the health of the mother” has been stretched to include anything at all. Nice catch. I missed that in Obama’s answer that I admired so much (originally I had “life of the mother” — I guess I heard what I wanted to hear). Seems like I may have been bamboozled a bit by Obama’s smooth talk there.
10:15 PM — Obama: “Here are the facts…. There was already a law on the books that required providing life-saving treatment… I am completely supportive of a ban on late term abortions as long as there is an exception for the health of the mother.” He really answered that one well, I think. A really good answer.
10:13 PM — Definitely a better debate than the last one, at least in terms of entertainment. Still boring, though.
10:08 PM — Schieffer brings up Roe v. Wade and the Supreme Court. Obama says he believes Roe was rightly decided. Obama says it is an issue that good people can disagree on. McCain says he has no litmus test for supreme court justices, but states that supporting Roe is obviously disqualifying.
10:05 PM — A long back and forth on the mind-numbing details of the alternative health care plans. McCain says the average cost of health insurance is $5,800 a year. Obama just said the average cost of health insurance is $12,000 a year. Who is right? Who knows.
10:03 PM — Obama is explaining McCain’s health care plan, and it sounds like he understands it.
10:00 PM — McCain brings up Joe the plumber. sigh
9:58 PM — Obama claims he will allow the average person to buy the same health insurance that US Senators get and no one will be excluded based on pre-existing conditions. Wow. Too good to be true.
9:53 PM — Obama distinguishes between the Colombian and the Peruvian free trade agreements. Policy wonkery at its best.
9:51 PM — Obama is talking about energy, the auto industry, and trade. I’m bored, which is probably good. I don’t want to be not bored during this final debate.
9:48 PM — McCain wants to build 45 new nuclear power plants right away. This is a great idea and I’m all for it. This is the one area where I clearly like McCain more than Obama. I think Obama is too scared of the anti-nuclear wing of his party.
Joe The Plumber
9:45 PM — Obama says he thinks that Palin’s work with special needs children is commendable. What work? I am not sure what she has done other than have a special needs baby recently.
9:43 PM — McCain: “Sarah Palin is a role model to women.” He calls her a reformer. I roll my eyes.
9:40 PM — McCain is still pushing Ayers and ACORN and claims his campaign is about getting the economy back on tracks. Obama chuckles in disbelief. Obama flatly denies that he launched his political career in Ayers’ living room, but doesn’t get a chance to elaborate. Just as well. Better for Obama to get back to talking about issues.
9:37 PM — Obama is responding to the Ayers and ACORN accusations. It is clear that he has no substantive association with Ayers and ACORN. He has done a decent job in defending himself against McCain, I think.
9:35 PM — Wow. McCain just brought up Ayers and ACORN. Said ACORN is pulling off the biggest voter fraud in history.
9:33 PM — This debate seems a little livelier than the last one. I like the back and forth a bit. Obama needs to watch out, though. He shouldn’t get dragged into this bickering about who has been running the more negative campaign and who has the weirder fringe supporters at rallies. He is better off focusing on more presidential issues.
9:32 PM — I don’t know who Joe the plumber is and I don’t understand his economic situation well enough for these comments about him to make any sense to me. I don’t want to hear anything more about Joe the plumber.
9:30 PM — McCain attacks Obama for not repudiating the remarks made by John Lewis. Lewis is a prominent black congressman who has compared McCain to segregationist George Wallace. Obama to McCain: “100% of your ads have been negative.” I think I was falling for McCain’s spin for a minute there. There is absolutely no doubt that McCain has been running the more negative campaign. I didn’t know what to think when I heard him attack Obama for running negative attack ads.
9:26 PM — Schieffer: “Will you say it to each other’s face?” — in regard to attack ads.
9:25 PM — Obama: “Even Fox News disputes it” — in regard to the accusation that he wants to raise taxes on people who make $42,000 a year. He gets a chuckle from the audience. I tend to believe Obama on this. I expect that it is only through ridiculous contortions that McCain can support that claim.
9:21 PM — McCain: “I am not president Bush. If you wanted to run against president Bush, you should have run four years ago.” A nice jab!
9:20 PM — Schieffer wants specifics on how they are going to cut back spending in the face of record budget deficits. Obama wants to eliminate $15 billion in subsidies to health insurance companies. Sounds good to me, but who knows what the real detailed truth is. McCain wants to get rid of subsidies for ethanol. Also mentions getting rid of corruption and mentions that stupid planetarium projector again that Obama supposedly voted for.
9:17 PM — Obama is attempting to be a super-boring policy wonk, I think. Not a bad strategy when you are way ahead in the polls and the country is in a financial crisis.
9:12 PM — McCain brings up a plumber, Joe, who is “trying to realize the American dream” but can’t because of Obama’s proposed tax increases. Obama agrees that he and McCain differ on tax policy — they disagree on who will get tax cuts. Obama says Joe the plumber needed a middle-class tax cut five years ago (?). My take: basically they are each making claims and I don’t know who to believe.
9:00 PM — I’m here at my desk, iMac in front of me, beer at hand, the debate streaming live on the CNN website. Go Obama!