Thanks for all this incredibly hard work. I've already voted, but I'm grateful for the coverage.

McCain sneered his way to defeat

McCain looked insane. His eyes were blinking at about 150 times per minute. He looked positively bug-eyed.

So it doesn't matter what crap he said, because he looked completely unhinged.

For the third time in as many debates, only one of these two candidates looked Presidential. It ain't the cranky dude.

I felt it was Obama's most decisive win.

disclaimer: I am disgusted with Republicans, thought McCain was their most electable candidate, and that the Palin choice was absurd.

Trying to set aside my strongly partisan preference, I think McCain probably did better than you give him credit for, Steve, in that I don't think it was his worst performance.

I thought he had some attacks that Obama didn't really respond to very well. But overall, he seemed very aggressive but extremely scattered. I mean he basically defined erratic with his answers on some questions, jumping from tangent to tangent.

Obama was, well, Obama. Respectful and calm the entire time with thoughtful answers.

Obama sought out middle ground on practically every issue.

That's who Obama seems to be. That's certainly how his candidacy has been run since day one. I guess it's pretty easy to be cool in a debate when you can just state your opinions honestly and don't have to wonder if you're saying something that contradicts something different that you're supposed to be saying.

To me, the key was appearance. It was a disaster for McCain.

I watched mostly CNN, which often used a split screen. McCain's reactions were terrible. Switched a few times to MSNBC, which was always focused on the speaker.

Furthermore, I watched in high definition, and hi def just destroys McCain.

I could go into detail on both points, but I'm interested if anyone else had such an overwhelming reaction just to the appearance of the two men.

Thanks so much Steve!

Obama was brilliant and McCain's anger was so prevalent, it just seeps through everything.

I'll take the guy with the scalpel, not the hatchet, thank you.

McCain looked terrible, almost creepy and was herky jerky. If I had just interviewed him for a job, I'd shake his hand, will him well and be glad I would never have to see him again.

Obama looked and sounded great. I would hire him in a second.

BTW how many undecided Joe the Plumbers could there be out there?

It's funny to hear many talking heads on MSNBC saying that McCain won, how he was passionate and intense, and Obama was calm and cool, sitting back on his lead. In my opinion, McCain was, well, erratic. It's the best word to describe it. He fumbled over words, said things that didn't quite make sense, made jokes that weren't funny and looked immature. I just don't see how people can think McCain won at all, whether on points or otherwise. He said nothing new, and I think Obama schooled him -- on Ayers, ACORN, the economy, vouchers, free trade, you name it. I think this definitely ranks as one of McCain's worst debates. And what the hell was up with Joe the Plumber?

Actually, I think this was McCain's strongest debate. He was forceful, he was active and he had more zings than in the other matchups.

But Obama was just flawless. He was a brick wall, and McCain's punches didn't crack it a bit.

Channel hopping and surfing. Multiple talking heads desperately trying to portray this as a McCain victory. They're saying he was "on" and aggressive and this will change the race and narrow Obama's lead. The networks and cable thirst so badly for a photo finish they have to grasp at any rope thrown their way. I almost feel as if a close debate was more important for them than for McCain. Bill Bennett has McCain mopping up the floor with Obama. Andrea Mitchell is behind the curtain blowing McCain as we speak. I predict the polls showing an Obama victory.

Bbbbut Andrea Mitchell said McCain won! Geez Louise, can anyone be so far divorced from reality? The first two polls I saw, and admittedly they were the CNN and MSNBC phone it in ones, gave Obama in the 85% range, which is really, really high. Any other polls out there???

I only heard it on the radio driving home, so I didn't have the benefit of the visual. But listening to it, I couldn't follow important things like McCain's health care proposal. He seemed scattered on other topics, too.

For the first time in this long campaign, I began to think that McCain isn't qualified to be President. Obama clearly outshone him in every way tonight.

Something my girlfriend noticed and we discussed...

What could be the reasons for McCain blinking so much? It was on the verge of being terribly distracting.

Obama really hit some questions and others he never really answered which was difficult because the answers that I've heard him give before on the subjects would've been well suited.

McCain, and his hurt feelings, couldn't wait to show how angry he was and how erratic his thought process is. Such is the life of someone making decisions by the seat of their pants, I guess...

besides mccain saying the definition of "health" has been stretched and his offense at people being worried about the safe storage of nuclear waste, the story of this debate is his reactions: not just the eye rolls, but throwing his hands in the air, practically spitting in disbelief, his shocked look at joe the plumber's fine being zero, his vampiric stare at obama to show people he would look at him, his furious handshake at the end to show he would touch a black person.

oh, and joe the plumber's wife is beating him with a pan right now, asking him just what the fuck he was thinking as the first of dozen tv trucks screeches to a stop in front of their house.

Actually, I think this was McCain's strongest debate.

If only he had worn a bag over his head.

If McCain is correct and Acorn is on the verge of destroying the fabric of our democracy shouldn't Bush be breaking out the launch codes?

Yes, Obama looked better and sounded more intelligent, more presidential, and even tempered. McCain looked and sounded cranky, those edgy, punky old man mannerisms, he didn't come over well. It is so ironic, that tonight on the PBS postmort, David Brooks of all people was the frankest, saying that Obama showed the good temperament, and McCain was likely to lose. OTOH, the "liberal" centrist types were all trying so hard to sound fair and forced-even handed that they gave McCain lots of credit (but one did reinforce Brook's point, yet needed to make it a bit elliptical.)

BUT WAIT, WHAT REALLY MATTERS IS: BARACK OBAMA WAS WEARING A FLAG PIN TONIGHT, AND JOHN MCCAIN WAS NOT! WHAT DOES THAT TELL US ABOUT JOHN MCCAIN'S LACK OF PATRIOTISM1

I think we can all agree this debate was a bresh of freth air.

McCain's denigration of the "health of the mother" provision in abortion legislation, complete with air quotes and sarcasm in the voice, probably overwhelmed any gains he might have made in the first half-hour.

Then again, when he insisted on complaining about John Lewis a second time, he turned from feisty to whiny.

Cable subscription: $80
Internet subscription: $50
The look on McCain's face when Obama told Joe the Plumber about his $0 tax penalty: priceless

What could be the reasons for McCain blinking so much? It was on the verge of being terribly distracting.

Any good copy'll tell you it's the sign of a bad liar.

What I saw was McCain the Whiny-ass titty baby, McCain the Angry Shaking Man, McCain the teenager rolling his eyes while being schooled, and McCain the guy who just lets his talking points take over where his brain ended.

He fits right in with the pundits in that regard.

Agree that media want this to be a McCain win and will push that line, but also agree that he did well -- for him. He made his points strongly (especially about spending, as much as I disagree with them), and the "Joe the Plumber" thing was very effective.

But also agree that he looked weird. His on-screen affect is flat-out strange.

A couple of observations about the CNN response-o-meter. Both sexes disliked ANY attack, any negativity, and both responded most positively when someone talked in detail and with obvious conviction about an issue. Makes you wonder whether the current reign of negativity may be drawing to a close.

Men's responses were more volatile than women's. Sorry guys, but those hormones need to be brought under control. These are serious issues!

Obama's averages were higher than McCain's, and his volatility was less. In a word, he came off solid, which was EXACTLY what he needed.

Jeez ... we're this close to electing a black president. Wow ...

Agree that media want this to be a McCain win and will push that line, but also agree that he did well -- for him. He made his points strongly (especially about spending, as much as I disagree with them), and the "Joe the Plumber" thing was very effective.

But also agree that he looked weird. His on-screen affect is flat-out strange.

A couple of observations about the CNN response-o-meter. Both sexes disliked ANY attack, any negativity, and both responded most positively when someone talked in detail and with obvious conviction about an issue. Makes you wonder whether the current reign of negativity may be drawing to a close.

Men's responses were more volatile than women's. Sorry guys, but those hormones need to be brought under control. These are serious issues!

Obama's averages were higher than McCain's, and his volatility was less. In a word, he came off solid, which was EXACTLY what he needed.

Jeez ... we're this close to electing a black president. Wow ...

I try to view the debates from an unbiased perspective. I think the first 15 minutes and the attacks on Obama's spending habits were effective for McCain. The rest was fairly even, with the exception of McCain looking like an angry loser when talking about the negative campaigning.

On one side, the future. The other, a sad, angry past.

3 weeks and the real work begins.

The most one-sided debate I've ever seen in my plus 50 years in every meaningful way you could measure a US presidential debate. It will be long remembered.

Why have a majority of the pundits after all four debates talked about how well the Republicans did, and yet public opinion polls have shown the public favored the Democrats by a lopsided margin each time? You'd think at some point the pundits would try and figure out why the public seems to see these debates so differently.

The claim that Palin understands special needs children like those with autism, even though her son Trig has Downs Syndrome, has many people scratching their heads.

Here's my cynical take: this was calculated.

First the rate of Downs is about 1 in 800 live births while the rate of autism is now believed to be about 1 in 150 births. Hence there are more voters with children with autism than Downs Syndrome. Further, parents of Downs children aren't a political force while those with autism are. In fact, I know a sociologist who studies the the phenomena of autism activism.

Bottom line is the McCain camp decided that if they were going to pander they should pander to a large politically active group.

Any good copy'll... -doubtful

That should read 'Any good cop'll...' of course.

Fingers think they knew better than my brain. Oddly enough, they're right more than half the time.

My take: Obama cleaned his clock and made it look easy.

Anybody know where I can get the t-shirt that hurt little John's feelings?

And hey I'll bet my last nickel that the plumber changes the name of his new business acquisition to Joe The Plumber.

All of the snap polls are going to Obama. Guess that flies in the face of all of those who said the only undecideds left were unrepentant racists.

Joe the Plumber still agrees with McCain.

Joe the Plumber is still an ignorant douchebag.

All Obama's grinning made me nervous. At one point I was thinking "Dude, are you high?"

It's important to realize that Obama is NOT black culturally. He's just one penultimately skilled politician (and I say that with respect and admiration). Raised by whites in Hawaii - he's a howly though not pale assed.

I find his ability to stay cool under stress very reassuring. He's the kind of guy who, if he were a surgeon, could do his own bypass. Just what we need right now. He won't freak out and do something rash.

McCain's done. What a nincumpoop. How in the world has he lasted this long in the Senate? Oh, I forgot, he represents Arizona.

I thought this was not Obama's strongest debate. I also thought that McCain would have sounded decent if I had heard it on the radio, and even better if I didn't know enough to know when he was just wrong.

But his reactions just killed him. He was so angry, and that smile thing he does when he's trying to look non-angry is just spooky.

I also remain completely baffled by the fact that McCain still seems really angry that Obama didn't agree to do his endless stream of town hall meetings. I mean: what on earth is up with that? Since when does one candidate get to dictate the whole schedule of the campaign, and then hold a grudge for months when the other doesn't agree?

David Brooks, on PBS, said that Obama was unmovable like a red wood forest. That he outperformed McCain on being presidential. Well, all I have to say is that while McCain maybe tied Obama in the first debate, at least in terms of tone, he has lost the last two. Obama did appear more presidential. McCain seemed like he was still trying to convince right wingers they should vote for him.

He's just one penultimately skilled politician... -LJR

If Obama is second best, who's better?

And why is it important to remember, as you assert that 'Obama is not black culturally?'

Did he have a sign that said that for everyone he ever met so they wouldn't be confused? 'Don't be afraid, I was raised in Hawaii.'

Are there not other black people in Hawaii? Do they not have culture?

I find your pronouncement distasteful.

Before the debate, McCain said he was going to whup Obama's "you know what." Don't know what he had in mind precisely, but Obama whupped McCain's wrinkly old white ass. The Joe the Plumber line was effective the first time. By the fourth time, it was just annoying.

I know that debates should be about the issues, and not about physical appearances or trivia. But while Obama was in command of the issues and talked about them smoothly, McCain didn't give us much to think about EXCEPT his appearance, which was awful; nasty, angry, and constantly flashing that creepy smile that looks like it wants to be a sneer. Toward the end he was stumbling over his words, garbling them, and I seriously worried that we might be about to see him have a stroke on stage.

The face of Joe the Plumber

Denouement

Steve Benen nailed it:

I also noticed that Obama seemed to go out of his way to appeal to centrists and independents ... Obama sought out middle ground on practically every issue.

And so Barack comes full circle. As all good writers do. Back to his origins of "Not a red America. Not a blue America. But one America."

The time is nigh for the politician-as-artist to retrace his steps and revisit his initial vision.
Time to bring it strongly home...
I suspect that even Joe Sixpacks can appreciate such well played art.

The conservative talking heads are mistaking constant attack for strength and capability. McCain attacked plenty, but he scored few blows, and his total deer in a headlights look when Obama responded on taxes for businesses was just deadly for him. Due to the split screen (at least on CNN), McCain looked like he was sucking on a lemon all night long. The Ayers attack made him look petty, and his adamant defense of people at his rallies, while probably necessary to look good in front of his base, likely did little to endear him to swing voters.

Obama was not as sharp as usual, and I thought it was his weakest debate, but McCain shot himself in both feet. Winner: Obama by a mile.

My overall impression of the debate was that Obama proved he is presidential. McCain proved he is angry. I loved the way Obama parried McCain on the Columbian trade deal. It was instructive to watch Obama explain his position on the Columbian trade in greater detail that McCain. Game, set Obama.

Later McCain badmouthed the health of the mother exception for abortions. McCain already has his base. He needs independents. He lost any remaining independent women right there. Game, set, Match Mr. Obama.

I found McCain intensely unlikeable and he looked just awful. He got in a few zingers on taxes, but his ghastly, self-satisfied smiles afterwards...he looked like an idiot. Obama came across as more presidential.

Love the comment about autism activism....very smart, and, seen in that light, McCain's peculiar choice to mention it twice [and claim the first time that Palin knows more than just about anybody....] is clearly disingenuous. Excellent catch.

And did McCain say Obama voted against Breyer?

Be interesting to see comparisons of listeners of radio v. viewers of TV.

Knock wood, and barring the Bradley effect, this is starting to look like landslide territory.

One word comes to mindl loony

No contest.

A flurry of angry, desperate punches by McCain were capably deflected or calmly answered by Obama.

One guy looked presidential. One guy was flailing around for some way - any way - to land a game-changing blow (he failed miserably).

I think the T-Shirt issue was manufactured. There was a slew of postings at one lunatic's blog I was reading, about some member on Obama's site who had supposedly made up some T-shirts that said Sarah Is A Cunt (which goes without saying, of course, but McCain would have had to utter the word "cunt" and that would've been hilarious). However, I check Barack's blog for the name and the chick had nothing of a sort. I kept asking the guy to post the URL and he had none. I've followed the Obama blog for a year now, and they have been always been respectful, almost to an annoying degree. So I really believe whatever it was, it was contrived.

These guys make up shit as they go. Desperate people "have nothing to lose". Which is why I think McCain tried to fire up all the engines tonight. He's already lost the race, and his honor, what else could he possibly lose?

That's the extreme pro-abortion position, quote, "health."

Sen. Obama will tell you, in the -- as the extreme environmentalists do, it has to be safe.

McCain in a nutshell.

Well I commented above before I checked out the instant polls. As in the other debates, I thought it was closer than everybody else thought it was. Every single instant poll is HEAVILY Obama, more than any of the other debates actually.

um... did mccain really say that we shouldn't have a screen for military personnel who want to become teachers?

McCain seemed, to me at least, herky jerky and on edge, like he had popped an upper prior to tonight's performance to give him a lift. Unfortunately, if he did, it did little to help him move the needle in his direction in terms of his discourse. He seemed...I mean, equating Obama to Herbert Hoover? Come on. He seemed at times to have left the rails going off on a tangent that wasn't particularily germane to the specific question. I also found myself asking what the voters would be thinking to themselves when they heard McCain saying on the one hand that he would freeze all spending and then list new programs that he would expand with additional funding and, if I heard him correctly, get rid of the deficit during his term. I left the debate thinking it's time for Gramps to retreat to the rest home. I know he didn't shift a single Obama voter to him, and I sure can't see that he offered anything new to assure himself votes from yet uncommitted Independents. If anything, contrasted with Obama's demeanor and answers, McCain improved Obama's image.

Knock wood, and barring the Bradley effect, this is starting to look like landslide territory. -johhnytea

Statistics disproves the existences of a Bradley/Wilder effect. The Bradley effect is essentially that poll respondents are lying to pollsters in order to not appear racist. That simply doesn't happen.

Races where both candidates are black illustrate this. In fact, an Obama race is applicable.

In 2004 when Obama ran for Senate against Alan Keyes, who is also black, any latent racism would have shown up as a difference in the numbers of Presidential voters as compared to Senate voters.

There was no significant difference in those numbers, and that's just one of the ways to prove the Bradley effect doesn't exist.

Actually, I think there will be a McCain effect in this election. I think a lot of people who are publicly saying they support McCain will pull the lever for Obama. I think many of them are afraid of what their family or friends will think of them, and that is altering their public behavior.

Additionally, most pollsters are probably conservatively underweighting the youth and minority turnout. Most are basing it closely off of 2006 numbers.

Does anyone here actually think that we won't see a significant Obama friendly jump in those demographics?

Think landslide. It's coming, but don't get complacent. Keep at your friends and family and make sure everyone gets out and actually votes!

Go Obama!

treadwell, yes, McCain said that.

Everytime McCain has to drive home a point, he somehow brings in the VA or retired military or soldiers in. He is a one trick pony, but unfortunately for him, a mediocre one. He is inarticulate, incohereht, and should go home and hang up a sign that reads "Tired and Retired."

did mccain really say that we shouldn't have a screen for military personnel who want to become teachers?

He said they shouldn't have to get the teaching credentials that are required in the states in which they would be teaching. I'm not sure exactly what kind of sense that is supposed to make of anyone.

McCain: "I don't care about a warshed-up old terrorist..." but let me tell you why I really care about a warshed-up old terrorist...

He said some form of that sentiment four times this evening.

Obviously, McCain CARES ABOUT that washed-up old terrorist. Very much so!

In terms of substance, decide on the basis of your own ideological preference. In terms of likeability, Obama in a landslide. McCain was obnoxious, a narcissist who preens and sneers his way through life. Remind me again: why is McCain considered such a noble man? Really, the only word I think fits after tonight is "asshole".

Yoda: Control, control! You must learn control!

Obama: I have learned control.

Yoda: True it is. Control you have. Go now. Evil fight you must.

McCain is the one that's hurt and angry! Very ANGRY!!

Hi,

I just joined ACORN!

I am for everyone Voting. Period.

Well, I was going to go on about the debates. . . but why.
McCain sucks. And I pray that Obama is more than he is showing me.

And who the f... is Joe the Plumber?

And we need single payer health care, free good education for our high school and college students regardless of their economic circumstances, blah blah blah

Do you get it? Let's take care of us and our children. Remember, children are our only hope. And we are their caretakers.

Hi,

I just joined ACORN!

I am for everyone Voting. Period.

Well, I was going to go on about the debates. . . but why.
McCain sucks. And I pray that Obama is more than he is showing me.

And who the f... is Joe the Plumber?

And we need single payer health care, free good education for our high school and college students regardless of their economic circumstances, blah blah blah

Do you get it? Let's take care of us and our children. Remember, children are our only hope. And we are their caretakers.

McCain’s response on Supreme Court nominees was incoherent. He kept saying elections have consequences, but nominees should be judged only on their qualifications. So which is it, John?

Sneering at the health of the mother could (SHOULD) be the final nail in McCain's coffin. He not only wants the government to force a woman to have a baby but he'd apparently be perfectly willing to have God only knows how many women die in the process.

And what's up with him saying not once, but twice, that Obama voted against Stephen Breyer for the Supreme Court? How in the world do you confuse Stephen Breyer and Samuel Alito??

Though we're now retired, my wife and I supported ourselves with our "small business" for 33 years and it's obvious when John McCain talks about "small business" owners he is so full of shit it's running out his ears. But then why should he know anything about small business? McCain has been receiving support by the taxpayers since the day he was born 72 years ago. He was born into an elite military family whose health insurance was picked up by the taxpayers. His family had access to housing, and believe me, Navy Admirals live well with perks such as shopping in discount PX's. His education was paid for by the taxpayers. His healthcare for his ENTIRE life has been paid for by taxpayers. He's never had a job except for the military or Congress, he doesn't know jack shit about small business or any other kind of business except the business of being a leech. He even married a rich wife so he didn't even have to earn the lavish lifestyle he's grown accustomed to. What a phony. At least Obama made his modest wealth the old fashioned way, he earned it through writing two best selling books. Unlike Bush who inherited his wealth, and McCain who married his. Obama is a self-made man in the true sense of the word. McCain is a spoiled Military brat rich kid not much different than Bush except for the fact that he wasn't draft dodger.

Does anyone else suspect Joe is connected to the McCain campaign? Joe told Katie Couric that he does not make $250,000 a year. And I'm wondering if his current business actually nets $250,000. My hunch is: it does not. This smells gimmicky to me.

@ R.T.Tihista

Yes!! Thank you

Not too much to add to the consensus view. My GF and I noticed the blinking (and what the hell was that lizard-tongue thing he kept doing?). I don't think Obama was at his best, but he was still pretty good. Calm, cool, thoughtful as usual. It was the worst I've seen McCain, though - he came across as a petulant, smug, adolescent jackass. And he's a horrible actor, too - the "look at how sincere I'm being" routine wouldn't cut it at the local community theater.

But the one thing that struck me the most was that McCain said he wasn't running a negative campaign, and then followed that up with 90 minutes of attacking Obama. McCain or my lying eyes... Hm, let's see...

Well, from where I sat, McCain didn't glow his basket, but he sure seemed to have drunk -- to excess -- at Palin's breash of frest air...

He was animated (like Palin); far more than in the previous two debates. He didn't wink, but he sure did *blink* a heck of a lot. A third of his answers were OK, a third were incoherent (I need my nap, doggone it!) and another third was straight from Palin's School of Debating -- ignore the question and spout any non sequitur which comes to your mind first; *anything*, other than exposing your lack of knowledge/memory.

I have been scribbling a letter to the editor for our little weekly paper and held off sending it today on the off-chance that I might have something to add/take away after tonight's debate. Nope, not a thing.

PS The "Joe the Plumber" ploy (McCain's match for Palin's Joe Sixpack?)... I nearly spilled my wine the first time he mentioned Joe and continued snorting with glee every time afterwards.

Don't know how many of you watched the battles of the EU Constitution a while back, but the (conservative) ads about the threat of "Jan the Plumber" -- the ugly Polack who was willing to work hard, for less than the going rate -- was what turned the French off of the idea. To see him somewhat refurbished/made more presentable and then transposed onto the US soil -- from France, yet! -- was more than my sense of the absurd could take with equanimity...

Obama showed tonight that he is in a class by himself - a true gentleman and a scholar. He continues to earn the respect of independents and disgruntled republicans as he skillfully sheds the mud that has been continously slung by McPalin while clearly and calmy articulating a sensibble vision for our future.

McCain showed tonight that he does not have the intellect or the demeanor to be president. The anger, frustration, and incoherence he presented are the last nail in his political coffin.

McCain's campaign is so badly run that he deserves to lose. It was so obvious that he was coached to come out swinging, and it looked like he could hardly wait to make all of his whiney, immature complaints about how "badly" he's been treated, butting in with another item on the list every few minutes. It comes across as combative and undignified, anything but Presidential.

John Henry,

Exactly. Would someone please explain to the McCain campaign, and everyone else, that a business does not pay taxes on gross income, only on profits. Geez, Joe the Plumber should put down the pipe for a second and consult an accountant. They did some interview with this guy and he was going on and on about how higher taxes would affect his ability to buy a new vehicle and hire more help. He'll probably shit his pants when he finds out how depreciation works with respect to a truck used for a plumbing business. And as far as hiring people ? If they aren't making you money or contributing to your business in any meaningful way, then don't hire them.

Obama did not kick ass. But McCain spent most of the debate kicking himself in the ass, so the bottom line is about the same.

Obama knows exactly what he is doing with his campaign and is running it on his terms. Mccain just has too many voices in his head telling him what to think, what to say and how to say it. A vote for Obama is a vote for Obama. A vote for Mccain is a vote for all of the puppet masters running his campaign who would be running the country (shudder) if he would win. Thanks again Steve for all the hard work.

Well the military standards have been lowered to such a degree that the Army and the congress have to hold investigations as to why there are so many neo-nazis serving in Iraq wanting to kill a few haji for sport so when they come back we might as well make them teachers in failing schools.

The kicker was when McCain in some weird ass backwards way trumpeted New Orleans' schools as some kind of model or experiment.

I think republicans really believe this ACORN shit. They can't grasp the fact that America hates them and they've latched on to this Karl Rove appointed prosecutor(s) invention.

Everything about him said "Fucking liar" it's excctly the same facial tics and expression I saw from Jefferey McDonald a few years back on Larry King. He was trying and still is to protest his innocence but it was quite clear that the man was completely deranged.

Why did it become fashionable in the beltway to perpetuate this myth that a POW should be president? Watching McCain as much as I have recently it is quite clear he is both brainwashed and mentally unstable. It's funny how his posture and the image he projects is congruous with the Right Wing and Republican dead enders. Brainwashed, ignorant, and unstable.

We too had a moment while watching where it appeared as if McCain might have a stroke. It was shortly after the "0" comment from Obama that freaked him out and sucked whatever life he might have left in him. It was the look of a man staring into the abyss, defeated in front of the world by a black man named Barack Obama.

Keeping my fingers crossed but the moment McCain's perception changed and was cemented was in the first debated when he was rattling on about "stinking corpses" with a sneer and spit flying from his mouth.

Joe the plumber sounds like a Rove plant.

I disagree that Obama had a strong debate. I do think he remained calm and composed, regardless of the topic, but he was also extremely devoid of passion thoughout the debate. Even his rebuttals to McCain attacks were extremely level. I admire that evenness though, and in contrast to McCain it is often very reassuring.

McCain's current presidential campaign and the debate tonight has been complete and utter incoherence. Nothing has made sense. Nothing he has done or said has represented a strategy. Nothing makes the least bit of sense. And I was a Republican and a McCain supporter in 2000 (although that is somewhat pointless now-a-days).

I am tired of the continuing refrain - "this is not the McCain I know". This is McCain and who he is everyday. He has chosen his positions and the issues he has decided to pursue in this election. He chose his running mate. He chose to focus on attacking his opponent rather than focusing on the issues. It was apparent tonight, and as a result he has failed. At every attempt, Obama has thrwarted him, and McCain has no coherent response. Even tonight, McCain amazingly asked Obama to repudiate John Lewis' statements (because apparently Obama must repudiate every statement from anyone even associated with the Democratic Party), and then when confronted with the point that people shouted "terrorist" and "kill" Obama at his own rallies, McCain said that he would never question the patriotism of the crowds at his rallies. It was completely ignorant and misguided.

The entire campaign has demonstrated the bankruptcy of the current Republican party, and the vapidness of their arguments.

I just listened to a radio interview: Katie Couric with Joe the Plumber. Honestt to God, at the end of the interview, JTP compares Obama's answers (rhetorical tapdacing) with Sammy Davis Junoir's real tapdancing.

Joe - I guess you're just another sorry ass, flag waving racist. Its still a pretty big boat your floating in; but you better strap on the lifejacket.

Probably sniffing too much lead solder fumes. Sammy Davis Junior? Why don't you try Jackie Robinson, Larry Doby, Rosa parks, or Martin Luther King Junior. Barack Obama does not get nearly enough credit for the enormous burden and unimaginable pressure he faces as the first Black presidential candidate in US history. He carries 50 years of racial injustice on his shoulders - and he does so with a grace and eloquence that is more than admirable.

Joe - enjoy your fifteen minutes of fame(?) and dont bite your tongue too hard as Barack helps you to enjoy the next 8 years. He is ours for the ages.

I have watched all the three debates very closely, and followed the McCain campaign just as assiduously, but fail to see what was it in McCain that press admired so much.

At least there wasn't a suspicious rectangular bulge underneath the back of McCain's suit coat, was there?

Rick,
Try 150+ years of racial injustice.

One thing that has puzzled me about Obama's (and every other Democrat's) response to the tax-raise question is that the answer is to simply point to the Clinton record.

Every Republican politician and conservative group that was around at the time is on record as predicting doom from the Clinton tax policy, and I'm sure McCain has a few of those comments out there from that time.

Should've just dug them up and pointed out how flat out wrong they were- best defense is to point to the record.

Gotta love this from the CNN post-debate poll report:

McCain won in two categories. Eighty percent of debate watchers polled said McCain spent more time attacking his opponent, with seven percent saying Obama was more on the attack. Fifty-four percent said McCain seemed more like a typical politician during the debate, with 35 percent saying Obama acted more like a typical politician [emphasis mine].

With wins like these . . .

McCain has always been self destructive ego maniac and a ruthless manipulating ambitious self centered hypocrite, it just becomes more obvious the longer he exposes himself. He tries to hide his true self nad his anger is a form of pouting.
Obama was, as always, deliberative and considerate and issue oriented. I have no doubt he will work tirelessly for the good of the country and not personal self interests or to enrich his friends like all republicans do. That said, we still need a NOT FOR PROFIT single payer health care ins system and free education...I am even for nationalizing our energy sources since it is for the use of all. It will require the effort of all supporters to help Obama restore our democracy and save our economy from privatization and unregulated greed. Obama is inheriting a nation held together with bandaids and string which has been plundered by the last regime...the McCainites. These people will only plot to regain power at the country's expense and lets not forget the racists who just want to watch the nation burn. 2/3rds of the nation will transform the future we were headed towards and it is all based on progressive ideals which our leaders have been slow to realize or enact. Obama is not "the one", he is the "right one" at the right time for our needed transformation out of necessity to survive and grow.
Most people made up their minds long before this debate and it is overwhelmingly for Obama and the change he represents...but we are the change and the changers.

BOTH candidates get a C. Why?

In a nutshell, I think Ayers was the one issue where McCain could both throw red meat to the base AND appeal to independents. Not the Ayers of the past, but the Ayers of today.

A laundry list of all the Annenberg Challenge grants the Woods Foundation approved would probably have turned up something that many centrists might have questioned.

Obama? Especially having the second closing, he had the chance to “make the sale.� And he didn’t. While he wasn’t Mike Dukakis, he wasn’t really up to Al Gore or John Kerry warmth level, let alone the Slickster.

exlibra,

Are you aware that "Joe the Plumber" is a real guy? Here he is speaking with Obama.

gregor wrote: I have watched all the three debates very closely, and followed the McCain campaign just as assiduously, but fail to see what was it in McCain that press admired so much.

Booze and barbecue. That was basically it. The MSM is a very cheap date.

For everyone wondering why McCain seemed so eager to burnish his wingnut creds this evening and to hell with independents (who returned the favor in their instapolls), his campaign -- stacked with Rove operatives from W's 2k and 2004 run -- is absolutely obsessed with turning out the Republican base. That was the reason for Palin. And it's the reason for all the unhinged attacks about Obama's supposed leftist radicalism. Most thinking people recognize it as the distraction-from-the-issues bullshit it is. For some reason the hard core Republican base just swoons over it, to the point where some become literally homicidal with rage.

Will spittle-emitting outrage at Obama's "fake" birth certificate or handshake with Ayers 20 years ago actually get them to the polls to vote for a guy who is almost certain to lose? That's another matter.

Are you aware that "Joe the Plumber" is a real guy?-- noncarborundm, Oct 16, @1:49

Well, I didn't think he was, when McCain first mentioned him. Then, when Obama mentioned him too, I figured he *was* "for real". But then, both of them (Obama and McCain) started addressing the poor schmoe, directly, at every opportunity... At which point, it made no difference whether Joe was real or not; the whole thing dissolved into a farce. Which was so reminiscent of the French ads...

In this debate, Obama was the Phillies' Cole Hamels, and McCain was the Dodgers' hitters, vainly flailing away.

McCain looked like he was trying to fart most of the night. You all know how hard it is to fart while sitting down, don't you?

Then every now & then McCain got one out. Thus the broad, creepy smile. He knew Obama had to smell it & pretend it didn't happen. And then McCain would look at Schieffer to see if he smelled it. Which explains the occasional weird grins aimed at Bob.

That's the most charitable explanation I can come up with for McCain's bizarre behavior tonight.

McCain seemed, to me at least, herky jerky and on edge....

Oh, I disagree, he was perfectly at ease as they walked off, with his "I'm going to grab your bony ass and lick it all over" face and gesture thing.

Man's a natural.

I thought this was not Obama's strongest debate. I also thought that McCain would have sounded decent if I had heard it on the radio, and even better if I didn't know enough to know when he was just wrong.

I heard a little bit on the radio in the car. Definitely McCain is stronger on the radio, and Obama a bit weaker. McCain did make several weird sounds but they were ignorable. In making his case, he did mostly alright, but then he'd throw in these weird ideas like letting ex military become teachers without having to pass a test.

Then finally, he derided the concept of the "health of the mother" during pregnancy. That's the quote of the night. He suddenly revealed himself as a movie villain who mocks the cares of ordinary folk without a hint of understanding as he destroys their lives.

If you're still updating your flip-flip list Steve, you might care to add ACORN to it. From Maude Hurd, of ACORN, responding to McCain's accusations:

"We appreciate that Senator McCain's effort to stir up the Republican base by attacking a community group that is trying to increase public participation in our democratic processes.

However, these attacks reflect an increasingly panicky candidate; unfortunately the Senator McCain we saw tonight is very different than the Senator McCain who stood shoulder to shoulder with ACORN at a February 20, 2006 immigration reform event.

It is clear for us to see that John McCain was for ACORN before he was against ACORN."

The ancient, angry, addled, adulterer didn't do himself any favors last night.

He is tempermentally unfit to be president. His ludicrous choice of Sarah Palin is another disqualifier.

Can we please put the real adult in charge?

It's over. McCain made a fool of himself while Obama maintained his steady, unflappable command of the issues.

Something that struck me, perhaps because I'm an Obama supporter, is that on two occasions, one when McCain tried to accuse Obama of running a dirtier campaign than his, and two, when he tried to argue that Sarah Palin is qualified to step into the Presidency, McCain was coming across as an out and out liar.

Is it just me or are a lot of people put off by McCain sucking up to a guy who spends his working hours with a wrench in the back pocket of his jeans and flashing his arse crack to the missus of the house?

Does NOBODY remember Akroyd????
Couldn't find the video clip for those too young to remember.