Post-Debate Thoughts
- The breakout star: Joe the Plumber.
- The big question: will Joe appear on the campaign trail beside McCain, or beside Obama? Because he’s gonna end up with one or the other.
- These have been boring debates. Bush-Kerry, Bush-Gore, Clinton-Dole, Reagan-Anyone…far more interesting.
- Bob Scheiffer was the best moderator.
- They still avoided the “what programs will you need to cut in light of the financial crisis” question. Their answers are still: Yes, we can spend an extra trillion dollars, and you can still have the candy store. No need to cut or sacrifice, heaven forbid. We can still have it all.
- Though, to his credit, Obama did say we’ve been living beyond our means and would need to make adjustments.
- I didn’t see a winner in last night’s debate. Except for Joe the Plumber, of course.
- If you go to joetheplumber.com, it’s a guy in Amarillo, Texas who suddenly owns a very valuable piece of cyber real estate. Free estimates! Call now!
- McCain, the guy who doesn’t use a computer, thinks a sophisticated planetarium projector is just an overhead projector.
- Thankfully, only one passing reference to “preconditions.”
- Scheiffer did a good job of pressing them about negative campaigning. Both were unapologetic and, as they would both insist, “I cannot tell a lie.” On live national TV, we watched their noses grow.
- Michael Sherer notes that McCain got under Obama’s skin several times. “If Obama’s job was to be unflappable, he found himself flapped at several points.”
- I tracked down and listened to the original encounter with Joe the Plumber. Regardless of whether or not you agree with Obama, I was impressed with his knowledge about economic issues. Either that, or he’s real slick.
- Said Michael Grunwald on the Swampland live-blog: “Mccain is gritting his teeth so hard they’re going to come out his chin.”
- Karen Tumulty on the same: “Obama seemed cool and collected, while McCain’s grimaces were painful to watch.”
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