Live-Blogging the Spin

Mitt Romney just said Barack Obama "isn't someone who keeps America America." Give me a fucking break. I hate the spin room. Both sides spew bullshit after the debate, and that's all the time I've got for it.

Live-Blogging the Debate: Who Won?

Well, it's over, and I think Obama did an okay job. I wanted him to fight back more forcefully against McCain's lecturing and hectoring - it would have been nice to hear him say "Senator McCain is right" a few less times, and I really would have liked to hear him say "Don't lecture me, John." But I guess his game plan has been to keep it civil, and by extension presidential and above it. McCain's demeanor and smugness and overall temperament during the debate keeps him from winning in my book, but he did a good job of keeping Obama on the defensive rather than answering the questions at hand. I can tell you this - I don't like John McCain, and the way he's run his campaign has cost me what little respect I had left for him. I'm going to call this one a draw.

-EB

Live-Blogging the Debate: Vouchers

McCain made a big to-do about vouchers as a cure-all for the problems with the education system, explaining that they're very popular in the terrible D.C. school system, so that must mean vouchers work.

I have more to say on this, but I need to read transcripts and see who said what. Because I disagree with McCain, and I agree with Obama, and I'm going to explain why tomorrow.

In other news, the Dodgers are down by four runs in the bottom of the eighth inning. That ain't good.

Good night, and Dodgers, good luck.

-EB

Live-Blogging the Debate: Eloquence

I love how McCain is slamming Obama for his "eloquence" tonight. Read that as "lying to you." As "don't believe the smooth talker." This party, this candidate, this campaign is against intelligence, against intellectualism, against smarts, because the people high up in the Republican party want to keep their base stupid.

Maybe I'm a little angry right now, because I generally don't buy in to conspiracy theories, but to hear the Republicans rail against the "elite', against academics, against those who have excelled in higher education is disgraceful.

Vote for smarts. Vote for "elite." Vote for Obama. Vote against people against education.

-EB

Live-Blogging the Debate: Is Hard Work!

I'm having trouble keeping up. New York Times, you've beaten me again!

Shout outs to my homies Mary Grace and Randy, and a hey hey to my old college pal Dan!

-EB

Live-Blogging the Debate: Mis-Representin'!

Every freaking time McCain gets the last word, he takes the opportunity to completely misrepresent Obama's positions, and I really would like to see Obama smack back. McCain is scoring points this way, but he's offsetting those points scored with his creepy, pissy, know-it-all demeanor. Obama, as usual, is doing a good job of remaining above it and appearing presidential - but I'd still like to see him land a good one on McCain.

Live-Blogging the Debate: Energy

How much does McCain think 45 new nuclear power plants are going to cost? He said we can be completely off Middle Eastern and Venezuelan oil by the end of his first term, but that math doesn't add up. How long does it take to build one nuclear plant? And what do you do with the spent fuel, when we can't find a safe place to put our current spent nuclear fuel?

Live-Blogging the Debate: Kitchen Sink

Every time McCain gets the last word, he throws the entire kitchen sink at Obama, regardless of whether or not it's related to the topic. I wonder how many times he's going to say "he wants to raise your taxes" tonight? I feel like if I was taking a shot every time he said that I'd be drunk by now - and I'm lagging behind on the live debate because I paused it on my TiVo.

Live-Blogging the Debate: VEEPS

Good answer from Obama on why Biden was a good pick for V.P.

McCain says Palin is a role model for women. My wife says "No." End of story.

Live-Blogging the Debate: Exaggerating ACORN

ACORN perpetrating the greatest voter fraud in history? Give me a break! A few people paid to sign up new voters registered Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Tony Romo. If someone showed up at the polls and tried to vote as Mickey Mouse, they'd be turned away. End of story. The Republicans and the screaming idiots at Fox News are making a big stink about this because they've realized McCain can't win on issues.

Live-Blogging the Debate: Smack Talk

Somehow John McCain is laying the blame for his negative campaigning on Senator Obama. Please. The tenor of the McCain campaign over the last several weeks has been disgusting.

Live-Blogging the Debate: Smack Back, Barack

I'd like to see Senator Obama hit McCain back a little harder. McCain keeps asking "when has Sen. Obama ever stood up against the leadership of his party?" That's a stupid argument, because Senator Obama's party has not been in the majority except for the last two years, and has not held the White House for eight. Democrats generally do not see eye to eye with the Bush Administration, and as the opposition party, needed to present a unified front against Bush and the Republicans. Shelve this argument, John, it's stupid.

Live-Blogging the Debate: I Will Look at Obama!

Senator McCain is working really hard to actually look at Obama tonight.

He did have his tough guy moment though, just now, telling Obama if he wanted to run against President Bush he should have done it four years ago. I give McCain points for that one.

Live-Blogging the Debate: Ignoring Reality

Bob Schieffer just asked if all the spending proposed by both candidates, given the current economic climate, is "ignoring reality." I think John McCain is ignoring reality by not answering the question, and by continuing to flash that creepy, wide-eyed, off-putting smile.

Is it me, or does McCain seem kind of agitated tonight? I'm waiting for tonight's "that one" moment.

-EB

Live-Blogging the Debate: Feeling the Pressure

I think Senator McCain is completely feeling the pressure tonight - he seems completely tongue-tied.

Joe the Plumber is getting a lot of play - I guess Joe Sixpack is off tonight.

-EB

Live-Blogging the Debate: Game On

9:05 - I think John McCain just had a Sarah Palin moment - his answer about the "Fannie and Freddie Mae" causing the housing crisis sounded a lot like Gov. Palin's non-sensical answer in her interviews with Katie Couric.

Live-Blogging the Debate: Pre-Game

Before things get started, a question: I was just watching The Colbert Report, and Colbert was interviewing Nobel Prize Winner economist Albert Steiglitz, who said that U.S. contractors in Iraq are making money shipping sand into Iraq from Kuwait. Sand. Could that be true?

The Dodgers and Phillies are playing right now, the Dodgers down 3-1 in the NLCS. I'd like to be watching the game, but my desire to see John McCain melt down this evening is outweighing my desire to see the Dodgers hang on and win. Go Dodgers!

Live-Blogging the Debate: Return of the Jedi!

I will, once again, be live-blogging and taking on the forces of evil in this third and final installment of the Debate Wars trilogy. But if any of those damn Ewoks show up - or Wilfred Brimley with a couple of adorable kids - I'm outta here.

-EB

Post-Debate Wrap-Up

Well, here's my verdict - Obama won. I think John McCain came off as a pissy, rambling, old guy who thinks that he knows better than that young whippersnapper Obama and everyone else in that room.

I thought Obama did great on foreign policy, especially in respect to Pakistan and how to deal with the Al Qaeda/Taliban problem in the troublesome border region between Afghanistan and Pakistan. He was authoritative and very clear about his intentions. McCain accused Obama - and has been accusing him - of telegraphing his intention to invade Pakistan. Obama has never said he's going to invade Pakistan, and clears that up here: "I want to be very clear about what I said. Nobody called for the invasion of Pakistan. Senator McCain continues to repeat this. What I said was the same thing that the audience here today heard me say, which is, if Pakistan is unable or unwilling to huntdown bin Laden and take him out, then we should." That seems like a clear policy statement to me, and puts Al Qaeda on notice, but nowhere does it say "we're going to invade Pakistan."

McCain's response to this was curious to me as well: "I'll get Osama bin Laden, my friends. I'll get him. I know how to get him. I'll get him no matter what. And I know how to do it. But I'm not going to telegraph my punches, which is what Senator Obama did. And I'm going to act responsibly as I have acted responsibly throughout my military career and throughout my career in the United States Senate." Okay, Senator, if you know how to get him, why haven't you shared that with anyone else? If you know how to get him, why didn't you push to get him instead of letting it drop and cheerleading for us to get into Iraq? And as far as acting responsibly throughout your military career, have you forgotten about the multiple planes you stalled and crashed as Navy flier, or about how you handled yourself on the USS Forrestal after the terrible accident on its flight deck? And as far as acting responsibly throughout your military career, have you forgotten about your role as one of The Keating Five?

The senator from Arizona indicated that he knew a lot about a lot of things, like Social Security: "Social Security is not that tough. We know what the problemsare, my friends, and we know what the fixes are." And the economy: "And I know how to fix this economy and eliminate our dependence on foreign oil and stop sending $700 billion a year overseas."

I said it earlier, and I'll say it again - Senator McCain, if you know how to fix these things, why haven't you done anything about them?! Are you/were you waiting to be elected President? If so, how is that putting country before all else, like your presidential aspirations?

I'm disgusted. And if I were an undecided voter - which I'm clearly not - I would have landed squarely in the Obama camp tonight.

That's it - time for sleep.

-EB

p.s. Transcript quotes from C-Span debate hub: http://debatehub.c-span.org/ Great job on that website, guys!

Live-Blogging the Debate: Cool Hand John?

McCain just said we need a "cool hand on the tiller" when it comes to foreign policy. I guess he just endorsed Obama for President, because he sure as hell couldn't have been talking about himself. Is he completely out to lunch on how he's careened all over the place over the last few weeks in dealing with the economy? He's got the hot hand of a reactionary, and that is definitely not what we need in a president.

-EB