Bloggin' while they're talkin'

I thought a series of postings throughout the debate tonight might be interesting.

So, as they appear, so will my comments.

Den

6:55 Watching NBC and surviving the final minutes of ET. aghh

7:01 OK, they're coming on the stage. First observations: Obama looks confident, McCain secure. It's a town hall format.

7:04 80 folks from the Gallup poll, selected to ask questions.

7:05 Brokaw opens up with Allan Shafer asking : what's the fastest way to bail out "these people" who have their pensions.

Obama: the economy is as bad as the great Depression. Free markets have not worked. (Oh really....so it's all about CEOs and their pay...c'mon...)

McCain: Allan, you go to the heart of America's fears. We've got to have energy independence. We've got to stop putting our nation in debt (Oh really....so what about the bail out...$700 billion?)

M: we've got to have the government buy up the homes that are in the financial crunch. (What? America becomes the mortgage lender for the neation...free markets may well be dead...)

O: Sec. of the Treasury: Warren Buffet, maybe....it's not enough to help those at the top. There is no trickle down. 95% tax cut for the middle class....stabilize the center. (True, but not all middle class are having a tough time AND not all people who are taxed are "rich")

7:18

M: Attacking Obama: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have funded Obama's race. I stood up against it. He took a hike.

O: Credit markets are frozen. Companies are having horrible times trying to meet their payrolls. (OK, so  how will government help thaw those markets....it's all fear-based.)

O: I never promotedFannie or Freddie (Yes, that may be true, but did he get their moola? He can't avoid that)

B: Will the economy get worse before it gets better?

O: No, we need to tackle things now.

M: My friend, your name was not on the letter that asked for the system to be fixed. (What letter is McC talking about?)

(here's the deal - how is it that  these guys speak with buzz words and blame each other, KNOWING that people don't get what they are talking about?)

O: I'm cutting more than I am spending (Did he just admit to being a spender? There was a tone in his voice as if "Oh my God, am I saying this?")

M: Taxpayers Organizations call Obama the most liberal tax and spend Senator. Nearly a billion dollars. Look at my record and then look at his.

(This hits a nerve to many people....we are sick of people squandering our taxes.)

7:31

(He looks secure and yet old. He's not answering the specific questions but rather giving global answers. People don't dig that. His comment that some part of the $700 billion will end up in terrorists hands begs the response: WHAT? What is he saying?)

O: (He looks smoothe and gives the image of a man self-contained. Being articulate doesn't hurt him, either.)

78 year old internet questioner: "What sacrafices do you ask of Americans?" (Great question, old tech dude...)

M: Get rid of earmarks and have a spending freeze. (Hmmm...sounds like Nixon's policies in the 1970s)

M: We're not rifle shots here, we're Americans. (Say what?)

O: A lot of you remember that tragedy of 9-11 (Say what? Did he really say that?)

O: Americans are hungry for leadership. We need to think about how we use energy. We need to lead. (Ok, who's the "we"?) And we need to be more fuel efficient...(Sounds like Jimmy Carter and the sweater patrol of the 1970s)

B: Did America get "drunk" from success?

O: It's hard to have some people sacrafice and others...not.

M: It's like nailing jello to a wall. And Herbert Hoover did blah, blah..(Oh my God did he just link himself to the GOP standard bearer who FDR beat like a rented mule?)

Boston internet guy: The entitlements? Stay or go?

O: In my first term as President, I will tackle that. (Oh my gosh, now he's running for re-election,,,remember Thomas Dewey, Barrack...)

O: 95 % of Americans will get a tax break under my plan. ( pandering, pandering...)

M: I'll answer the question. Social Security can be fixed. We need Reagan and Tip O'Neil time. We need the smartest people in America come together and decide. Then do it.

M: It's a matter of record or rhetoric. Let's look at our records.

(McC looks old and kinda crotchity....He sounds very DC, very inside the belt way...very much like a salesman who is too pushy...)

My bride: McC is not talking to the young voters, Obama is speaking to them. It's like a grandfather talking to them, or a hip uncle. Hmmm...she may be right.)

I'm going to take some time now, simply to get the "vibe" from the rest of this debate. It's 7:52 and I'm going to bullet point the rest of the debate.

• Healthcare a commodity? O: Good rhetoric. No specific answer. M:  We should be able to go across state lines, like any other commodity. (Hmm...great idea.)
• Health care a priviledge, a right or a responsibility? M: A responsibility. O: A right.
• O: agreed that if children are not insured, the parents will be fined. (What? How weird is that...)
• McC asked how much the fine was, but asked it in a way like a smart ass. (He didn't have to do that)
• Peace maker or peace keeper? M: I have the experience. We don't have time for on the job training - he doesn't understand. O: He is right, I don't understand why we invaded Iraq when it had nothing to do with 9-11. (Great quote.)
• O: Terrorists are plotting to kill Americans right now. Pakistan must change their policies. We need to kill bin Laden.
• M: Senator Obama wants to attack Pakistan. ( Most Amnericans don't care...they just want bin Laden dead, don't they?)
• O: McC is the guy who sang, "Bomb, bomb, bomb....bomb, bomb Iran".
• M: I was joking with an old Vet. I know how to get bin Laden. Re: Russia - I looked  into the eyes of Vladamir Putin  and saw three letters: KGB. (Best quote of the night...)
• My bride: I wish I knew more a bout Iraq. I don't know if we'll ever know.
• Russia, an evil empire: maybe...yes, means we reignite the Cold War...no, means ignore it.
• Israel: would we commit troops if Iran attacked Israel? M: We would not wait on the UN. We would go in. O: We will not take military options off the table. It IS important for us NOT to get there. We need to impose sanctions and that starts them re-thinking. (There is no economic support to dealing with a country that wants to kill Jews and wipe off Israel from the map)
• Peggy the Zen master: What don't you know, and what will it take for you to learn it? O: It's the challenges that you don't expect. (like George W?) M: I don't know what's going to happen both here and abroad. I have spent my life serving. I know what it's like to keep my hope up, no matter what.

Summary: Obama outclassed McCain, out spoke McCain and out-cooled McCain.  McCain outlasted Obama, out graced Obama and out experienced Obama.

Young people will move towards Obama. McCain will secure the older folks. McCain was A+ on the foreign policy. If the economy is ONLY the issue, the GOP will suffer - McCain could lose.

But always remember that Americans don't only think with their wallets. Their hearts beat for heroes.

John McCain is that hero. Obama is the future. Save the Cheerleader...save the world.

Comments

[JIm Dalos Jr]

Thanks for Update on Debate AS I had a meeting & Missed it