Now, why would we be in a better position if your running mate became president?
Brilliant question. Obama is going on and on and on about Joe Biden’s numerous qualities and his incredible experience.
John McCain goes on about Palin.
Obama talks about autism.
McCain goes on about spending. Obama flashes an incredible smile. Poise on the left, rage on the right.
McCain answers the question by dishing out more dirt at Obama. McCain is admitting nothing here. John McCain cannot answer the question.
Obama’s key response, “A hundred percent of your ads, John, have been negative.”
McCain cites ads from Obama criticizing McCain’s policies.
Again with Joe the Plumber.
At last, Obama goes for the jugular, citing the numerous examples from McCain’s campaign stops where his supporters shout, “Terrorist!” and “Kill him!” when Obama’s name is mentioned. Obama goes on, and McCain is rocking back and forth, heating up.
Will we see the famous McCain rage?
McCain is ready to blow. McCain is losing it. McCain is repeatedly interrupting Obama.
At last we’re seeing the real John McCain. Obama speaks again. McCain makes faces, looking like a child sulking.
McCain has to mention Bill Ayers — who, by the way, IS A REPUBLICAN!
Obama handles that well, and is actually keeping his cool in the face of this onslaught.
Obama stresses “Pay-as-you-go.” Wants to eliminate “a whole host of programs.”
McCain’s looking glib. Let’s see if he answers the question.
Well, McCain starts by referring to the Great Depression. He’s interrupted by Bob Schieffer, “What will you cut?”
McCain talks about energy.
“We have presided over the largest increase in government since the Great Society!”
That’s right on. McCain has presided over this increase.
Again, McCain refers to an “overhead projector” in Chicago. Ugh. Do any of these Republicans understand science?
McCain says he will balance the budget, but comes back to “energy independence.” No specifics.
Obama refutes McCain, reminding McCain that even Fox News agrees with him on this one.
The third and last presidential debate is underway, and Topic A is the economy.
Right now Barack Obama is talking, and John McCain looks like he’s in pain, staring at Senator Obama.
John McCain is talking about “Joe the Plumber” in Ohio.
I’m sure we’ll hear from Joe the Plumber tomorrow from the major media. Obama’s back to policy, talking about his tax cuts. McCain is staring off in to the distance, now returning back to Joe the Plumber.
Obama stresses again that he’s going to cut taxes for 95% of all Americans.
McCain is hammering taxes, but no plan yet.
Ah, here it is. McCain wants to cut taxes even more.
How will McCain pay for his new programs?
Turning Left is one of the featured bloggers on C-SPAN’s Debate Hub.
You can watch or listen to tonight’s third and last presidential debate at http://debatehub.c-span.org/.
We’ll be tuning in to C-SPAN to watch the debate starting at 8 p.m. local time, 9 p.m. ET.
Tune in to C-SPAN!
Absolutely hilarious. From The Daily Show, with Jon Stewart.
Will this be the beginning of the end of Sarah Palin’s close-up, or will the voters ignore her ethics violations?
First, it is very difficult to prosecute ethics violations, especially where there was no direct monetary gain procured by the offending party. Voters, on the other hand, should read between the lines. What Gov. Palin did was wrong – ethically, legally, and morally. Whether she ever faces prosecution or censure for her actions is irrelevant. The governor of the state of Alaska used her influence in a radically inappropriate manner to give her former brother-in-law the boot.
That says it all.
Do we want this person within a heartbeat of the presidency? And why do the Republicans want this person within a heartbeat of the presidency? What does this say of the Republican Party?
From the New York Times:
Gov. Sarah Palin abused the powers of her office by pressuring subordinates to try to get her former brother-in-law, a state trooper, fired, an investigation by the Alaska Legislature has concluded. The inquiry found, however, that she was within her right to dismiss her public safety commissioner, Walt Monegan, who was the trooper’s boss.
A 263-page report released Friday by lawmakers in Alaska found that Ms. Palin, the Republican vice-presidential nominee, had herself exerted pressure to get Trooper Michael Wooten dismissed, as well as allowed her husband and subordinates to press for his firing, largely as a result of his temperament and past disciplinary problems.
“Such impermissible and repeated contacts,” the report states, “create conflicts of interests for subordinate employees who must choose to either please a superior or run the risk of facing that superior’s displeasure and the possible consequences of that displeasure.” The report concludes that the action was a violation of the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act.
Look, I’ll not bash Republicans here. “Some of my best friends…,” blah, blah, blah.
But the truth is, Republicans have allowed their party to be raped by the extreme right, and that’s a shame. Was it a shameful lust for power that led the “Party of Lincoln” to slide so wickedly to the right? Was it an utter disregard for consequences that caused them to look the other way while their president took the nation on an insane and reckless spending spree while slashing the country’s income?
What was it that caused Republicans to look the other way? How are their stock portoflios now?
Here’s the thing: Now everyone, whether Republican or Democrat or Independent, is suffering.
Did John McCain really vet Palin?
Read between the lines: It’s gotta be Obama.
I’m giving this space to David Plouffe, Barack Obama’s campaign manager:
Barack Obama won a resounding victory in John McCain’s favorite debate format because he made the case for change that will rebuild the middle class. The American people asked tough questions tonight, and only Barack Obama was in touch with their struggles and offered clear and passionate answers about creating jobs, reducing health care costs, cutting taxes for 95% of working families, and responsibly ending the war in Iraq. John McCain was all over the map on the issues, and he is so angry about the state of his campaign that he referred to Barack Obama as “that one” – last time he couldn’t look at Senator Obama, this time he couldn’t say his name. The McCain campaign said, “if we keep talking about the economy, we’re going to lose.”
“That one?”
That “what”, John?
Was this a racist statement? Did he mean, “That black guy?”
Maybe not.
I agree with Plouffe. Barack won this one hands down.
The polls should reflect that over the next week or so. Barack will gain ground.
Senator McCain has consistently mistated Senator Obama’s policy on Pakistan. Obama has repeatedly stated that Al Qaida is the target, and if Pakistan can’t or won’t pursue Bin Laden or Al Qaida, then the United States must.
That’s it.
John “Bomb-Bomb-Bomb, Bomb-Bomb-Iran” McCain keeps saying Barack wants to invade Pakistan.
Horribly off base, John.
Barack Obama can see gray. Barack Obama is demonstrating a clear ability to under the complexity of many issues. McCain barely comprehends his own sound bites.
Mike Kean, a friend of mine writing from the University of Illinois, pointed this out as well, “Obama simply answered the question about going into Pakistan by saying that if the Pakistani government was incapable of fighting Al Qaeda, he would support sending troops across the border to fight them. Then, McCain spent his entire response going on and on about Teddy Roosevelt saying that he needs to talk softly and carry a big stick and claiming that Obama was saying he would invade Pakistan. That’s not at all what Obama was saying. Then Obama had a rebuttal, repeating what he already said, and McCain came back and said the same thing again, blatantly misrepresenting what Obama. I dont know what’s worse: whether McCain thinks that the American people wouldn’t notice, or that most Americans probably didn’t notice what McCain was doing.
“All around this campaign has been frustrating as hell throughout the whole damn thing.”
Amen.
The second Presidential Debate is still in progress, about 55 minutes in.
Look, we all know Tom Brokaw favors John McCain, but he has repeatedly scolded Senator Obama so far as if he was talking to the hired help. The most obvious was a few minutes ago when he reminded Barack that there are lights on stage that tell the speakers when to stop. Barack laughed politely in response.
Senator McCain is talking right now. I’m looking at a red light. McCain has talked well past the red light. McCain stops. Nothing from Brokaw. Instead, another softball lob to McCain about health care.
Barack is talking about health care. Brokaw is trying to interrupt him, “Senator, we have to move on now.”
Does Brokaw have a book coming out about McCain?
ADDENDUM: 1 hour 23 minutes in, Brokaw thanks McCain for speaking, invites Obama to respond by saying, “Senator Obama, we’re winding down so we have to keep track of the time.”
Now Senator Obama is concluding his remarks, and Brokaw just cut him off again. McCain consistently gets a free pass.
Horrible.