Garling Gauge

McCain-Obama Debate Firsts 10-15-08

 The (Joe the Plumber) closing argument

Oh no!  I’m not ready for the debates to be over yet. 

You might have dozed off a bit during the multitude of Democratic primary debates, but presidential debates are different, and this last of three has everyone on their toes speculating on what Sen. John McCain will say to mount his much needed comeback.

Will he mention Prof. Ayers? (he said he would).  Will he go on the attack?  (He said he would).  Will he bring up Rev. Wright? (God help him if he does). 

With an estimated 70 million viewers tuning in tonight, in many ways this is the closing argument for both candidates.  Well, except for that 30 minute-long commercial Sen. Obama purchased during the would-be sixth game of the World Series.

 With just over twenty days left till the election (say it ain’t so), McCain needs a game-changer, especially with the construction sign newly sprung on the west lawn of the United States Capitol.  The end to the wildest election in living history is certainly nigh.

The debate and the race are now Obama’s to lose.  It will be interesting to see if he rests on his laurels or go on the attack.  Can Obama keep his composure?  Will McCain’s left gland burst?  Will the moderator be as irritating as in the second debate?

Let’s put this debate in context with a little warmup from an alternative universe of yesteryear:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l63SRpGXBHE[/youtube]

Remind you of anyone?

Without further ado, here are the last, yes last ‘debate firsts’ of the 2008 presidential debate cycle.

• First to smile: Moderator Bob Schieffer
• First to walk on stage: Sen. Barack Obama
• First to address the other candidate: Sen. Obama
• First to take notes with his left hand: Sen. John McCain
• First to answer a question: McCain (on why his economic plan is better)
• First to mention Nancy Reagan: McCain
• First to say Americans are angry: McCain (Yes, at Republicans, you dolt)
• First to fold his hands: Obama
• First to stutter: Obama
• First to look at the camera when answering a question: Obama
• First to mention the middle class: Obama
• First to mention tax cuts: Obama
• First to say he agrees with his opponent on something: Obama
• First to say he disagrees with his opponent on something: Obama
• First to decline to ask the other candidate a question: McCain
• First to mention ‘Joe the plumber’: McCain

• First to say his opponent has been watching his opponent’s own ads: Obama
• First back and forth of the debate: How their tax cut plans that affect ‘Joe the plumber’
• First to laugh at his own joke: McCain
• First to say Warren Buffet can afford to pay a bit more in taxes: Obama
• First to say nobody likes taxes: Obama
• First to interrupt the other candidate: McCain
• First to mention Ireland: McCain
• First to mention ‘the great society’: McCain
• First to say he knows how to save billions in defense spending: McCain (oh really?)
• First to say he wasn’t President Bush: McCain
• First to hold a pen in his hand while answering a question: Obama
• First to say “even Fox News disputes” what McCain says: Obama
• First to blame his negative ads on the fact that ‘this is a tough campaign’: McCain
• First to mention the deaths of children: McCain
• First to say he’ll run a truthful campaign: McCain
• First to say the other candidate didn’t keep his word: McCain
• First interesting fact from McCain: Obama has spent more on negative ads than any other candidate in history (interesting!  He probably spent more positive ads than any other candidate as well)
• First to say the reason why the campaign is so negative is the fact that Obama didn’t agree to ten town hall debates: McCain
• First to mention the Dallas Cowboys: McCain
• First to laugh at his own joke for the second time: McCain
• First major topic of interaction between the candidates: Negative ads
• First candidate not to look at the other candidate: McCain
• First candidate to interrupt the other candidate six times in a row: McCain
• First to say that his supporters are the most dedicated people in America: McCain
• First to bring up Bill Ayers: McCain (and with that, McCain loses)

• Best question of the debate: Why would the country be better off if your running mate became president?
• First candidate to correct the moderator: McCain
• First to say ‘cockimany’: McCain
• First to mention every single alternative power source in a single sentence: McCain
• First to mention the United States invented the auto industry: Obama
• First to say he admires the other candidate’s eloquence: McCain
• First to look entirely pleased with himself and his answer: McCain (on Columbia)
• First to mention Detroit: Obama (313!)
• First time McCain looked at Obama while Obama answered a question: During his explaination of his health care plan
• First to continually bring up ‘Joe the plumber’: McCain
• What the first interview with ‘Joe the plumber’ after this debate will be worth: Priceless
• First to call the other candidate ‘Senator Government’: McCain
• First interesting debate: This one! They both are engaging each other and brought their game.
• First to consistently smile at the other candidate’s answers: Obama
• First to raise his eyebrows halfway up his forehead: McCain (when Obama contradicted a point McCain made about Obama’s voting record in Illinios)
• First to say we have common ground: Obama
• First to take a sip of water: Obama
• First to say education is the civil rights issue of the 21st century: McCain
• First to mention the other candidate’s spouse: McCain
• First to say military veterens should be able to teach without a teaching certificate: McCain (wow, what an amazingly idiotic plan for fixing our education woes)
• First candidate to consistently interrupt the other candidate: McCain
• First to scratch his eye: McCain
• First to laugh at his own joke for the third time: McCain
• First to mention a webpage: Schieffer (mydebates.org)
• First to congratulate the other candidate: McCain
• First to take a drink after the debate: Obama
• First to kiss his wife: Obama
• First to greet the other candidate’s spouse: Obama

End debate

Analysis: McCain was firey and on the attack, but focused WAY too much on ‘Joe the plumber’. McCain lost it halfway through, getting exasperated and angry-looking.  Obama played it cool once again, perhaps too cool and a little flat.  But Obama made no mistakes, he’s ahead, and Obama harnessed the zeitgeist of America with his blunt assessment of America’s troubles, and then offered solutions to fix it.

With Joe the Plumber entering the American political lexicon, this was certainly the most fun debate to watch with vicissitudes and parries.  In the end, McCain still seemed grumpy and Obama remained cool.

Read previous Debate Firsts here
Images:http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/10/15/presidential.debate/index.html, http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/10/15/greene-a-sign-of-things-to-come/, http://www.politicalticker.cnn.com, http://www.huffingtonpost.com

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