He won in part because McCain actively lost it - he seemed testy all night including his now famous 'that one' quote, sounded frustrated, rambled at times, repeated talking points more than once, and in general did not look or act presidential.
I'm not sure acting presidential in a debate is that big of a deal but it is to lots of voters, including swings.
Conversely, I think Obama had a number of good moments. After a tepid first 10 minutes, I thought Obama was strong and confident the rest of the night. I particularly liked his answer to the 'sacrifice' question when he talked about both energy policy and national service.
Obama also did a good job in using the word 'Bush' in almost every answer. It would be fun - maybe not fun, interesting - to see if Obama said 'Bush' as many times as McCain said 'my friends.' Obama is going to win this election due to Bush and the economy. That must drive Hillary crazy; she'd be in the lead now too, for the same reasons.
Once again, Obama was good on the war. McCain, on the other hand, was incredibly shaky. He walked into it, saying Obama did not have the judgement on Iraq. Obama pounced all over that one, and hit a home run in pointing out McCain's misreading of all things Iraq - wrong country to invade, greeted as liberators, etc. Why did McCain attack Obama's judgement on Iraq? That's playing on Obama home turf.
Obama also did a nice jujitsu on the "I don't understand" phrase. McCain walked into that one, too.
Finally, I think McCain just does not get it when it comes to Iraq: the country is tired of that war, and no matter how much you talk about the surge, voters tune out anyone who talks about anything other than pulling our troops out or having an exit strategy. There is no political gain in being pro-surge or staying the course, etc. in Iraq.
The war, along with Bush and the economy, all look good politically for Obama. No gaffes from Obama or Biden between now and November 4th will be key, obviously. But I also liked how Obama closed the debate, going back to his message of hope and promise. The economy and the war take care of themselves, politically. If I were advising Obama I'd strongly emphasize the hope/promise message between now and November 4th.
2 comments:
I still don't understand the McCain strategy of “The Surge.” Although it is a point on which the candidates differ, it is not a concept many Americans understand, nor is it a success that they can measure and celebrate.
As a voter, you have to ask “Why is The Surge a big deal?” The answer seems to be because it marks a turning point in the war, the beginning of the end for the insurgents. “Then,” you have to ask, “if that's true—if we're now winning in such a convincing fashion that the end is imminent—when are our troops coming home?” The answer from the Republicans so far has been “We don't know.”
So it seems like a bad idea to keep bringing this up.
It seems like a worse strategy than trying to pick a fight with Russia. Oh, yeah, they're doing that, too.
Doh!
I agree - if it's working, why aren't the troops coming home? Bad policy and politics.
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