TheFirstDebate
54Opinion: The First Presidential Debate
So McCain was planning to show up at the debate after all? What was that bizarre announcement that he was suspending his campaign until they reach an agreement on the finance crisis? Was it a ploy to make Obama drop his guard? McCain was clearly prepared for the debate so only he knows what he was up to.
As usual, the pundits weighted the debate stating that Obama is expected to do well and that if McCain makes a somewhat mediocre presentation, it would be seen to match a stellar performance by Obama. After this debate, that notion should be put to rest. McCain is a knowledgeable, practiced debater and speaker, and the media should stop giving us that line that he is not expected to do well and therefore exceeded expectations. Both candidates should be held to the same expectations and address the issues without the arbitrary standards imposed on them - higher for Obama than McCain. As an aside, I felt really good to learn having moved my viewing to The Daily Show, that the shows viewership has gone up.So I'm not the only one frustrated with the hot gas from the big media boys.
Speaking of expectations, perhaps it is Obama who exceeded expectations. This being primarily a foreign policy debate, was expected to favor McCain because of his "experience." And McCain made sure that we do not forget that he has "the knowledge and experience." But Obama did hold his own showing equal knowledge of names, places, and dates on issues that affect the security of the United States and the world as a whole. He did not show hesitation or ignorance on the issues. Both men held to their stump lines, McCain arguing that the surge had worked and the U.S. is winning. Obama countered that going to war was a mistake in the first place and has ended up costing thousands of lives and billions of dollars every month. Both men seemed to perform equally on presenting their respective positions though it was McCain who appeared to make it personal by repeating the phrase, "Senator Obama does not understand," to the point that it appeared condescending, even outright disrespectful, and it is well known that McCain does not think much of Obama. But that is his opinion.
Overall, the two are strong candidates with firmly held positions in all areas from the economy, healthcare, national security, the war and foreign policy. Hopefully the next debate will bring out a separation between the two that will point clearly to who is better qualified to be president of the United States. With the mess going on in the banking sector, the war in Iraq, and the shifting fortunes across the globe, it is a wonder either man wants the job in the first place. But it gives viewers and listeners something to talk about.
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Comments
Thanks for this one. I was sleeping when the debate took place but will try to catch it later. This campaign is nothing if not interesting.
I agree with you that it was a very good debate and that neither one of them can claim a one-sided victory. One thing I did notice though...that I hadn't noticed before (and understand I'm still very undecided in my vote) was that Obama tended to bring up the past a lot and doesn't do as much forward thinking as McCain seemed to do. Did anyone else notice this?
Thanks for posting this hub, and for the short clip from the debate, which I have yet to see in full. Obama is very full on in the clip, but McCain is clever at keeping his language simple so that a range of people can understand what he is saying. I'm not saying that McCain is the better candidate, just that his soundbites are like advertising speak, designed to sooth and persuade, where Obama is possibly talking over the heads of many of his audience. Personally I like Obama's message better (though I won't be able to vote for him as I'm in the UK) because these are serious matters and I imagine that a certain level of intelligence is required to deal with all this. Obama comes across as smart, whilst McCain picks his words a little too carefully.
Hi Talent, thanks for sharing those great insights. You drove home the point that everything McCain does is deliberate and perhaps always self-serving. As I watched, I wondered why he mentioned Ted Kennedy's hospitalization and now I see why. Hopefully, with the nation in crisis and feeling the pinch, they'll be more sensitive to what the candidates are really saying instead of the pandering. Thanks again.
Paraglider, thanks for the visit.The clip I picked out is the first out of ten on YouTube. Just google "Presidential Debate" and pick the relevant clip, if you didn't TiVo it.
Hi Spryte, it's good to meet you.I think the candidates did dredge up each other's past equally trying to show the other's poor judgment or inexperience. I think what Obama was doing when he used the word "past," was bring up the last eight years which are a dead weight around McCain. He was trying to show that these years have been a mess and McCain approved of 90% of it. McCain on the other hand, would rather hurry to the future instead of pondering the bog in which we are all standing and for which he did play a significant role. Just a thought. Thanks for your comments Spryte.
Amanda, its good to meet you too and thanks for visiting. I agree with you McCain is very careful in choosing what to say because it works. It reminds me of the Bush-Kerry debate (2004) where the only thing I remember in the entire debate is Bush repeating, "He's a flip-flopper." Sad because at the time I thought Kerry had the more well thought out responses but I remember none of them. McCain has borrowed from that playbook and it certainly is working with his base and some undecideds. During the debate you'll notice a number of times he would say something and Obama would interject, "That's not true." But McCain would continue hammering away at the point because he wants to leave viewers with that impression. The truth of it is secondary. And you see the same thing in a number of his ads. They contain untruths, but that is not his problem. Like you, Obama appeals to me intellectually, but strangely, intellect and mass appeal are condidered "elitist," almost taboo by a surprisingly large percentage - unless it is one of their own. Sarah Palin, anyone?
I just think it is soo sad that grown up men, trying to become the president of the United States of America are so irresponsible and behaving like stubborn teenagers... argueing fighting and being nasty to and about each other.. does not make me proud that's for sure...wish there were more choices personally..I am not for either one of these Men??? if I may call them that???My opinion is Pray...G-Ma :o) hugs and prayers
It's very frustrating all this bickering, isn't it GMa. Maybe it's because we let them - we want to watch it. It's news! When kids fight don't we say, "Stop!" and that does it. Why can we do the same here - we the people?
Thanks for the hub, Penman.
I am watching the nation polarize into those who will vote for Obama because they hate Republicans, and those who will vote for McCain because they hate Democrats. I see very few people who are voting for either major party candidate because they like that candidate. There will be a dozen or more candidates on the ballot who will likely receive one or two percent of the votes because "they don't stand a chance." Certainly they don't when voters reject their personal responsibilities and consciences to reinforce that we are a two-party country despite more than half the people wishing there were third and fourth parties to vote for.
To steal a line from Jimmy Buffett, we have become the people our parents warned us about.
One thing I just want to bring up...and you reminded me of it PenmanZee when you pointed out Obama's reference to the past 8 years and McCain's part in the mess...and I kind of cringed when he said it. He referred to Bush as McCain's president..."your president" if I heard correctly were his own words.
I'm not a Republican...I loathe George Bush...never voted for him during either election. HOWEVER...like it or not he's still my president. I think that Obama seriously mispoke when he implied that Bush was not HIS president as well.
Tom...I don't know how I'm voting currently, although at this point I'm leaning more toward McCain and less to Obama. As you can see, that's a big switch for me since as I've said, I'm not a Republican and always thought of myself as more of a Democrat. In fact I've NEVER voted Republican...that's how big a switch it will be for me if I go that way.
I just don't buy into that "8 more years of the same type of government" spiel that is being implied simply because McCain is a Republican. I can't really justify my stance other than it's a gut instinct...so that's usually why I avoid discussions on political topics. But the more I hear...it's the little things that don't seem to be pointed out that cause me unease.
I also haven't decided. It's between Ron Paul as a write-in or Barr.
Hi Tom, I appreciate your stopping by. You are right and I think it's frightening when people are driven by sentiment rather than well thought out ideology or principle. Ask me, I have seen it lead to violence first hand. I know it is unlikely to happen in the U.S. but why start the journey down that path in the first place? Perhaps with the level of disaffection rising, other parties will begin to have a voice. I hope we'll still be around then.
Spryte, maybe that's why we have a forum like this one where you can lend expression to your sentiments without things turning nasty. Personally, McCain scares me more than Obama does. I have reason to care because as we have seen with the crises over the last week, what happens in America affects the rest of the world.
I agree with you that the candidates should be held to the same expectations in the debate. If they are the nominees of their party, it should be expected that they have a level of competence equal to the job they are applying for.
John McCain is an experienced debater and was on the top of his game. He was focused and disciplined.
I agree that Obama showed good command of foreign policy but I am hoping the nuances of what he said does not get lost on the American public. By keeping our eye only on Iraq (where it shouldn't have been in the first place), we are missing the broader picture.
talentd_ink CNN is re-airing the debate on Sunday. Check times for local listing. I don't know if MSNBC is doing the same.
Thanks for the hub.
Thanks for visiting Susan and helping out with re-airing times. An hour and a half is really as short time to debate and to really articulate one's position, so we can only hope the candidates make very good use of that time because it only takes one slip to lose the public and the election. Ask GB1.
Hi Penmanzee,
I'm still following events as they unfold from this side of the Atlantic. Another of our big mortgage lenders (the Bradford and Bingley) has had to be taken into government hands over the weekend, so it's not just in the States that the financial sector is in turmoil. I'm wondering what this week will bring, and whether there will be any further progress both vis-a-vis Wall Street, and also the presidential debates. I appreciate all the good hubs posted on these matters, because coverage here is either sketchy, or overly-complex, with no happy medium.
Hi Amanda.Isn't that sad. And the people who suffer most are those who toil every single day to put food on the table and save some for their children's college or retirement.
As far as media coverage goes, I would take sketchy or complex over empty, which is what coverage is here in the U.S. It's like they have to express an opinion but don't want to offend any party involved. Then they end up saying a lot but communicating nothing. I used have a lot of respect for CNN reporting and analysis, for instance, but now I find it empty rhetoric.
talented_ink says:
15 months ago
I missed the debate because I was working, but thank you for your opinion on it and a short part of it. Hopefully youtube will have the rest. You hit on something that I was talking with someone else about yesterday. Even in the "politically correct" and "advanced" world in which we live, black people still have the need to rise head and shoulders above a white person in order to be seen as equal or slightly better. I really hate saying that, but what you've stated about the media's outlook on the candidate's debating prowess just reiterates it. I can be honest enough to say that from the short clip I just saw, McCain is an excellent debater mainly because he knows what buttons to push and what topics to stay away from. The first thing he mentioned was Sen. Ted Kennedy being in the hospital. This is to show America that McCain is concerned about people and not parties. McCain wants the nation to know that as long as there's a problem in the nation, he will not rest until that issue is resolved so that's why he's proud to mention democrats and republicans sitting down together to discuss the financial bailout. I think I've talked enough about McCain's pandering because now I'm feeling nauseous. Great hub!