This was a very anticipated debate and I think it lived up to and exceeded my expectations. I was very impressed at Barack Obama’s ability to not only go toe-to-toe with McCain on foreign policy issues, but to even take the upper hand in a variety of moments.

I think McCain played his part well as far as his campaign is concerned. He attacked Obama in a merciless fashion, saying “he doesn’t understand” about Obama multiple times — to the point of annoyance — and pushing his experience to the forefront. Where I think that hurt is that it also showed his age, his possible unwillingness to cooperate with anyone who thinks differently, and it didn’t show a large enough separation from the Bush Administration.

Probably the one thing that stood out for me from this debate the most is the fact that McCain did not look at or address Brack Obama directly at all. He consistantly and adamantly avoided any type of eye contact despite the plea from moderator Jim Lehrer — and the format of the debate — for the two candidates to talk amongst and between themselves. Throughout the night Obama called McCain “John” and looked in his direction while addressing him as “you” and “your policies.” I don’t know how much that will register with the undecided voter, but I lost a bit of respect for McCain because of it.

It think Barack Obama did as well as could be expected, but I also think he went a little too light on McCain. He didn’t mention the Republican majority in Congress for 6 of the last 8 years, didn’t push McCain’s 90% agreement with Bush enough, and did not mention any sort of poll stating the opinion of Americans on the war, which would have been in Obama’s favor. Also his many mentions of agreeing with McCain will be thrown right back in his face, despite each of them having a significant “but…” after them. Those will be blown way out of context but nontheless, they will be used. This is something Barack will have to fix in the next two debates.

I think McCain had the edge in the emotion category with all of his stories. I think people will connect with them, despite the need for some fact checking. Things like Eisenhower’s two letters (no letter of resignation) and Barack’s Afghanistan hearings (Obama is the chairmn of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on European Affairs, so he wouldn’t hold one on Afghanistan, but he did attend running mate Joe Biden’s Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Afghanisan once) had major factual errors.

And maybe the most important aspect of the debate: NO MCCAIN FLAGPIN. That communist bastard.

Sarah Palin is a very bad pick in my opinion. It’s great that she’s a woman, but she’s not the first woman vice-presidential candidate as many would have the public believe. Nor is she the most experienced woman in the Republican party. I think it’s very obvious she was picked to sway voters for that reason alone, which is not the right reason to pick someone for that position. Barack Obama picked Joe Biden because he’s the Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which helps Obama’s inexperience in that area. Palin does not help McCain in any area. She was the mayor of a 7,000 person town in Alaska where they are touting all of her experience there. She’s been Governor of Alaska for two years, almost as long as Obama/McCain have been on the campaign.

Her policies (text and reference links pulled from Wikipedia):

• She opposes same-sex marriage.
• She’s pro-life (anti-choice).
• Palin supported the Alaska Department of Fish and Game policy allowing Alaska state biologists to hunt wolves from helicopters as part of a predator control program intended to increase moose populations.  (by the way, Palin is heavily touted by the Republican party as a moose hunter ) http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/mar2008/2008-03-18-01.asp
• She opposes putting polar bears on the endangered species list: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/05/opinion/05palin.html?_r=2&scp=4&sq=bearing%20up%20by%20sarah%20palin&st=cse&oref=slogin&oref=slogin
• Palin also opposes strengthening protections for beluga whales in Alaska’s Cook Inlet, where oil and gas development has been proposed. http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1837868,00.html
• She supports teaching creationism in public schools http://dwb.adn.com/news/politics/elections/story/8347904p-8243554c.html
  Edit: This has been debunked.
• Palin has strongly promoted oil and natural gas resource development in Alaska, including in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). http://www.ontheissues.org/Governor/Sarah_Palin_Environment.htm

She has never been out of the country in an official capacity, yet she’s a 72-year old man’s heartbeat away from the presidency of the most powerful nation and army on the planet? It doesn’t make sense and I think is the number 1 reason why NOT to elect John McCain.

(by the way, if there is any wrong information here I’ll gladly correct it.)

…but the speakers at the Republican National Convention are sounding a little paranoid in their attacks on Obama. They obviously see him as a very real threat.

Not that the Democrats didn’t take their shots at McCain, but I’m hearing a lot of bad jokes, applause lines and yee-haw guffawing that is a little too much in bad taste.

But maybe I’m just biased.

One of the main arguments against Barack Obama for President is that McCain has more experience, or rather, Obama does not have enough experience.

My favorite rebuttal against that is this: Look where experience has gotten us so far.

My question to you is does this work? My (admittedly naive) view on it is that the government has been filled with old, white men for so long that we need an injection of youth with a background that is a little farther off the norm of a privileged upbringing (not that Obama was not privilaged, but perhaps less so.) Maybe McCain is a “maverick” (def. One that refuses to abide by the dictates of or resists adherence to a group; a dissenter – dictionary.com) but on (my personal most significant) issues like the war, abortion (repeal Roe v. Wade? is that considered maverick?), gay rights, stem cell research and health care, McCain seems right in line with the rest of the old, white guys.