First Obama-McCain Presidential Debate In Mississippi: Video, Highlights, Analysis

BREAKING: McCain has called for the first presidential debate to be delayed because of the financial crisis.

Obama's campaign has responded:

Sen. John McCain on Wednesday said he would "suspend" his presidential campaign to come to Washington to help negotiate a financial bailout bill, a dramatic move designed to seize a powerful issue.

However a senior Obama campaign official said Obama "intends to debate."

"The debate is on," a senior Obama campaign official told ABC News.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid backed Obama, saying, "we need leadership, not a campaign photo op."

The University of Mississippi says they are going forward with their preparations, and they expect the debate to happen as planned.

SEPT 24: McCain raises expectations for Obama:

"Look, have no doubt about it, the capabilities of Senator Obama to a debate -- I mean, he's very, very good," McCain said. "He was able to beat Senator Hillary Clinton, who, as we all know, is very accomplished, very accomplished."

...McCain said that Obama "was able to, I think, with his eloquence inspire a great number of Americans. So these are going to be tough debates."

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While Obama prepared in Florida, spokesman Bill Burton returned McCain's compliment:

"Given his decades in Washington, John McCain literally has more experience debating than anyone who has ever run for president," Burton said. "If he can't show the skills he's acquired debating foreign policy, it will be a massive disappointment."

SEPT 22: The Wall Street Journal on how the candidates are preparing for the debate:

To get in the debating mood, Republican John McCain will host a town-hall event and take a short nap. His rival, Democrat Barack Obama, will work out or shoot hoops.

Sen. Obama will spar for the debate with Greg Craig, a Washington lawyer and former official in the Clinton administration who is one of his few gray-haired advisers. A McCain spokeswoman declined to discuss who will practice with Sen. McCain.

The New York Times concludes that Obama is an "uneven" debater while McCain is a "consistent ... aggressive competitor."

SEPT 20: Obama and McCain agree to a free-flowing debate structure:

The Obama and McCain campaigns have agreed to an unusual free-flowing format for the three televised presidential debates, which begin Friday, but the McCain camp fought for and won a much more structured approach for the questioning at the vice-presidential debate, advisers to both campaigns said Saturday.

Comments

[AnOnlooker]

I was looking at the earmarks point that McCain was talking about in reply to the question how either candidate would deal with the new bailout money that Congress is giving to wall street. The total earmarks are about US$16B. The bailout is about US$700B. So McCains plan is to get rid of the earmarks which is less than 2.5% of the bailout amount. The earmarks are about 1/2% of the budget (current budget is bout US$2800B). The one program that Obama talked about Medicare reembersement is worth about US$15B. The earmarks was all McCain talked about. Obama gave 1 example of the cuts he would do. So if we get rid of earmarks McCain can fund 45 days in Iraq. It means that he cannot fund the Iraq even for the time that between the time he expect to get elected (if he ever did!!!) to the time he gets in office with all the earmarks saving.

So even if McCain was strong about earmarks it does not amount to much in the larger picture of budget deficit. Actually all the mandatory spending, Defence, Medicare, Social Security and interest is 80% of the budget. So unless we tackle these issues we are left with the 20% of the budget.

So earmarks is like taking away one a week donuts to the 2000 employees in a Billion dollar company which has got 10% earning shortfall.

[bsubercaseaux]

McCain looked like a scared little puppy while up on the podium. He got scared on Wednesday when he tried to postpone the debate and then became so frightened on the day of the debate that he had to keep telling himself... "Don't look at Obama. Don't look at Obama."

How can you not even look at your opponent during a debate? And McCain thinks he can sit down with Ahmadinejad face to face? He can't even look at his US opponent.

The debate wasn't even close. Obama won in every category - composure, confidence, delivery, logic, insight, you name it. I used to think that being a republican was a political affiliation.... now I know that it is a mentally.... a mentally founded on ignorance and powered by stubbornness.

Open your eyes republicans. Don't be so damn selfish and give this country what it needs.

[sandrico]

Obama missed a great opportunity. With that Ol' Miss audience, he might have said: "Senator McCain -- the people -- the middle class are really hurting. Look -- look out over this audience--lots of students out there,. My guess is that many--if not most--have had to take out loans to go to Ol' Miss. Or their hard working parents have had to. I understand what kind of a burden that is. It was only a few years ago that I and Michelle were still paying off our college loans. Do you know what that means? It's a tremendous burden. Most of the middle class kids don't have parents who can write a check to cover college fees. That's for the privileged, elite few. So they go into tremendous debt. I know. Tremendous. And in this economy -- brought about by a Republican party -- you included -- whose mantra--for the past eight years -- actually, since Ronald Reagan-- has been "deregulation, deregulation, deregulation" -- an unfettered so-called "free market" that has led to this meltdown and that these middle class kids and their hard working folks have to bale out the smart guys who made it happen -- while paying off these college loans for maybe ten to twenty years. I know. I've had to do it."

That would have clinched it for Obama. His great cool would have gone for a couple of minutes and he would have passionately--and out of his own biography-­-connected with the middle class

[Oldtt]

When Jim Lehrer asked both candidates what parts of their proposed programs would be cut to accommodate the pending $700 billion bailout, each cited a general desire to make some cuts across the board, but McCain also tossed in a few specifics, like elimination of cost-plus contracts. Obama simply recited the programs he intended to implement rather than list any cuts other than pulling out of Iraq. Neither really gave a satisfactory answer to the question. However, Obama's programs for energy, health care, and education are certainly on the chopping block, and he may as well admit that now. Hillary always emphasized an over-riding need for fiscal responsibility before everything else, and she was right.

[fred edison]

McCain, true to standard form, uttered lies about what Obama was proposing to do about cutting taxes for the middle class. But at the same time, it presented Obama a chance to correct the liar and tell the American people the truth of his plans if elected president. Shame, shame, shame, Sen. McCain. We expect much more and especially the truth from someone who wishes to lead this great nation. McCain & Palin tell lies and never stop.

[Aftamath]

Did you, perhaps, stop to consider the fact that Obama may have been lying? He likes to point out McCain's "faulty" voting record, but at the same time, he lies about his constantly. He likes to act like he did so much in the senate, when on many congressional tickets, he simply checked "present" and didn't vote either way. He is far to inexperienced to be elected the leader of our great country, and from what I have seen, most of the logic behind many of his supporters is that they simply don't want another republican in office. You cannot deny that McCain has tried to reach across the isle and work with the democrats more than a few times, while Obama simply has not. He says that he has, but what fruits have we seen from that?

[Rjchinook]

Guess what? Faux just said McSame won the debate! Wow I'm enlightened!

[MikeInTaxachusetts]

While watching 80% of the debate on FOX, I did skip over to CNN ocassionally. This, only to watch that live banner of three bars showing audience reaction. Interestingly, EVERY time, the instant McCain spoke all three bars dropped, while they all raised when Obama spoke. Are those political bars or potable bars?

[Rjchinook]

Something wrong with your TV that you can mainly watch only corporate news?

[Ju8721]

http://themoderometer.blogspot.com/

We are a group of McGill University students taking Professor Gil Troy’s History of Presidential Campaigning class. As an independent, volunteer project, we are going to be monitoring the two major party presidential nominees over the next two months, judging when they are appealing to the center, both tactically and substantively. We have developed a “moderometer” to chart where a particular tactic or statement stands on a scale from very red to very blue, with a purple middle, the ideal center. We acknowledge that this is subjective. We have a range of views among us and we are not assessing whether we agree with the particular tactic or statement or whether we think it is shrewd. Knowing the gravitational physics of American politics, and especially American campaigns, which pulls candidates to the extreme of left or right, we want to create a counter-force pushing toward the middle. We believe that a civil, reasonable, middle is necessary on certain issues, even as we acknowledge the advantage of healthy partisan disagreement in other realms. Feel free to plunge into the debate and feel free to disagree with us. If we all start wondering just what constitutes the center and civility – we will feel like we have made some small but necessary contribution to the campaign.

[pprguy]

Sen McCain just smaked the puppy down.

[Phate]

For one of the drinking games:

Take a drink: Kennedy is not in the hospital anymore.

THE FIRST LINE.

[All4ME]

It's FLIP FLOP Day!!

I don't know about anyone else, but I'm going to wear my flip flops during the debate, in honor of Sen. McFlipFlop.

...but I can't decide which flip flops to wear... I'm going to postpone my decision because of ... um, I feel like it! And then I'm going to decide not to wear them at all, and nobody else attending the debate should wear them either, in fact I'm going to call all my other friends and tell them the party's off.

Well, dang! I just heard that other people are wearing flip flops, and so I unchanged my mind, and I'm going to wear them too...but which ones??

[pprguy]

Oh Lord, Libs are in full BDS mode.

[SDunn]

What the heck? The KKK????? Do they actually think they're going to intimidate Obama? Give me a break. They shouldn't even be allowed inside.

[Julie02]

Huffpo, I see that our last update was eons ago at 4:22 eastern time. Come on guys get on your job with the reporting. What are Barack and Michelle wearing? How does McCain's comb-over look? Thicker today? And is he wearing his Depends for those questions and rebuttals that may cause him to have a little accident? Enquiring minds want to know.

[mrsmdressup]

And what's with the left eye? Never forget that one.

[themoderateman]

How to know who won the debate:

If the Dem's are calling McCain a meanie liar - McCain won

If the debate is a blah dud - Obama won