The real question of the night: Will McCain beat his Debate 2 "my friends" count of 22?
I'm waiting for the aimless wondering, myself.
Also, until the debate starts, the fun:
http://palinaspresident.com/
Hahaha....Rahm Emanuel just said McCain was a grumpy old man yelling at kids to get off his lawn.
The 'Get Off My Lawn' analogy just never gets old
I'm not exactly sure what to expect from McCain, but I fully expect it to be different from both his first and second performances.
By the way, I'm following all of the 'West Wing' characters on Twitter... 'West Wing' fans really need to get in on this, bc it's SO GOOD. They argue with each other exactly like the show.
You can see them in my list: http://twitter.com/magmaeA
I confess, I am surrounded by boneless chicken wing crumbs from last night's Baseball Debacle Feast.
ps: Trevor's at a work dinner for a while, so we'll have to make do with my charm alone. 
Waiting for the Childress girls to give a shout - they are all together tonight! - from East Texas...
Oh no...MSNBC is running those used catheter commercial again. Ugh!
ha ha ha
I'm not sure it's been mentioned yet, but if the presidency were based purely on campaign emblems, Obama wins hands down. Hands below down, in fact.
LOL! Maggie, you'll have to explain Twitter to me offline. I don't get it!
There's nothing to get, Heather. You just need to come to the realization that you're not hip.
Seriously... best graphic campaign element EVER. (If anyone who actually knows anything about graphic design cares to illuminate this one, we're waiting...)
Ah, that must be it 
Speaking of graphic campaign elements, I was driving home today and hit Forest and Hillcrest, and there was this giant sign that said" SARAH!" in really big letters, and then McCain-Palin below it.
Who is Sarah McCain-Palin?
Yeah, Bob Schieffer. Or as the Duprey family has dubbed him "The Keebler Elf"!
That's great Maggie! I still miss West Wing (the eralier years)
Your man Bob looking sharp, Heather!
B: My co-worker always bitches about that sign.
H: Hey!
And general note: Chris Matthews out of a suit, going all cas on us?! Totally running for office.
I noticed the cas look, too. I'm liking it!
I'm sorry to say I'm on the road and can only get CNN. I am having serious MSNBC withdraw.
yo
As for the use of color and the graphic itself - the graphic is simple, and the colors are important, too, in their perfect doses:
Blue symbolizes trust, loyalty, wisdom, confidence, intelligence and faith. Red invokes energy, war, danger, strength and power.
This graphically is perfect because the use of blue outweighs the use of red, telling the person viewing it subliminally that Obama can be trusted and is wise, but is also strong, and will protect us.
YAY! Rachel Maddow live-blogging at http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/!!
Marjorie!
McCain's going to use the phrase 'middle class' as much as possible tonight... got reamed for that last week
Should that be the phrase to count tonight then Maggie-instead of "my friends" ?
I think this informal setting is going to unleash the torrent of Uhs from Obama. Not good.
Interesting, Obama looks directly at the camera. McCain not so much.
I can't help but picture the SNL actor who portrayed Obama last week. He's tenor and inflections were dead on!
Obama looks beyond tired and I think he has always been weaker when he sits during a debate.
VERY tired, agreed
What is his point? What IS HIS POINT?
McCain, with the plumber question... Is this the Joe six-pack we have heard so much about?
is he talking about joe six-pack?
Is this Joe Six Pack or Joe Plumber?
ha ha... we are all on point tonight!
Nah, it's Joe Butt Crack.
You mean, Joe Six Pack or Joe Butt Crack?
The Obama logo and its variants have been getting lots of attention in the design community:
Check out the attention to detail in the various logos here.
http://www.underconsideration.co...ves/
004262.html
You don't have to read the article, but skimming down to the images is probably fun even for people who aren't graphic design nerds. Someone check that link out and verify for me.
third time we've heard the same tax argument. boring.
haha - warped minds think alike!
Gawd...enough with Joe the Plumber.
I have a feeling McCain is really going to be trying to rile up Obama.
Saleem! I was thinking about you when I wrote that. Thanks!
Can I speak as the wife of Joe the electrician that the Joe referencing is wearing on me?
Too classic: "Pat Buchanan: Joe the plumber gives round one to McCain on points! "
Seriously... can't he be named Frank or Phil or something!
Does the McCain campaign known any normal citizens NOT named Joe?
Great link, Saleem! It worked for me
What have you guys heard about Obama's connection to the Billionaire George Soros who might be backing Obama to push his own agenda?
how is the U.S. supposed to pay for its debt if we don't pay taxes?
McCain's suit looks incredibly expensive. I mean, I'm sure Obama's is too, but McCain's just reeks of money.
I guess they didn't get the "try to be a regular guy" memo from Chris Matthews.
(notice I did not invoke your husband's name in that statement, MB)
How 'bout cut this war?!
I think B.O. is just trying to be like Joe.. McCain looks more like a Sydney, no offense meant.
Maddow is right. He needs to make the point that JM is lying about him, and quit saying, "I'm not raising taxes."
Sorry MB...
This goes back to the critique we've all raised since Debate 1, wanting Obama to straight-on confront JM about lying, and he won't do it.
During the Depression, which I remember vividly because I'm ancient ...
no worries, I'm only tired of the Joe references coming from the candidates, specifically McCain.
Maggie, I think he could civilize himself right out of the race. There's still 20 days, and he needs to be specific.
And this is the last time he can do it to McCain's face.
I'm watching ABC, and the split screen kills me with the smirking while B.O. is talking.
OMG...the overhead projector again???
Maggie, after debate you'll have logo commentary links waiting in your delicious inbox.
Strong statement from JM r.e. Bush. Commercial in the make already?
When I was a little kid, planetarium projectors scared the crap out of me. They look like evil supersized robot ants.
Definitely not overhead projectors.
Maggie, thanks for the heads up on Maddow/Pat live blog. SO FUNNY!
Obama needs to be more fired up - not grumpy old man - just more knee in the chest.
what's the link to that live blog?
Thanks Saleem! (unrelated aside: I hate how the new Firefox doesn't work with the delicious toolbar add-on anymore - now I barely use it bc I'm lazy)
Yeah, Maddow and Buchanan are seriously cracking me up http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com
McCain should stop interrupting Obama.
And Obama shouldn't be so proud of his "clean coal" support. that's some dirty stuff!
I heart the dig on Fox News.
Agreed r.e. clean coal... such a political catch phrase now
He has got to stop giving McCain props. McCain *never* gives him props.
Pookie, those scars aren't from the Senate. Those were from when you were a POW. Remember?
True that Marjorie! And no one wants to see JM's scars!
I agree, Marjorie. QUIT TELLING MCCAIN HE'S SUPER AWESOME!
OK, McCain spends 3-to-1 on negative ads compared to Obama, and that point deserves to be made here
Cuz the last town hall worked out so great for you?
So John's calling Obama a terrorist in retribution for not doing the town halls?
JM: "I regret these negative attacks and will feel slightly bad when I urge my rallies to lynch Obama tomorrow afternoon"
I like that Obama's had awhile to craft a response to this one... he'd better come out strong
OMG...that's NOT what Lewis said!!!!!
And he could've taken this opportunity to urge his supporters to not be racists!
Aw, c'mon maggie. "urge my rallies to lynch Obama"? That's got to be a little unfair, right?
Somebody sum up what's been going so far for me... Byzek?
Oh totally unfair
Saleem-they both look very tired. McCain smirks when Obama talks. The Keebler Elf (Schieffer) is doing a good job of getting answers via follow-ups...
Summary: McCain *really* on attack, Obama saying, "Uh," a lot and being way, WAY too gracious...but not taking the bait.
Issues? Meh. Same shizzle, different dizzle.
Wait a minute - ads about your policies ARE NOT out of line. Those are about the issues.
Hinting that Obama is a terrorist is something else entirely.
Oh yeah, Schieffer asking great questions...but sadly not pressing much for actual answers.
McCain trying out the second person for the first time!
Ooh, LOVE that Obama's taking JM and SP on for not doing anything to the "kill him!" folks in their audiences
OMG...that is SO disrespectful. Obama has not interrupted McCain once.
Well, Jeff, he at least *brought up* that we want actual answers...which is a first in these debates I believe.
did BO just say tit-for tat? I love that!
McCain is having a fit!
Yeah McCain is freaking out right now, and interrupting.
I would LOVE for Obama to look at him and say, "I am respecting you and not interrupting, KINDLY do the same to me."
Saleem, you aren't missing anything. They are just bickering about how they are campaigning....totally avoiding the issues.
Every time? Every time you've repudiated?
Methinks McCain's numbers jump off the cliff after this one.
I love this exchange... and JM just said HIS audience members are "the most patriotic"?! Oh really?!
McCain could start by repudiating his VP's remarks
Heather: Schieffer's my fave moderator of the four we've seen!
Moderator needs to get this going.
When JM mentioned HRC, BO looked at HRC, who is sitting in the front row. I only know this bc The Fix told everyone so on Twitter.
This is about to get GOOD - Obama is laughing.
Urrggh, this Acorn thing is infuriating!
This debate so far has been the nastiest, this topic of the negative ads has gone on way longer than I anticipated.
It infuriates me, too, Hilari. Acorn is required to turn in every voter registration card, even if they know they're problematic.
And then, frequently, they're accused of fraud later by Republicans.
I like this debate the most so far - does it mean I like nasty debates, MB?! I like it because they're really digging into the negative attacks that fill the airwaves the 99.5% of the time we're not "debating." Well, BO is forcing JM to confront his own negative attacks, and he's explaining truth v. hype. To me this is effective. Any doubts left in people's minds, he is squashing them. And the stage is completely his, even when JM is talking. JM put himself in this corner by running a purely negative campaign the last ten days.
Maggie- I completly agree about who is owning the stage! Ohhh, Ohhh this looks good!
I like it too, Maggie. I think I *do* like the nasty debates! My daydream today was that McCain would slip and call Obama a bad word (akin to the circulated stories regarding his previous gaffes of this type).
I LOVE this question.
There ya go Maggie, that's the kind of analysis that I love ya for
"I've fallen and I can't get up," MB?
JM: "My running mate can see Alaska from her house, and lives next to a gas pipeline, so she knows about energy and foreign relations."
No, a slip of a four letter word, preferably the one beginning with C.
BO just set JM up to try and actually say with a straight face that she'd make a great pres if he dies, like BO did with JB
Uh oh, did JM almost say "breast?"
Look at Bob Schieffer with all the follow-up!!! Where was this before, other moderators?!
Ooh, Pat Buchanan is back! "Pat Buchanan:
McCain wins on the issue of low road campaigning"
Um, ok
ha ha ha... LOVING Schieffer for cutting off the b.s.!
Yeah, Bob is rockin' tonight!
yay Bob Schieffer!
And throngs of Canadians rejoice!
So far, John McCain has given us "freth of bresh air" and "nuclear pants."
yay, trade talk!
Ah...I couldn't help myself Mags...just flipped over to Bravo and saw Korto and Leann's recap of their runways! OMG - amazing!!!
I totally want some nuclear pants.
Heather.... don't give it away! I am a true patriot for watching this debate instead of PR finale!
H: Jezebel had their runway shows up during fashion week. All three collections were awesome, I thought.
OK Hilari, no secrets spilled here, promise!
Also: playoff baseball on tonight.
YaY Obama for talking about labor leaders in Colombia being assassinated!
BS's questions are great bc of their specificity.
I'm watching the people meter on CNN.com. It looks pretty even right now.
B: It'd be interesting if the one debate where I finally think BO is killing JM, the rest of the country goes the other way!
"my friend" !!!! I missed you!!
Didn't he already say he wasn't fining anybody??
Meanwhile, a thousand pregnant Democrats refuse to name their sons Joe...
Does he not realize that some of the Joes out there find him arrogant????
haha! This Democrat had already ruled that one out, per the one Joe per household rule.
I see a tee-shirt and a facebook group out in about 30 mins.
Oh I am so there, Hilari
John's blinking annoys me. Is this wrong?
A friend of mine just IM'ed me asking if I thought McCain was blinking in code?! Morse code, I'm not familiar with...so I had to shrug my shoulders.
can't he come up with something better than "joe the plumber" gawd. he is looking really bad right now. go Obama!!
Maddow has just commented on this. Also, she just posted a link about Joe...
I'm embarrassed for all the Joes that are falling for this crap.
Did he mean "transplants" or "implants"?
ok, I had to go try out this newfangled "split screen" thingy you ABCers were talking about
it really is another level of entertainment
5000 bucks won't even cover a Caesarean delivery buddy....not to mention the 4 days in the hospital afterwards..
I can't BELIEVE I didn't do a "Joe" count
My health care expert (vicki) is telling me that it is inconceivable that someone can provide health insurance for themselves and their family for $5000.
Obama trys to not crack up every time McCain says Joe...
5800??? Really? Is that for David Beckham if he promises not to move?
also, if you get an individual policy, insurance companies can exclude you for certain things...but with group policies they can't.
senator government! bahhahhahha!
Heather, I think that Chamber of Commerce reference was for you
Sad? John just said he was a Federalist, and somewhere, Palin gasped and said, "But we're on the Republican ticket!"
lol! funny bethany
via Twitter:
"anamariecox: Joe the Plumber is so getting laid tonight."
The longer McCain talks about abortion, the lower his numbers go.
Haha....yeah, I heard that. Although the US Chamber has been running crazy ads here in NC for Dole and I think McCrory.
...hence the huge Chamber disclaimer O made
Obama is keeping all of them pretty happy right now. The Republicans are actually happier with him than anyone else.
obama rocks my world
Bethany, I'll shorten that to "The longer McCain talks, the lower his numbers go."
OMG did BO just bring up Lily Ledbetter! I LOVE him! We SO must have a smart president!
I think I'm newly-obsessed with the people meter.
grinning at that, hilari...
Does McCain do his homework at all? Finding out why he didn't vote for the ban would've been a simple Google search.
Ooh, does ABC just have McCain's mike high, or was that a really loud sigh?
ADDICTED TO THE SPLIT SCREEN!
Yeah once you go split screen...
Yes, that was a very loud sigh, which in my mind was muffling him calling Obama names.
I think he's been snorting into the mic all night long.
Ugh..you can be pro-choice without personally choosing abortion. He used the word "pro-abortion" on purpose, and it's a falsehood. Nobody is for killing babies.
Now I feel like I need to switch to ABC!
Everyone is switching to ABC, Heather, do it do it!
pro abortion? pro choice!
As you can imagine, the "pro-abortion" rant scored high with republicans and independents.
I know, Rita. I hate it when they refer to it that way.
McCain already had single-issue abortion voters locked up. Why even go there?
Maddow: JM is using "eloquent" as an epithet.
BTW, Obama is spiking high right now.
And this is why I like Obama. When he talks about parents
Maggie: He's been engaging in the biggest mistake the past few weeks - igniting your base, but nobody else.
Phillies spanking the Dodgers, btw. I'm already emotionally preparing to root for the Phils in the World Series. In case tmrrw's Sox turnaround doesn't happen.
"Find bad teachers another line of work"-nice one.
I want Schieffer to ask them about No Child Left Behind. Sounds like JM is down on testing/certification, so what does he think? Hmmm....
And by nice, i mean-WTF.
Obama is spiking again.
Yeah I'd be interested to know what kind of metrics McCain means to use to determine the "bad teachers", and how he is going to collect this information.
Obama believes that children are our future. Teach them well and let them lead the way. Show them all the beauty they possess inside.
..Give them a sense of pride....
I'd like to hear more of this "choice" you speak so fondly of, McCain...
So, that was fast:
http://twitter.com/FakeJoePlumber
American plumbers have got to be rolling on the floor!
Way to end the debate with a hearty snort.
Why does he keep bringing up autism? Simple Trig has Downs.
if they reauthorize no child left behind i hope it doesn't look anything like the no child left behind of bush. those tests aren't helping. its all about money for the schools, not the students learning, thats for sure
You know, I still don't think JM has said 'middle class.' I was dead wrong on that one.
I was wondering that, too, Bethany. Maybe JM thinks autism and DS are the same condition.
...and it's not about the teachers reaching their potential as professionals...it's pressure pressure pressure on the kids and teachers to make AYP.
JM: "C'mon, vote in another family legacy! It's treated America so well the last eight years!"
Did he really just go there?
No Child Left Behind is the sorriest piece of education policy ever conceived, save the Sarah Palin School of Foreign Policy.
Rachel Maddow: I can't be sure I didn't miss a mention... and there was that moment when my audio went buh-bye... but as far as I can tell -- I think that McCain's just made his way through all three presidential debates without saying the phrase "middle class".
Maggie- to bad you didn't see Joe coming, that would have been a good one.
omg Rachel Maddow and I said the same thing!!!!
Wow...Obama is getting really high positive responses from Republicans.
I liked Obama's ending...esp the very end, with the future of our children.
You and Rachel, cut from the same fierce cloth! Love the smartie gals
Damn effective closing speech from BO.
I'm sorry - when I hear the phrase "future of the children," or "children are our future," I automatically go all Whitney.
Mr. Presidential 3, Old Lawn Guy 0, Bob Schieffer 1
Going all Whitney is ok, as long as it's Pre-Bobby Whitney...
Crack is Whack! Crack is for po' people!
I'm in my office grading papers, listened on NPR... what's the punditry verdict?
Thanks be to the mpyre crew & co., definitely the cool place to be tonight!
Anderson Cooper... "Joe the Plumber was mentioned more than any other plumber ever" tee-hee
Lots of kudos to Keebler Elf, aka Bob S, yay Bob!
Ok, as Maddow said, I think that that whole "the health of the mother is what you pro-abortion people always say.." thing is gonna come back and bite someone.
Only I'm certain it will be McCain. And you know who I think will be most bothered by that? Men. Husbands of women of childbearing age. Because in the situation where it comes between the baby's life or the mother's, the mother is many times incapacitated, and it's the father that has to make that heartwrenching decision.
And that snide, flippant comment just turned their stomachs.
Bob Schieffer did REALLY well. The best debate by far to me... certainly the most interesting, riveting, and timely.
Aaaaaaaaand Matthews agrees with me.
From NBC's Abby Livingston
The final count of "Joe" references (the plumber, not the Biden) is 25. McCain: 21, Obama: 4.
Seriously, best debate so far. On CNN, the crazy pundits (BTW I HATE their set-up) think McCain lead the first half and Obama came back towards the end.
Lots of pundit kudos coming in for McCain compared to his other debate performances... haven't heard much win/lose stuff yet.
Maddow thinks this was his worst yet.
URRGH, why can't this darn hotel have MSNBC? CNN is bumming me out.
Thanks for tuning in everyone. I'm in East Texas for this one, so am signing off now to go do family stuff. Gave Mylah her community organizer t-shirt, and hope to find an East Texans for Obama t-shirts while here. that would be one for posterity!
Thanks Maggie... I kind of figured as much. It's Palin Syndrome; going in 0-2, the expectations were pretty low, so a decent showing seems like major points.
No JM mention of "maverick" tonight, either!
Yeah, "reformer" is the new "maverick".
Ugh.
Loathsome.
And "eloquent" is the new "that one."
AS - sounds like the strategic answer here is what we knew going in - that Obama would have to be terrible or McCain brilliant to change the tide. McCain's been so awful he looked good tonight, but Obama was just as good if not better. So the pundits are going to talk about McCain's improvement. But what will regular folks (not saying the name "Joe") think? They've routinely scored BO higher. Will be so interesting to see these flash #s... they'll be coming in soon!
Can someone give me context on the '"Find bad teachers another line of work" another line of work comment?
On the one hand, I've taught with a couple (most of my co-workers are awe-inspiringly good) who definitely needed to find a new line of work...
Cool, thanks Maggie. I'll be interested to see what those say...
This has been tons of fun m-pyre'rs I won't be able to blog on election night as I'll be at the NC Democratic State Party party in downtown Raleigh! Really hoping we can pull through as a blue state!!
See you Friday, Maggie!!
MB or Bethany, if you're still online... can you help out Saleem? I was actually in the other room during that line.
MB has already signed off.
HRC on CNN looking great and kicking ass.
hee hee http://www.serve.com/vhold/
hellc...cain_buggin.gif
Saleem, I can't remember exactly what context it was in. what i do remember is that Obama wants to pay teachers more, but give them more accountability. as for figuring out who those bad teachers are, neither of them went in to that part.
Cool, thanks for the context, Rita. Okay, lunch break time in Japan. Off to the cafeteria.
Yeah, sorry - I was trying to get health insurance quotes on a white male, birthdate 8-1936, history of cancer.
So I just now saw that question. I think you can go here to get a running transcript, though: http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS...ript/
index.html
CNN poll results!!
Win: BO 58 - JM 31
Opinions unchanged before-after.
And that's the story, folks.
CBS #s: BO 53 - JM 22
McCain being called Bob Dole on three networks...
Commenting by HaloScan
