Final 2008 Presidential Debate – Projectors, Plumbers, and Promises
October 16, 2008 | 2008 Presidential Election
When I See You Smile…
McCain needs coached on how to go to a happy place when he hears something he doesn’t agree with or like. CNN kept the candidates in split screen mode throughout the debate, and it gave the viewers at home a great opportunity to check out the facial expressions and body language each candidate displayed in response to the questions and conversation. McCain sighed, shook his head disdainfully, grimaced and gritted his teeth, and forced smiles and laughter in moments of tension and anger.
Do these things matter? Yes, they do. Presidents need to be able to have a poker face and show some restraint in their responses, both verbally and physically. McCain doesn’t seem to have that ability. He started the night by telling us that Americans are hurting and angry, but he could have very well been describing himself. This type of behavior makes him appear old, bitter, and out of touch with Americans.
Obama, in contrast, looked thoughtfully at McCain while he spoke and responded with a wide smile and comfortable laugh at McCain’s attacks. He listened intently and shrugged off the statements he felt were absurd and erroneous. He stayed calm, and he wasn’t goaded into taking an angry defensive stance on any subject.
Who is Joe the Plumber?
Is this the “Joe Six Pack” that Palin continuously referred to during the vice presidential debate? Have they purposely been out looking for a Joe to keep the gag going? Here is the true story on the mysterious plumber.
OP – Overhead Projector
Seriously? I couldn’t believe it when McCain brought up the OP in the last debate, but to recycle it again in the final debate? This is how you want to spend your time? Let’s get the facts on the OP that won’t die from our friends at FactCheck.org:
“It’s true that Obama sought $3 million for a projector, and we’ll leave it to readers to judge whether it was frivolous or not. The fact is, however, that the technology Obama requested was not an “overhead projector” such as one might see in a classroom or office. Those typically cost no more than a few hundred dollars. What Obama sought was funding for a large and expensive piece of specialty equipment that projects the night sky in a dome theater, for the Adler Planetarium in Chicago. For example, one model of an upgraded version of the Adler’s current projector has several separate projection units for the stars and for the sun, moon and planets. The projector weighs more than 5,000 pounds.”
“The Adler Planetarium replaced its projector for the first and last time almost 40 years ago. The planetarium issued a statement after Tuesday’s debate saying that it had approached Obama and other local congresspeople from both parties asking for government assistance in replacing the aging projector, on the grounds that “science literacy is an urgent issue in the United States.” All agreed to help, according to the statement, but the money was not awarded.”
-Jess Henig
Ayers / ACORN / Lewis
McCain somehow found a way to insert Ayers and Acorn into the discussion and lambaste Obama for not repudiating Congressman Lewis. Evidently, McCain believes such topics would have been off the table if Obama would have just agreed to some town hall debates. I would like to have seen Obama ask McCain if he repudiates Palin for her comments, but I guess we all knew how that would go.
Health Care
There isn’t enough time in the debates to explain or comprehend either candidate’s plan for health care but you can view a side-by-side summary of their proposals, courtesy of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can also mismatch the issues and tailor the results based on your concerns.
Roe v. Wade
Bob Schieffer did a wonderful job of when he pressed McCain if he would ever nominate someone to the Supreme Court who disagreed with him on the issue of Roe v. Wade. McCain said he felt the decision was a bad one and believes the matter should be in the hands of the states, but he wouldn’t impose a litmus test on any nominee.
Schieffer asked, “But even if it was someone — even someone who had a history of being for abortion rights, you would consider them?”
“I would consider anyone in their qualifications. I do not believe that someone who has supported Roe v. Wade that would be part of those qualifications. But I certainly would not impose any litmus test,” answered McCain.
What? So someone who supports Roe v. Wade wouldn’t meet your “qualifications” for a Supreme Court nominee? Isn’t that a litmus test?
Outcome
This was by far the most interesting of the three presidential debates. The moderator kept everyone on time, asked interesting questions, and (yes, it can be done) allowed each candidate the time to answer a question. The candidates were fully awake, prepared, and (mostly) on topic. Were all of our questions and concerns answered? No. We won’t fully know what we’ve gotten ourselves into until the votes have come in and the agendas start to reveal themselves. Until then, we keep searching for answers and discovering more questions.
Transcript of the third presidential debate
