Just finished watching the first presidential debate for the 2008 election. Overall, it wasn’t too terribly exciting. Obama seemed to have several good points on the economy, while McCain seemed most confident on matters of foreign policy (Iraq excluded). When Jim Lehrer asked how or what they would cut from their presidential plans to help the economy, the first differences were apparent. Obama mentioned they would have to cut certain areas of all of his ideas, but was very vague and resistant to name any specific cuts. McCain said, lets put a spending freeze on absolutely everything, except defense and funding for veterans. McCain was going for drastic, and I’m assuming “mavrick-y” (whatever that means) but it came across to me as not very well thought out. Obama, while obviously going for the most politically correct answer, came across as evasive and indirect.
There was a lot of back and forth, but both seemed very solid on their opinions and neither had any major gaffes.
Ackward moment of the night:
McCain goes into a story about how a soldier’s mother gave him his son’s bracelet and said “Don’t let the come home losers; let them win the war in Iraq!” Obama countered: ” I have a bracelet too. From the mother of another soldier who passed away. She said she didn’t want any other mother to have to endure what she went through, and to bring the soldiers home.” One of those “wah wah wah” moments, and McCain had a kind of crestfallen look on his face to find he wasn’t the sole bracelet wearer on the stage.