"That One" Won the Debate

Hey, there's already a That One button!

Other than McCain referring to Obama as "that one" (did he have a senior moment?) it was a civil debate.

If McCain went ugly, people would've rejected him outright. I, for one, wasn't in the mood for any more negativity. After Palin's days of relentless covert racist attacks, I'd had enough.

Obama was calm and reassuring and on foreign policy, he's got more wisdom. McCain just thinks he's all that, which is how he would rule and that's what he would do, rule. McCain doesn't seem to have an overarching vision.

Obama's vision is clear. But I imagine a McCain supporter would say the opposite. I just can't follow McCain all that well. He's beginning to sound a lot like his pitbull. He's just too angry. We need someone who can lead. McCain's anger would get in the way.

Poll roundup: Obama won. 
Think Progress gathered some good observations:

10:42: On Fox, Nina Easton notes that we observed the “sinking ship of free-market Republicans” go to the “bottom of the sea,” with McCain’s proposal of a $300 billion “nationalization” of the U.S. mortgage market.

10:41: CNN’s Jeffrey Toobin: “When he referred to Barack Obama as ‘that one,’ I thought that was something people will remember.”

10:40: Kristol says Brokaw did a “disservice” to the McCain campaign by asking “conventional, inside the Beltway” questions. (UPDATE: Fred Barnes says it “was not a real town hall” meeting.)

10:37: Chris Matthews notes the most “bizarre moment of the night” was when McCain “took a shot” at moderator Tom Brokaw, saying “not you Tom” in response to who he would pick as Treasury Secretary.

10:35: CBS’ Katie Couric noted that McCain referred to Obama as “that one.” (UPDATE: NBC’s Brian Williams notes it too.)

CNN analysis
Washington Post fact check

Taxes
9:57 p.m.
Once again, McCain said that Obama raised taxes 94 times. This came up in the vice presidential debate, and it is a bogus charge.

Fact check.org, a non-partisan watchdog, has analyzed the charge.

Of the 94, 23 of those votes were indeed votes against proposed tax cuts. Eleven of them were increases on families earning over $1 million to help fund programs such as Head Start and school nutrition. And 53 were on non-binding budget resolutions that foresaw allowing tax cuts to expire as scheduled. Such out-year projections are meaningless, since non-binding budgets are passed each year.
Fact.check.org ruled the claim misleading.

Pre Debate Obama Launches The Record

To win tonight, Obama just needs to remember the seriousness of our plight, our dire economic circumstances.

McCain will likely make attempts to drag Obama into the mud and Obama will probably have to go there.

I'd like to see Obama simply dismiss McCain for the gnat that he is and then pivot to the issue at hand. Sad to say, I've lost all respect for McCain. 
This from the Obama camp on The Record:

In advance of tonight's presidential debate, the Obama-Biden Campaign officially launched “The Record” at therecord.barackobama.com. “The Record” will be an official media source for news, facts and content. Tonight, during the debate, check our new Debate Center on “The Record” for real-time fact-checks as well as print and TV reviews.

With an endless amount of information out there, “The Record” will facilitate and educate readers with information straight from the source during the last few weeks of this historic election. The site includes the following features:

LATEST NEWS: The latest breaking news on the campaign updated in real-time.

FACTCHECK: Barack Obama has always been committed to the truth. We expect the same from our opponent and this section of the site will set the record straight.

RSS FEED: Subscribe to our RSS feed to stay up to date.

Tonight's debate between Senator Obama and Senator McCain will begin at 9:00 PM EDT, and will be broadcast live on all of the major network news and cable stations.

The Record has debunked claims that McCain might try to make during the debate:

DEBUNKED CLAIMS YOU MIGHT HEAR
FROM JOHN MCCAIN TONIGHT

On a day when the markets again plunged and we learned that Americans’ retirement plans have lost as much as $2 trillion in the past 15 months, the McCain strategy of ‘turning the page’ on the economy by launching false attacks against Barack Obama will likely be on display during the presidential town hall debate tonight. While Barack Obama continues to talk about his plan to provide real relief to the middle class and grow the economy, McCain’s campaign has already admitted that, “if we keep talking about the economic crisis, we’re going to lose.”

Below are some of John McCain’s most recently debunked claims – about his own record and proposals, and Barack Obama’s – that he may use to night to distract from the issues of importance to the American people.

Most Recently Debunked

DEBUNKED CLAIM: OBAMA VOTED TO RAISE TAXES 94 TIMES

Ø REALITY: The McCain-Palin Claim That Obama Voted 94 Times To Increase Taxes Is A “Dubious Count.” “PALIN: Said of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama: ‘94 times he voted to increase taxes or not support a tax reduction.’ THE FACTS: The dubious count includes repetitive votes as well as votes to cut taxes for the middle class while raising them on the rich. An analysis by FactCheck.org found that 23 of the votes were for measures that would have produced no tax increase at all, seven were in favor of measures that would have lowered taxes for many, 11 would have increased taxes on only those making more than $1 million a year.” [AP FactCheck, 10/3/08]

Ø REALITY: Five Ohio Newspapers Said That The Claim That Obama Voted To Raise Taxes 94 Times Is An “Exaggeration” And Rated A McCain Ad On The Subject A “0” Out Of 10 On The Truthfulness Scale. The Plain Dealer, in cooperation with the Canton Repository, the Cincinnati Enquirer, the Columbus Dispatch and Dayton Daily News rated a McCain ad on taxes a 0 out of 10 on the truthfulness scale. They wrote, “During Thursday’s vice presidential debate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin repeated the exaggeration that Sen. Obama voted 94 times to increase taxes. According to Factcheck.org, the total includes seven votes that would have lowered taxes for many, while raising them on corporations or affluent individuals; 23 votes were against tax cuts; and 17 came on seven different bills. A closer look reveals Obama has consistently voted to restore higher tax rates on upper-income taxpayers, but not on low- or middle-income workers.” [Cleveland Plain Dealer, 10/3/08]

DEBUNKED CLAIM: OBAMA WILL RAISE TAXES ON SMALL BUSINESSES

Ø REALITY: Claim That Obama Would Increase Taxes On Millions Of Small Businesses Is “Untrue”; The Vast Majority Of Small Businesses Would Not Have Increased Taxes. “On another point, Palin said a tax hike that hits earners over $250,000 would hit ‘millions of small businesses.’ That is untrue. The vast majority of small businesses barely break even and do not pay the top tax brackets. To get that figure, Republicans count affluent taxpayers who claim some income from some small business income as ‘small businessmen.’” [Washington Post, 10/3/08]