9:09 did she just say joe sixpack?
9:10 Joe Biden has been told exactly how to look at Sarah Palin while the camera pans to him.
I like that Joe Biden can talk about John McCain as an old friend/old comrade…can talk in very specific ways about his record, in a way that the other cannot.
9:11 No one said anything about tax increases? How did Palin get there?
9:12 Budget-procedural vote. Biden actually understands this stuff.
495 times John McCain voted this way…
9:13 I’m going to talk straight to the American people. (I’m not going to answer what you ask).
9:14 Is Gwen getting pissed?
Biden comes out with fairness theme.
I like this approach — “a different value set.”
9:15 Issue of redistribution (I have a problem with it.) Great code word usage by Palin
9:16 Good job of Palin making taxcodes very simple and utterly irrelevant.
great question by Ifill — (interested in defending McCain’s health care plan)
5000k credit to buy health care is nonsense ’cause it doesn’t address why health care is so expensive.
9:17 Biden — don’t lose your temper. Decent job explaining health care…
Bridge to nowhere comment !
9:20 Another great question by Ifill. What would you have to slow down?
9:21 Palin is not answering the question — what would your campaign have to slow down on. (But…her coaches must be happy, she’s doing a great job of moving off-topic in a smooth way.
Another great follow-up; an even better come-back from Palin (how long have I been at this, five weeks?)
9:23 Biden knew where she was going and maybe knew more about windfall taxes than she did.
9:25 took her fifteen seconds to flail about until getting to a pre-made statement.
I think she’s running out of gas. Take a deep breath.
9:26 Biden again shows that he knows this stuff really well. (Could Palin tell the difference between Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 — I certainly can’t.) Also, how much longer will the obvious difference between high content answers and the fluff answers
9:28 I think it’s important to come back to energy. Whoa! Let’s just pretend there are no questions being asked.
Biden needs to keep on answering questions in provocative, thoughtful ways; if he can manage this for another half hour.
9:29 Climate change
“positively affect the impacts” ???
What are climate change impacts?
9:33 Great, great answer from Biden — if you don’t understand the causes, you can’t come up with solutions.
9:33 Drill, baby, drill — people are clamoring for oil.
(McCain supports the all of the above approach)
9:36 Visitations, contracts — okay. But you can’t define marriage as anything as man and woman.
9:38 Exit strategy question. The surge works. (Again, David Petreaus, as Republican talisman. Once he’s mentioned, let’s see how many times it comes up.)
Will Biden make another procedural argument regarding the vote (yes)
9:40 Biden — I didn’t hear a plan. Ten billion dollars a month. Keep sayin’ it.
Fundamental difference — we will end this war.
9:41 your plan is to surrender.
9:42
9:44 Pakistan vs. Iran as threats
John — central front of terror is in Iraq
vs.
Barack — hills of Afghanistan and Pakistan
9:45 — Petraeus talisman invoked again.
Attack on Iranian leaders (and nice job pronouncing)
Castro brothers who? Invoking CUBA ? CUBA? As a threat?
9:47 hate america! (hate as trembling)
attack on Obama for wanting to talk.
Diplomacy (hard work by serious people)
9:49 McCain won’t sit down with Spain !
9:50 Third rail warning: Israel and Palestinian
“we will never allow a second Holocaust.” Whoa!
vs.
9:52 “we both love Israel”
completely dodging the question about Israel
9:54 Haven’t heard how McCain will be different from George Bush’s — stay with it, Biden — particularly when she refuses to answer questions in any kind of detailed way.
9:55 again, invoking Petraeus as republican talisman.
9:56 Facts matter. The surge principle will not work in Afghanistan.
9:58 Shifts to positive story Dick Lugar/Barack Obama
10:00 What’s McClellan’s first name and/or rank — I don’t know but it seems sort of important.
10:00 Interventionism —
(multi-state solution in Iraq — isn’t this Biden’s idea?)
Stop this genocide
10:02 this strategy of declaring yourself as an outsider can’t work for the entire debate. Although what do I know, I suppose if you have enough charisma you can dodge questions with impunity…
10:04 (strategy for democrats — let’s link McCain to Cheney rather than Bush)
10:05 HOORAY…the first reference to McCain’s personal experiences.
10:07 Biden hyperbole
10:08 DID SHE JUST WINK? Disagreement from our couches.
10:11 Doggone it ! Let’s look ahead!
from the other couch — is this a joke ? Is this for real?
10:13 Um. The vice president breaks ties in the senate, right?
I do hope they get back to education?
10:14 “we will do what’s best for the American people.” But I think she’s missing the point of Ifill’s question regarding Cheney’s position, i.e., how did Cheney hide behind bizarre interpretations of the executive/legislative branch?
10:16 That’s a silly question — what’s your weakness? This calls for a silly answer, i.e., my weakness is helping old ladies across the street.
America is a nation of exceptionalism.
10:18 – 10:20 Biden losing it in a touching way.
10:21 consumate maverick
WE SHOULD LISTEN TO RUDY GUILIANI
10:22 FINALLY — he’s not been a maverick on anything that affects people sitting around their table.
10:23 Single view that had changed over time; Ideology matters when considering judges. (interesting choice — matters what your judicial philosophy is)
10:24 We don’t need to change in Alaska because we compromise.
My battery cut off here. I closed the computer and after listening to pundits advocate for particular candidates rather even trying to explain what they heard…I turned off the television.
One last point — Geraldine Ferraro exclaimed that she wanted her grand-daughters to be proud of a woman debating on this stage. She continued to say that they would be.
Sigh. I guess I saw it differently.
