pundit roundup
Comeback unlikely for grumpy-seeming Republican
Washington Post Oct 16, 08 10:17 AM CDT
(Newser)
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The debate last night was all about whether John McCain could pull off a game-changer; while some pundits saw his best debate performance yet, most agreed that he didn't score. Time ’s Mark Halperin liked what he saw at first, as McCain "showed off the best of himself—dedicated, sincere, patriotic, cheery, earnest, commanding." But he lost it in the second half, getting "aggressive and distracted."
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Says he will get tough with both candidates
Politico Oct 15, 08 4:31 AM CDT
(Newser)
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CBS veteran broadcaster Bob Schieffer has vowed to stand firm when he moderates the final presidential debate tonight, and will press the candidates to answer questions put to them, Politico reports. Jim Lehrer, Gwen Ifill and Tom Brokaw have come under fire for being too easy on candidates in previous televised debates. Schieffer may be aided by an in-your-face format in which he and the candidates will be seated together.
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OPINION
Abortion, Supreme Court among issues ignored in McCain-Obama encounters thus far
National Review Oct 14, 08 3:19 PM CDT
(Newser)
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There's just one debate to go, and a surprising number of "hot buttons have gone unpressed," writes John J. Pitney, Jr. in the National Review . A search of the previous debates' transcripts turned up plenty of topics that demand a visit: Abortion: “So far, nobody has even uttered the word in the debates,” despite the sharp contrast between the candidates.
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University bends over backwards for debate
Newsday Oct 13, 08 10:05 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Hofstra University, the host of Wednesday's final presidential debate, is busy nailing down endless details for the big event, reports Newsday . “Whatever (the campaigns) want, we do,” says university president Stuart Rabinowitz. Such as: They supplied each camp with replicas of the water glasses. “So they know the heft of it, I guess,” Rabinowitz said.
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ANALYSIS
Campaign sees tomorrow's encounter as chance to reroute opinion
Wall Street Journal Oct 6, 08 10:10 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Tomorrow’s debate will be the one town-hall-style encounter John McCain gets with Barack Obama, and analysts believe it will be crucial to keeping the presidential race from slipping away, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Republican has a reputation for excelling in the town-hall format, which brings out his spontaneity and wit.
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UPDATED
He disagrees with McCain on need for postponement
CNN Sep 24, 08 4:04 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Barack Obama disagrees with John McCain and says "it's more important than ever" to hold the first presidential debate Friday, CNN reports. Obama spoke soon after McCain called for a postponement, announcing that he was suspending his campaign to return to Washington and work on the financial bailout. So is the debate on or off? Stay tuned, but Obama says he will continue to prepare for it.
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ANALYSIS
Dem hopeful, a great orator, has struggled one-on-one
New York Times Sep 23, 08 2:01 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Barack Obama is famous for his soaring set-piece speeches, but his facility with oratory hasn't translated into success in debates, writes John M. Broder in the New York Times . At last month's Saddleback Church forum he sounded every bit the law professor, offering complex, humorless analysis to the sound bites that John McCain deployed. While Obama has improved since the Democratic primaries, he can seem visibly exasperated by questions he finds silly.
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OPINION
Postgame video replays matter more than issues
Guardian (UK) Sep 22, 08 2:35 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Better theater, not better substance, wins modern presidential debates, writes Michael Tomasky in the Guardian. Pundits will ordain a winner during the spin war that follows each clash—this year's first encounter is Friday—and “the candidate who wins the battle of the clips will be the 72-hour winner.” So the hopefuls must master one-liners, not policy nuance.
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Chicago Tribune Aug 5, 08 1:22 PM CDT
(Newser)
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The moderators for the three presidential debates have been announced, and none of them are particularly gasp-inducing, the Swamp reports. Tom Brokaw, interim host of Meet the Press, Jim Lehrer, of PBS’ News Hour , and Bob Schieffer of CBS’ Face the Nation, will each host a debate, while Gwen Ifill, also of PBS, drew the single vice-presidential face-off. The first debate will be September 26.
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Obama wants five, McCain wants 13
New York Times Jun 13, 08 5:20 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Camp Obama and Camp McCain are jousting over debates, with both candidates, New York Times blogger Michael Falcone jokes, appearing to feel “a little rejected.” Obama has suggested five forums: three traditional debates and two town halls, one on the economy and another on foreign policy. A rep said he was “disappointed” that McCain hasn’t agreed and would rather “contrive a political issue.”
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analysis
The Republican is underestimating his challenger
Time Jun 5, 08 12:46 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Mark Halperin writes in Time that John McCain is underestimating several challenges ahead of him: The “astonishing enthusiasm” Obama inspires, compared to the respect McCain enjoys How “major league” Obama’s infrastructure is compared to his own The difficulty of running against Bush and Barack at once. He’ll have to knock the president in front of Republicans
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Face-to-face showdowns could echo Lincoln-Douglas, Obama adviser suggests
Time Jun 4, 08 3:00 PM CDT
(Newser)
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John McCain challenged Barack Obama today to fight mano a mano in a series of 10 intimate town-hall meetings between now and the Democratic primary in late August. The Republican's invitation, delivered in a speech and said to be modeled on a proposed Kennedy-Goldwater series, would be “free from the regimented trappings, rules, and spectacle of formal debates.”
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But Obama had ruled out debates before the next primaries
New York Times Apr 26, 08 4:51 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Hillary Clinton wants one last debate before the Indiana and North Carolina primaries next month, and she’s ready to do it Lincoln-Douglas style. “After the last debate, Sen. Obama’s supporters complained a little about the tough questions,” Clinton told a crowd in South Bend today. “I’m offering Senator Obama a chance to debate me, one-on-one, no moderators.”
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OPINION
Clinton sees Barack coddling; NYT writer says she has a case
New York Times Feb 27, 08 11:28 AM CST
(Newser)
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Hillary Clinton was so taken by last week's "Saturday Night Live" sketch that had moderators fawning over Barack Obama in a debate between the two candidates that she brought it up in the real debate last night. And the debate lived up to the SNL spoof, Alessandra Stanley writes in the New York Times : the anchors needled her constantly and seemed to go out of their way to show Obama at his unflappable best.
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Challenger will go anywhere, do anything
MSNBC Feb 26, 08 4:30 PM CST
(Newser)
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Mike Huckabee wants to debate John McCain, he told a sparsely attended press conference today. Campaign finance laws may make the presumptive nominee “go completely dark between virtually now and the nomination convention,” said Huckabee, who described himself as “disappointed” at the lack of GOP debates, MSNBC reports.
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