Debate Analysis

No major gaffes but no major movement for McCain either. He needed major movement. He did make a mistake by referring to Obama as "that one" (update: a strategy?), which will be spun as racist somehow I'd imagine. (Update: It sure got 'em riled up.)

On the domestic policy end, Obama seemed confident and stuck to talking points, he made a few mistakes as he is wont to do when not reading but nothing major. Obama did slam Bush over the break down in unity after 9/11 and rather shamelessly by my thinking. Obama did say he supported nuclear power, a step he's not taken previously and in fact came out against.

But then McCain said something that seemed very desperate, he offered that the government could buy the mortgages of seniors (the AP wrote it was all houses but I took it as seniors houses) and re-issue loans for the market value they now are worth, reducing the full loan. Shameless shilling and populism that and it will give Conservatives pause. This after slamming Obama on Fannie and Freddie. Update: Michelle Malkin has more.

On foreign policy, Obama said that we shouldn't invade a country unless it was for humanitarian reasons. Wasn't the gassing of Kurds in Halabja and the decimation of marsh Arabs an organized genocide by Saddam?

All in all, McCain needed a TKO and probably won on points, that's not enough. With Palin out on the stump hammering Obama, it was up to the head of the ticket to take it to the next level and he couldn't do it.

In effect we saw a McCain win in this battle but Obama still holds serve in the war. Too bad considering McCain is whittling down Obama's lead and is only down two in the latest Zogby poll.