MCCAIN'S BACK IN THE SADDLEBACK

Posted: Saturday, August 16, 2008 9:57 PM by Chuck Todd

From NBC's Chuck Todd
Normally, on a night like tonight, we here at First Read would have been liveblogging every moment of Rick Warren's presidential forum. But with the Olympics and the fact this is THE Saturday Michael Phelps will be making history, we kept our liveblogging in check.

It turns out, actually, we should have been because this was a pretty good scrimmage and there's a lot to learn from these back-to-back appearances by John McCain and Barack Obama.

Quick first impressions: Obama spent more time trying to impress Warren (or to put another away) not offend Warren while McCain seemingly ignored Warren and decided he was talking to folks watching on TV. The McCain way of handling this forum is usually the winning way. Obama may have had more authentic moments but McCain was impressively on message.

This was a mistake Obama made a few times during the primary season. On one hand, it can make a moderator feel good when their subject actually tries to answer every question and take into account their opinions on a particular topic. And Obama's supporters will email me tonight and say this is what they love about him.


http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/08/16/1270330.aspx

Edited to 4 paragraphs to conform to DU's fair use policy for copyrighted material.

Lithos
DU Moderator

I spoke to a Latino undecided voter at the gas station yesterday. He said he had to wait and see, check out the candidates at the debates.

To me it is clear that this working class guy would benefit so much from Obama, but he is not reading the small print. His English was good but not perfect, he is looking for something to hold onto and Obama winds up appealing to better educated voters, but they are not the undecided voters.

I think he can tighten up his delivery and shorten his sentences for the sake of the low info public.

don't worry so much.
it was a good evening for Barack and all sensible people.

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best,
wakemeupwhenitsover
DU Mod

For example this: Take the VERY first question Warren posed to both candidates: who are three people you'll depend on for wisdom in the presidency. Obama seemed to answer this in a very personal way, talking about his wife and grandmother. McCain went right to this message, checking boxes on Iraq (Patraeus) and the economy (Whitman) for instance. Now, I'm betting Obama's answer came across as more authentic but McCain's was probably more effective with undecided swing voters.

Maybe it played well with that dumb crowd but to most Americans that Patraeus line came though as pure BS. Enough to make people want to throw up.

After the primary BS I am not as convinced

You think McCain is going to go unchallenged in a debate like that.

responses into answers that soundbyte better.