Presidential Debate #2: McCain vs. Obama

[fullautovalmet76]

I'm posting this before the debate, as I will probably go to bed before it's over. When you cast your vote give some definitive answers why you made your choice.

Most of the pundits say that McCain has to focus on the current economic crisis and avoid the negative stuff about Obama. Both candidates are woefully unqualified to speak on or address any possible solutions to this problem, but they are vying for the top job in our government so they have to give some answers. I guess the real test will be who LOOKS like they know what they are talking about on this issue.

Another prediction I have will be some jackass in the audience will ask one of the candidates, probably McCain, why they all just can't get along or some silly, asinine question like that.

-Cheers!

[Teresa Heilevang]

I see that there are some votes but no replies
ok.. I will be the first to take what I have heard ..and put it here.
I voted for MCCain simply because of the energy part of the debate.
First I got so disgusted by the debates that I actually went to the other room and worked...and only listened. ( Obama makes me sick just to look at him) 
 It was the same ole thing from McCain.. and the same old thing from Obama. At one point I looked over at Marshal and said" Where in the world did they find this panel of people ? The questions were droll and without any substance and even about the economy, I think that they could have had more meat to them. How many questions can be ask about the same stuff ..different way of asking? 
If McCain would have said My Friends one more time I would have screamed.
 If Obama would actually ever tell the whole truth at one injunction I would have keeled over. To hear him talk HE has always been and is the chief instigator of drilling on all that untouched land and HE was the one who knew waaay ahead of all of this about Fred & Fan.. and tried to warn the people. (yeahhh whatever  ) And HE is going to flood our pocketbooks with cash and still pay for all the peoples health care... 
 And McCain could have power slammed him in several areas but just kept struggling along trying to make his point. 

I swear, Obama could look Jesus straight in the eye and lie to him and make it sound believable. I guess if you lie enough and base your whole life on lies.. you get to be pretty danged good at it. And he has the gift of mixing some truth in all of that web of fabrications and promises of the outer structure of the house..all the time eluding to how you are going to furnish it and build the inside.   
 
 I have a very dear friend who has been in the Oil Industry all of his life. He is a guru on all of this. Like a walking library. We are in another forum together and I will share what he said.

I watched the debate tonite and as I have said many times Energy and the high cost of Oil and Natural Gas is the main cause of the crash in our economy and the world economy. Both candidates agreed that energy is the critical issue and that we must increase oil production now (I prefer to say oil and gas). They even eluded to the fact that the high price of oil has given Russia, the Worlds leading oil producer, the monies to commit aggression, both economically and militarily against other countries, that the high price of oil has given Iran the monies to develop Nuclear Weaponry and threaten the world. The big point I am getting to is that if you believe that the energy crisis is the culprit there is only one candidate and one party that can help us get out of this situation. I have been involved in the Oil and Gas industry for 40 years and I have never seen the Democrats be a friend  or be pro Oil and Gas industry. Even the people on the forum that are Democrats are anti big oil, who in the hell do these people think discovered and developed nearly all of the big oil fields in the world. I see these people put out BS about oil company profits and they know nothing about the company's market cap, the high risk projects, the long term payouts, the dry holes. Out of one corner of his mouth Barack Obama said tonite that he can increase our oil Production, then shortly after that he was spouting about how bad it was that John McCain and/or the Republicans were going to give the oil companies a 3 Billion Dollar tax break. Three Billion Dollars would not even pay for 1/10 of the Natural Gas Pipeline that is critically needed to get the massive gas reserves that have been injected back into the North Slope because there is no way to move them. Barack Obama will be some of the same failed Democrat Policies against big oil as what Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter has done in the past. look at Nancy Pelosi, and her handling of the Oil Crisis, is that what you want, Nancy Pelosi didn't care about the energy crisis she just didn't want to do anything to help big oil. Barack OBama will not help our energy situation at all.
 Frank

[Teresa Heilevang]

Here's what Warph had to say.................
He's the one we need for President. but like any sane person.. wouldn't touch it with a flaming 20 foot pole.



Of course I voted for McCain.

I didn’t think McCain did badly in this debate, but I thought he could have done better.  For instance, the idea that Obama or any Democrat could be trusted to handle the economy is laughable.  When I think about liberals being in charge of America’s wallet, drunken sailors on a binge is the image that comes to mind.

Here's a little tidbit McCain could have thrown in:  A recent list of the ten U.S. cities with the highest poverty rates shows that these major municipalities have one thing in common.  And just what is that one thing that connects them?  It’s Democratic leadership, my friends.  Cleveland hasn’t had a Republican mayor since 1989, Cincinnati hasn’t had one since 1984, Detroit since 1961, Buffalo since ’54, Philadelphia since ’52 and St. Louis since ‘49.  It’s been over a hundred years for Newark and Milwaukee.  Miami and El Paso have never elected a Republican mayor.  Is it merely an odd coincidence?  I don’t think so.

But it’s when Obama tried to blame the current financial crisis on George Bush and the GOP that McCain should have held his feet to the fire.  For one thing, it’s the liberals in Congress who forced the banks and mortgage lenders to put prudence and commonsense aside in favor of political pandering by extending home loans to people who never should have received them, not because of race, but because they were bad credit risks.  People like Kerry, Pelosi, Reid, Schumer, Boxer, Barney Frank, Chris Dodd and Barack Obama, wouldn’t in a million years lend any of those people ten bucks, but they saddled the rest of us with billions in bad loans.

This isn’t to suggest that the lenders were entirely blameless or greedless, but they never would have made sub-prime loans in the first place if the federal government hadn’t forced them to do it.  The fact is, when it comes to strong-arm tactics, liberals don’t take a backseat to anyone, including Al Capone and Lucky Luciano.

The other thing that McCain could have brought up is the fact that two of the people who helped get Fannie Mae into its present pickle are a couple of ne’er-do-wells with close ties to Obama; namely, former Fannie Mae CEOs Franklin Delano Raines and James Johnson.  Raines has been accused of pocketing over $14 million in bonuses based on fraudulent accounting practices, while Johnson, who was initially named to head up Obama’s V.P. search committee, was forced to step down when it was discovered that he had accepted a tasty little conflict-of-interest home loan from Countrywide, a loan which in less polite circles would be called a bribe.

If I were McCain, I would also have pointed out how similar Johnson’s home loan was to the one the Obamas received through the kindness of convicted Chicago fixer Tony Rezko.

If I had been Sen. McCain after Obuma hit him with McCain's ditty, "Bomb, Bomb, Bomb Iran, "I would have taken the opportunity to remind everyone that Obama, the man who would be commander-in-chief, pooh-poohed Iran as a small country that posed no real danger.  It’s one thing, after all, for the MSM to treat Sen. Obama as if he were treated with Teflon and quite another for his opponent to do the same.

Still, I would have closed on a positive note.  I would have praised Barack Obama for not suggesting, as Joe Biden did, that George Bush should have dealt with the current financial crisis by going on TV as FDR had in order to reassure the country when the Stock Market crashed..

What is it with these guys?  Obama told us there were 57 states and that Kennedy ended the Cuban missile crisis by sitting down across the table from Khrushchev, and Biden is convinced we all had TV sets in the 1929 and that FDR was serving the first of his five terms in the White House!  All I can say is that it’s a good thing that these two shmoes can make a living in politics because they sure couldn’t cut it as junior high civics teachers

[WatchManUSA]

I started to watch the debate but got bored with the same old talking points form both candidates so I moved on to other things.  That being said, unfortunately, I think the tide has now turned against McCain and it is Obama's election to lose. 

For whatever reason people seem to be blaming the economic issues on the republicans even though the democrats used the lending practices as a social program.  People got loans that shouldn’t have qualified.  Now we are in a big mess.

McCain’s message is getting muddled.  He has needed a comprehensive plan similar to the Contract with America that Newt Gingrich developed in the mid-1990’s.  He really needs a specific and clearly understandable plan on how he will address the economy. Perhaps he can do do but I don’t think he can get the message crafted fast enough to make a difference between now and the election. 

For McCain to win there has to be a big turnout on Election Day of republican voters.  MAKE SURE YOU VOTE!

[ericire12]

The debate was a tie, which equals a win for Obama.

[Sponsor]

[wrhall]

I  voted  neither  b/c in BHO's  case  a slickly recited LIE is STILL a LIE & in  McCain's  case he  was either unwilling  or incapable of  taking advantage of  the  openings BHO gave  him. With BHO  claim  of  Bomb,bomb McCain  could  have  mentioned  BHO's
Afghan  bombing gaffe. In regards  to  energy  BHO's  claim of  backing  clean  coal  was  the PERFECT  time  to  remind all those coal miners  in Pa,WV,Va & Ky  about VP Biden's  on  camera  gaffe  about NO coal  plants. McCain HAD to SAY  that BHO's run is based on LIES,funded  by  crooks & socialiststhat WILL lead  our  country  to  total RUIN. He  could  have  &  should  have  but he did NOT &  it will truly  cost  all of  us. Many  of  the  so  called  experts  look  at  these  debates  for  the  big mistake  or soundbite  but  I  try  to  find  the defining  moment  where  the REAL ideology,not  the  rhetoric,shows. In  the  VP  dabate watch &  rewatch the 3 responses  to  the  gay  marriage question (Biden answered  absolutlely heard  Palin 's response  then did a TOTAL flip-flop) as  it  is  a perfect  contrast  of strong  belief(Palin) vs  political  rhetoric(Biden). To see  Biden's  defining  moment  listen  to  his  Supreme Court  appointment view  AND  kiss  your  2A rights  good-bye. As  for  last  night  BHO showed  his  true  self  on  health  care .BHO  DOES NOT  view  the 2A as  a right (check  the  record  not  the rhetoric) but free drugs  & hospital  stays are.McCain did  NOT  have  that  moment  & IMO  that is part  of the problem. I  do NOT  like  being or  thinking  negatively  but  for  the  first  time  in my  lifetime  I  honestlly  can see the  end of  the USA.I  forsee a socialist state  that is  dependent on  foriegn  labor,incapable  &  unwilling to defend itself  with a  population  that  expects &  can  not  function without  a womb-to-tomb BIG BROTHER  govt calling  ALL  the  shots. HOPE & PRAY that  I'm  wrong.

[WymoreWrangler]

Two points, when Obama stated he'd go into Pakistan after Osama Bin Laden without approval of the government with troops, he just met the legal definition of invading another nuclear armed country, nothing something that should be done without my forethought.

The second point, and thank you my fellow retired CPO, the question about Israel, McCain, yes, he'd defend without the UN, Obama never stated he would defend Israel, walked all around the question, I don't think he's going to get the Jewish vote...

[Hazcat]

Two points, when Obama stated he'd go into Pakistan after Osama Bin Laden without approval of the government with troops, he just met the legal definition of invading another nuclear armed country, nothing something that should be done without my forethought.

The second point, and thank you my fellow retired CPO, the question about Israel, McCain, yes, he'd defend without the UN, Obama never stated he would defend Israel, walked all around the question, I don't think he's going to get the Jewish vote...

I bet he will.

[MikeBjerum]

If everything about this war is wrong, and we supposedly entered it illegally, and we have no rightful reason to be at war, and we need to get out of this war ASAP (all Obama's stances during speeches over the last year); how can we invading Pakistan with or without permission (another Obama stance) be any different 

The clown will say anything he thinks will get him in office.  I bet if he were in my home he would be praising my guns and as interested as all get out.  But, if he were in the neighbors home he would be talking about how to eliminate over two thirds of what I have 

Obama voted for the "bail out" gift last week; but he condems it, stated in his speeches and ads that "when he gets in the Oval Office" he will study the bill and abandon it; and he had Biden claiming in the debate that BHO did not vote for it 

The idiot has no foundation of any value at all!  I'm not saying that we have any perfect or even above average options, but that is no reason to elect a mouth piece for the liberal elite.  My opinion is that he is nothing but an empty suit and talking head that will do the bidding of those that own him.  My biggest fear is that we may someday find out who all really owns him 

[fullautovalmet76]

Just a few thoughts:
I thought the debate ended in a tie, but if I could not vote "neither" then I would give McCain the edge, and a slight one at that. The reasons have been stated by others in this thread, so I don't need to repeat. I was looking for a knock out punch from McCain and all I saw was jabbing.

During the debate I found myself shouting at the T.V. when Obama would speak. He has made it very clear he is central planning socialist and he intends to carry this country in that direction. For example, he mentioned how deregulation of the markets has led to this collapse and that we should, and watch this, "coordinate our economies with those in Europe." What he and the media fail to mention is that coordinating economies from different economies has been tried before, i.e. European Union and they are in worse shape than we are right now. Oh I almost forgot, their markets are far more regulated than our and we all see how all that worked out too.

Does this election have a familiar ring? To me it does. Think back to 1992 when Slick Willie was running. Remember he promised a middle class tax cut, he called the economy at the time the worst in the last 50 years, he declared war on Ronald Reagan's economic legacy, and he derided George H. W. Bush (#41) about being the "foreign policy President". Also, remember the media was very willing to sweep all of his peccadilloes under the rug. Barack Obama has, in my view, adopted Bill Clinton's tactics and put his own little spin on it. He's just a mixed-race Bill Clinton. But I'm not sure he is as cunning as Clinton though. Hopefully, we will never find out.

Someone posted about how the Jewish vote might not go to him. Over the years, it has been proven to me many times that certain social/political groups in this country will continually vote for liberals when their policies and beliefs are not in their best interest. The only reason I can ascribe to this is that there group has strong social order that respects the opinions of those at the top and they follow them. Lemmings walking over the cliff.....