Home

 

Jim Lehrer of the PBS NewsHour moderated this presidential debate on foreign policy and the economy. It took place at the University of Mississippi in Oxford, MS. The Commission on Presidential Debates hosted the event.

TOOLS

Watch Video & Read Transcript
Click and Drag to Move Along Timeline   Moderator   Sen. McCain   Sen. Obama

Ken Adelman is just endorsing Obama because Adelman is white Right Rush Limbaugh? What other reason can you offer? http://tinyurl.com/5wuqh7

simonowens (Simon Owens) reported Oct 21st, 2008

What is with Drudge attacking Obama lately? Take a chill pill buddy, the Biden comment was taken out of context.

thisisunique (thisisunique) reported Oct 21st, 2008

#itsnotoveruntil McCain reveals his plan for finding Bin Laden

joeschmitt (Joe Schmitt) reported Oct 21st, 2008

"Listen to me. I'm the candidate." Thanks John McCain! I can use that today in this meeting. As The Analyst, I mean.

cgrantski (Chris Grant) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Palin mowing down a group of protestors standing in the road would have been an epic youtube video.

bbelew (Brandon Belew) reported Oct 21st, 2008

wondering why-the Christian, conservative base of the republican party is against Obama's tax plan? It is more like what the Bible says-??

CandiRobison (CandiRobison) reported Oct 21st, 2008

gonn go hear Joe Biden speak in a few hours. Mondo excitement. Suite-Mate hogging the shower AGAIN. bah.

pendragon007 (Kelsey Burd) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Palin en Saturday Night Live... http://tinyurl.com/6dr72u

obesotv (obesotv) reported Oct 21st, 2008

MIL sent me an email about how she hopes I don't believe Obama's 'smooth talking' and vote for him...

pamloveland (Pure Romance by Pam) reported Oct 21st, 2008

McCain leaves campaign trail for 'economic crisis' meetings...Obama leaves c-trail for ailing Grandmother. Advantage: Obama.

thesaulter (Andrew $aulter) reported Oct 21st, 2008

@lishevita Probably the reason why a lot of people see Obama-Biden as .... Osama Bin Ladin .. its a play on words :)

JackBastide (Jack Bastide) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Whoa. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/oct/07/russia1 I had no idea. Do you think Palin saw Vladimir Putin's black belt from Alaska?

cheshireluna (Isha Jo Corbin) reported Oct 21st, 2008

RT @JeffCoryell Sarah Palin is a socialist: AK put windfall tax on oil companies & redistributes wealth via checks http://snipurl.com/4jh3t

Jillmz (Jillmz) reported Oct 21st, 2008

memca McCain says his campaign is focused on the economy : Republican presidential candidate John Mc.. http://tinyurl.com/6gtpmb

memnews (memnews) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Am I a maverick? Must consult with Palin.

hankhintonburg (Larry Hudon) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Middle-class families will earn about $13,000 more in eight years if Obama wins and $5,000 if McCain wins.

TejanaPundit (Tejana Pundit) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Finally get around to watching Powell's endorsement of Obama. Powerful stuff: http://tinyurl.com/5aralc

jamesandrews (James Andrews) reported Oct 21st, 2008

NC early voters heckled by McCain supporters, tires slashed: http://tinyurl.com/5cy34s (heckled for voting? how nazi-like)

greenmoon (Green Moon) reported Oct 21st, 2008

super clip pour obama par seth Brau http://blog.noelf.fr/

NNois (nono) reported Oct 21st, 2008

would like to point out (for those of you that don't remember) that McCain cheated on his hospitalized wife to marry his current one.

DDoak (Daniel Doak) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Is this verifiable? RT @daltonsbriefs Fox news reports McCain retakes lead in Florida and Ohio, gaining in Colorado and Virginia

Alheri (Lilly Evans) reported Oct 21st, 2008

If I hear that Obama is a Muslim or Arab one more time I am going on a one man redneck annihilation.

himynameistyler (Tyler Briley) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Fund-raising surged- nearly $300 million through Sept. with McCain collecting slightly more than Obama: http://tinyurl.com/6xbdl2

StarwindE (Star Aasved) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Because of Obama's ties to the terrorist Bill Ayes he could not pass a FBI background investigation for a Top Secret security clearance.

IndyDave9 (IndyDave9) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Opinions: Joe Biden Guarantees Disaster if Obama Elected! http://newsblaze.com/story/20081021061002lill.nb/topstory.html

newsblaze (Alan Gray) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Stop covering Palin until she gives a press conference: http://www.slate.com/id/2202642/

beerzie (Beerzie) reported Oct 21st, 2008

"Biden is trying to put lipstick on the Bay of Pigs." http://tinyurl.com/57yzpt

MarkUrbin (Mark Urbin) reported Oct 21st, 2008

only a few more views to go to break 1K on this great obama video. would you mind helping w/ a retweet? kthxbai! http://snipr.com/obamavid

georgenemeth (George Nemeth) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Obama bin Biden?? Who SAID that?

TerryGormley (TerryGormley) reported Oct 21st, 2008

...Sarah Palin is coming to Green tomorrow. Oh, I am SO there!

IlliniPhil (Phil Anderson) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Crimes of Facebook Passion, Palin's Rack Promotes Storage, and More Crappy Jingles: - Avenue A/Razorfis.. http://tinyurl.com/5s2ron

adrants (Adrants) reported Oct 21st, 2008

@ambrister the irony being that, of the three of us, you were the only one who seemed excited about voting for president. For Obama.

camtaylor (camtaylor) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Conservative Republican Ken Adelman supports Barack Obama: http://tinyurl.com/5wuqh7

greenmoon (Green Moon) reported Oct 21st, 2008

I'm trying to figure out if that video is pro or anti Obama...

titoman (titoman) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Obama Leaves Trail For Ailing Grandmother http://tinyurl.com/5bgoot

blackvoices (Black Voices) reported Oct 21st, 2008

@mfeathers I do agree it's truth, and that it won't affect the election - but was surprised to hear Biden say it

crazeegeekchick (Dana Coffey) reported Oct 21st, 2008

McCain says his campaign is focused on the economy - The Associated Press: Boston GlobeMcCain says his c.. http://tinyurl.com/5uh2my

net_news (net_news) reported Oct 21st, 2008

New Photos Posted: John McCain event in KC. http://budurl.com/83qr

ZachIsHere (Zachary Cobb) reported Oct 21st, 2008

This just in.... Police drag protesters away from Palin motorcade: Protesters tried to.. http://tinyurl.com/5rkkkh

compassman (compassman) reported Oct 21st, 2008

less than 1 hour for the Michelle Obama tape!

jdmeac (jdmeac) reported Oct 21st, 2008

We wish Barack Obama's grandmother well!

chriswoodward (Christina Woodward) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Chris Bowers provides a smart analysis on what it would take for McCain to win the Electoral Vote. http://snurl.com/4kax8

mlogan (Mark Logan) reported Oct 21st, 2008

McCain says would eliminate ethanol tariff - Reuters: Wall Street JournalMcCain says would eliminate eth.. http://tinyurl.com/56aarj

net_news (net_news) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Obama not a favourite in Pakistan: LAHORE: Barack Obama may be winning in the US and most global popularit.. http://tinyurl.com/62g6sj

Lahore (Lahore) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Joe Biden is in time-out today! Naughty, naughty!

betsywuebker (betsywuebker) reported Oct 21st, 2008

@IndyDave9 Please show us your evidence of this statement regarding Obama.

aphony (aphony) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Just Say No To Sarah Palin: This lovely montage of guns and glamour came from a reader in Colorado n.. http://tinyurl.com/6qqkyu

Gossip_Guy (Gossip Guy) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Driving in to work, hubby says 'I have the ticket' for the next campaign. Sarah Palin and Tina Fey -- imagine the possibilities. Hmmm ...

jaguarjulie (Jaguar Julie) reported Oct 21st, 2008

feeing sad about obama's grandma. hang in there, madelyn!

lunchat1130 (lunchat1130) reported Oct 21st, 2008

obama tax plan means lost social security revenue http://tinyurl.com/5nbx8u

PardonMyFrench (Eric Frenchman) reported Oct 21st, 2008

somehow I can't see McCain in hip hop http://mcyogi.com/voteforhope

bokster1 (BK Toh) reported Oct 21st, 2008

@Flap Morning Flap, Obama Palestinian connections are a concern, especially if you're Israel

daltonsbriefs (Steve Dalton) reported Oct 21st, 2008

I'll be on vacation Thursday when Obama's in Indy. Since it looks like the camping trip may be off, I'll probably go to the event.

bwyatt (Ben Wyatt) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Protesters in Colorado try to block Palin's motorcade, get the crap kicked out of them by police: http://sslurl.com/faa94d

hebrewzzi (hebrewzzi) reported Oct 21st, 2008

ScienceBlogs: Block African witchcraft curses against McCain and Palin NOW! [The Cor.. http://u.mavrev.com/964

scienceblogsrss (scienceblogsRSS) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Orlando Sentinel: GOP insiders: McCain's Florida campaign "botched", "Dukakis-like" http://tinyurl.com/5d7xvt

electicker (Electicker 2008) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Google News AP headline: "McCain says his campaign is focused on the economy." Maybe a little late for that, guy.

brosetti (brian rosetti) reported Oct 21st, 2008

obama detests banks but loves donations http://tinyurl.com/6barxn

PardonMyFrench (Eric Frenchman) reported Oct 21st, 2008

LOL - Jon Stewart does in McCain spokesman Nancy Pfotenhauer about fake/real VA, http://tinyurl.com/5wcu4q

caseysmommie (Sarah P Smeagol) reported Oct 21st, 2008

@Wolverette I want to see McCain sexual assault a bowl of Ice cream dressed in a bunny suit. That help you're creepy quota? :)

Dr_Monster (Stephen Shepherd) reported Oct 21st, 2008

When Sarah Palin disagrees with John McCain, it means something. Or does it? - Slate Magazine http://u.mavrev.com/95i

franzstrasser (Franz Strasser) reported Oct 21st, 2008

is watching Barney Frank on Fox saying "We need to have big tax increases." Wow, hold on to your wallets if Obama is elected, socialism..

dkovaleski (dkovaleski) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Is Biden's Prediction A Gaffe http://tinyurl.com/5tsxsj

opednews (opednews) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Check out this very funny site. See if you can find the exploding deer http://www.palinispresident.com #mccain #obama #current

uselessdebate (uselessdebate) reported Oct 21st, 2008

GoogleNews headline: Obama to visit ill grandmother. Really? How does that make the news?

AubraWhitten (Aubra Whitten) reported Oct 21st, 2008

@bostonherald-What does smearing Obama have to do with the economy?

TejanaPundit (Tejana Pundit) reported Oct 21st, 2008

@carolynerickson yeah, Biden tells the truth more than most.

arobins (arobins) reported Oct 21st, 2008

McCain says the middle class has more to give. He says the top 5% will suffer if Obama cuts middle class taxes.

kkostuck (kkostuck) reported Oct 21st, 2008

mccain reacts to biden's ;atest gaffe http://tinyurl.com/6rdgd2

PardonMyFrench (Eric Frenchman) reported Oct 21st, 2008

im not suire who follows me so if any of you vote mccain i will personally kill you. this is comong from a former libertarian that realized

ErichAwesome (Erich Gambone) reported Oct 21st, 2008

MCCAIN GIVING UP ON COLORADO. YES, WE CAN!

mcginty77 (mcginty77) reported Oct 21st, 2008

*Breaking* Due to Procedure, Obama and DNC Admit all Allegations: Original thread can be reviewed he.. http://tinyurl.com/5kd62v

freerepublic (freerepublic) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Morning Joe Panel just mentioned that Obama camp "furious" with Joe Biden and yanked him f.. http://tinyurl.com/563pzk

freerepublic (freerepublic) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Folks, this Presidential race is over: Obama's numbers in OH stink, and PA isn't much bett.. http://tinyurl.com/5omhy8

freerepublic (freerepublic) reported Oct 21st, 2008

There are 31 states with early voting folks! Get out there and vote for OBAMA-BIDEN for positive change!

Bombero100 (Bombero100) reported Oct 21st, 2008

biden taken off of campaign trail because of latest gaffe? http://tinyurl.com/5nga5z

PardonMyFrench (Eric Frenchman) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Yes, Obama launched his political career at the house of Bill Ayers and his wife Berndine Dohn of the terrorist group Weather Underground.

IndyDave9 (IndyDave9) reported Oct 21st, 2008

This just in... Palin has stepped down and in her stead, Joe the Plumber... Kidding... I'm sure people would vote for Joe before Palin.

egspoony (Edgar Garcia) reported Oct 21st, 2008

@ransomtech -Placing Vote Obama-Biden stickers on halloween candy bags!

TejanaPundit (Tejana Pundit) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Obama to suspend poll campaign for a day to visit ailing grandmother: http://tinyurl.com/5fhn89

bestWorldNews (bestWorldNews) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Obama leaving campaign trail to visit grandmother: WEST PALM BEACH, Fla.—Democrati.. http://tinyurl.com/584b4d

denverpost (The Denver Post) reported Oct 21st, 2008

Obama leads McCain 50% to 42% among likely U.S. voters in the latest 3 day tracking poll, up from a 6-point advantage for Obama on Monday.

shanparker (Shan Parker) reported Oct 21st, 2008

McCain says his campaign is focused on the economy: PHILADELPHIA - Republican presidential candidate.. http://tinyurl.com/57858c

bostonherald (Boston Herald) reported Oct 21st, 2008

How policy backfires: I'd like to thank Michael Gerson for rightly ridiculing Barack Obama for "blam.. http://tinyurl.com/6djjd7

bostonherald (Boston Herald) reported Oct 21st, 2008

in 80's I affectionally refered to the Bass Pro Shop catalog as the White Trash Bible. just found out that Palin is speaking there today. FH

matthewwanderer (Matthew Wanderer) reported Oct 21st, 2008

593,756 POSTS IN OUR ARCHIVE

Originally posted at Chicago Tribune

52.4 Million Watched First Debate

September 30, 2008 at 12:07 pm

Mark Silva at The Swamp reports, “The TV viewing audience for the premiere presidential debate of the season between [McCain and Obama] drew 52.4 million TV viewers, according to Nielsen. That’s down 16 percent from the audience that [Bush and Kerry] drew in the first debate of 2004 — 62.5 million viewers.”

MORE

Originally posted at RK

Why Obama’s Post-Debate Bounce Will Be Bigger Than Predicted

September 30, 2008 at 12:04 pm

Miles Grant writes, “Over at FiveThirtyEight.com, Nate Silver points out a basic fallacy of pundits’ debate analysis.  I’d push Nate’s analysis one step further and say that the debate’s subject order tilted the results even more in Obama’s favor.”

MORE

Originally posted at St. Louis Post-Dispatch

St. Louis No. 1 Viewing Market for Debate

September 29, 2008 at 2:02 pm

Jake Wagman at Political Fix reports, “Think the city is primed for next week’s vice presidential debate? St. Louis had the top Nielsen rating for last night’s presidential debate among major markets, according to figures released today by the television monitoring service.”

MORE

Originally posted at Variety

“SNL” Hits and Misses with Debate Skits

September 29, 2008 at 2:02 pm

Ted Johnson at Wilshire & Washington writes, “The debate skit was a bit too over the top, especially when it hit John McCain’s ‘I am suspending my campaign’ with the candidate proposing a series of unseemly gimmicks. … The recreation of the CBS anchors interview with Sarah Palin was spot on, right from the first words out of Palin’s mouth.”

MORE

Originally posted at Americablog

McCain “Won the Spin War”

September 29, 2008 at 2:01 pm

Joe Sudbay argues that McCain “won the spin war” and asks, “What did that get him? In the real world, away from the traditional media elite, there is a broad consensus among the voters that Obama won. Basically, the pundits were wrong. … Just wait to see how the pundits fall all over themselves to make us think Palin is ready to be president.”

MORE

Originally posted at The Politico

A Picture Worth A Thousand Words

September 29, 2008 at 11:29 am

Jonathan Martin posts a picture of Obama being guarded by Secret Service and writes that in the fall of 1962, “James Meredith became the first black student to enroll in [Ole Miss]. Meredith had to be protected by U.S. Marshals and National Guardsmen sent down by the Kennedy administration. Now flash forward 46 falls to 2008.”

MORE

Originally posted at The Next Right

Family Told Obama NOT To Wear Soldier Son’s Bracelet

September 28, 2008 at 6:33 pm

Warner Todd Huston points out that “Madison resident Brian Jopek, the father of Ryan Jopek, the young soldier who tragically lost his life to a roadside bomb in 2006, recently said on a Wisconsin Public Radio show that his family had asked Barack Obama to stop wearing the bracelet with his son’s name on it. Yet Obama continues to do so despite the wishes of the family.”

MORE

Originally posted at MOMocrats

The Rain in Spain Falls Mainly on McCain

September 28, 2008 at 6:33 pm

Julie Pippert writes, “Last night’s debate was less full of the hyperbole that made the Republican lies absurdly obvious at the RNC… but McCain was staying true to his tactics (which Obama and the rest of us can, in fact, distinguish from strategy, thankyouverymuch) of mis-stating, misleading and misdirecting.”

MORE

Originally posted at NewsBusters

Debate Leaves Dowd in Dumps

September 28, 2008 at 6:33 pm

Mark Finkelstein writes, “Barack Obama’s desultory debate performance has left Maureen Dowd in the dumps…. Dowd’s biggest beef is Obama’s failure to have goaded McCain into a damaging display of ill-temper.”

MORE

Originally posted at The Presidential Debate Blog

Looking Back (to Debate 1) and Forward (to VP Debate)

September 28, 2008 at 6:33 pm

William Benoit provides an empirical analysis of the statements made in the debate and comparative statics on past VP debates, in which he notes: “Content analysis reveals that most of the statements in this debate were positive (53%), followed by attacks (39%) and defenses (9%). Historically, in 1960 and 1976-2004, presidential debates are similar in tone….”

MORE

153 POSTS IN OUR ARCHIVE


Keywords In The Debate Transcripts

Sort: Debate 1 Debate 2 Debate 3 Debate 4         Obama McCain Palin Biden
Loading Treemap

BLOGGER TIPS

CONTACT US

C-SPAN solicited tips about interesting blog posts during the 2008 presidential debates in order to present the greatest number of unique, interesting perspectives possible.