i'm there.  I'm watching Olbermann right now.  I hope that Ifill doesn't go soft on Palin because of McCain's protestations.

This is scarier than the McCain / Obama debate.

hey guys!  I'm here with my girlfriends getting ready for the debate.  Buttered popcorn at the ready!

Hey guys, I'll be there. Sorry about last week. I got a power outage at my home, it was soooo frustrating.

I'll definitely be part of the discussion. 30 minutes left to go.

Jackie

Hi all,

I just updated the Battleground States page.  Obama has a lead in all the important battleground states and has a 6 point national lead.  This debate will be interesting!!

Jason

15 min!

it's started!  Biden's talking a little fast.

man, she went straight for the narrative.  "go to a kid's soccer game, and you'll find out about the economic problems"...

she's a bit nervous.

She's hitting those talking points.

 she's looking at him at least.  Biden is staying pretty calm and collected.  He went for McCain's jugular right away, straight around Palin.

Biden should reply to the 95% liberal voting record attack against Obama by saying that given a choice between voting with Dems or voting for Bush, Obama opposed Bush 95% of the time, while McCain supported him 95% of the time.

Yeah she seems nervous. She's studied all her talking points by heart. She's very ill at ease. Joe Biden seems very nervous too. He's talking a little too fast. He should shut her up rightaway.

But you guys have you noticed... Joe Biden is a veyr charismatic, handsome guy, huh? Ladies, do you agree with me?

johnr - damn skippy! 

She just said she's not going to answer  the questions as the moderator asked!!!

"the middle class is the economic engine"

Hell yes!

he's totally calmed down.  that "ultimate bridge to nowhere" line was awesome.  Joe can rehearse too!!!

Biden: "the Ultimate Bridge of Nowhere" lol

 lol - exactly!  tis isn't the debate i expected.  She's doing well, keeping to the talking points.

Biden's agreeing with Palin - it's a good strategy (worked for Obama)

 OMG!!! being suprised there is corruption on Wall St. is like being surprised there's trash at the landfill.

McCain / Palin Strategy : Avoid housing / banking crisis, pivot to energy.

here it comes - climate change!

Climate Change: It's the dinosaur bones that the Devil put in the ground. 

BTW, how many climate cycles could there be if the Earth is only 4,500 years old.  I thought the last ice age was 10k years ago?

we should have more oil deveoping any day now!

nucular!

Gwen is good!

nucular, lol! drill baby drill - that's their entire energy policy.

 Gwen is good.  McCain's going to have a hard time spinning her as partisan.

 Biden just dropped the $10 B / month Iraq expenditure v. Iraq's $80 B surplus.  

Palin and McCain just want a blank ticket on Iraq.

again with the nucular!

They hate us for our freedoms! 

that word drives me nuts.  she just comes across as a female George W. Bush.  I quiver at the thought of her being VP

 hey guys.   Palin's talking about Israel.  I wonder if she knows how Israel got those peace agreements in place w/ Jordan and Egypt.  It was through NEGOTIATIONS!

i honestly see evil in her soul - no drama here, just fact.

palin's hasn't committed any real gaffes yet.  the one criticism of Biden in this debate is that sigh he makes every now and again. 

Biden is SO MUCH more reassuring than Palin though.  I hope America is looking for that.

 how can you see evil?  i see emptiness.  That's why the neocons love her.  she's an empty vessel for them to fill with their ideology.  Just like dubya.

 so do you guys see a game changer here?  i haven't.  i guess with Obama's lead, that's not a bad thing.

"the team of mavericks".  It sounds so lame.  It's an oxymoron.  How can you have a "team" of "mavericks".  It's like that movie with the band "the lone rangers". 

I don't see a clear winner either.

it can be spun as a game changer because she's forming complete thoughts.  as long as Joe doesn't mess up in the end it will be good for Obama.

the GOP will eat this up!

wtf! "a bit mo0re authority" to the VP!

this has been a pretty good debate.  Ifill has been totally fair.  I wish Palin would just do something soon so I don't have to hold my breath for the next 34 days.

 i don't really care if the GOP eats this up - what do you think independents will think about it?  I don't know how they'll react.  I guess we'll find out soon.

i think they'll be more favorable towards her, but I really don't think it makes a difference anymore.  it's just too late.  there aren't that many undecideds left.

She hasn't done anything to completely alienate indepents - but the VP stuff and the defending Iraq stuff might lead some independents to avoid the GOIP - i hope.

i think Biden kinda choked up at the end there.  that connected with me more than any of Palin's canned narratives.

Joe's gonna finish strtong!

 that was a powerful moment.

a dig at Michelle - it's gonna be an ugly month. 

hell yes Joe!  Man he ended on a high note. 

what was the digg at Michelle?  I didn't catch it.

"I've ALWAYS been proud to be an American and so has McCain"

what a biznitch.

damn skippy! pew pew pew!

CNN's control group says Biden won debate!

he definitely won.  I just don't know if independents will see it that way.

was the control group filled with independents or was it more mixed?

Biden was brilliant, articulate, knowledgeable, genuine. Chirpy Palin offered lies together with a tedious array of cliché after cliché after cliché. And her ridiculous efforts to belittle Obama were painful to watch. “Also.”

divided 33% each I,D, and R

Palin said that she does not know how Washington works - when talking about Joe Biden's vote on the war. If she does not know how Washington works how can she expect to get anything done? Palin is in dangerous territoy and swimming with sharks. She's still a guppy, just not ready. She relied on the teleprompter on everything but energy related issues-which she is good at. I think that McCain showed how self serving he is as a candidate to choose her as a running mate, and Palin is just as self serving to have accepted.

Socrates

hey socrates!

Palin is a joke, but her performance tonight will keep the GOP base in line.  I don't think she did anything for independents or provided anything of substance, but that is not relevant to folks like that.