Debate wrap-up: Senator Government vs. Johnny Mac and Joe the Plumber
No, there weren’t any knockout punches.
But John McCain was still standing at the end of the night — doubts about his fortitude adequately quelled — and Barack Obama ought to be wiping the smirk he borrowed from Joe Biden off his face.
Joe Wurzelbacher the Plumber was a heaven-sent gift for the McCain campaign, and for once, McCain didn’t flub the opportunity to rub the infamous “spread the wealth around” line in Obama’s smug face. Obama’s tin-ear response? Citing his billionaire “friend” Warren Buffett!
Alas, Ayers and ACORN receded into the background. But McCain brought the education debate to the present and spotlighted Obama’s anti-school choice policies that render him woefully out of touch with increasing numbers of minority families.
The best line of the night may have been unplanned (or maybe not)? In jabbing Obama’s spend-spend-spend plans, McCain called him “Senator Government.”
“Senator Government.”
It’s a fitting moniker for the Democrat candidate who spent the whole night talking about “investing” other people’s money. Perfect.
McCain ought to call him that from now until Nov. 4.
And someone from the McCain camp better have Joe’s phone number and arrange a joint appearance pronto.
Joe made Senator Government squirm.
Let’s see more. Better late than never.
See what others have said
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- Michelle Malkin » Liveblogging the last presidential debate of 2008
- Joe The Plumber Won! « Mcnorman’s Weblog
- McCain Hits the Nail but Fails to Finish the Job | The Daily Conservative
- Flopping Aces » Blog Archive » Reactions To Tonight’s Debate
- Poll Question: Who Won The Final Presidential Debate? | Jeffrey A. Setaro
- Stop The ACLU
- Rove: Obama Has Not Closed The Deal : Stop The ACLU
- One Fine Jay » Third presidential debate post-mortem
- The Other McCain: Senator Government
- The College Politico » Blog Archive » McCain in the debate, good or bad? What do you think?
- Health Care BS - SENATOR GOVERNMENT REPEATS “20 MILLION” LIE
- Neocon News » The truest words spoken at the last presidential debate
- McCain Did A GREAT Job: I AM NOT GEORGE BUSH IF YOU WANTED TO RUN AGAINST HIM YOU SHOULD HAVE DONE SO 4 YEARS AGO « Dianej’s Weblog
- The Third And Final Presidential Debate: Open Thread…JOE THE PLUMBER’S ELECTION | Right Voices
- A Small Corner of Sanity - An Online Oasis for Conservative Thought
- Final Debate Reactions | The Anchoress
- Presidential Debate Liveblog! v3.0 UPDATE: He DID! He DID! He DID say “Sen. Government!” « WitSnapper | The Blog
- Joe The Plumber, Small Business, And The Debate | Bitter Knitter
- There's My Two Cents
- Reactions on the third and final Presidential Debate | Mofo Politics | Everything McCain, Obama, Palin, and that other guy-related
- McCain Pummels Smirking Obama « Quipster
- skewred.com » The Last One — Finally!
- Right Wing News
- Penultimate Debate in Review | Constant Conservative
- Obama smirks, lies, stammers; Nobody Cares! « Riggword Weblog
- What some Christians are saying about the 3rd Presidential Debate | blogs4God
- Debate reax: Closing the sale… or not. | BitsBlog
- The Irascible Chef » Senator Government!
- killrighty.net » Blog Archive » Obama declared winner in debate by default
- Joe The Plumber’s Chat With Couric After The Debate | BigMouthFrog
- sisu
- Debate Reax: Closing the Sale… Or Not. : The Conservative Reader
- Domestic Divapalooza
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Categories: Barack Obama, Joe The Plumber, John McCain
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To be fair, I have consistantly mentioned I will not be voting for Obama or Mccain due to their illegal immigration policies.
Being out here in cal, it usually does not matter anyway.
I do think that Mccain won this debate hands down. Obama was flustered most all of the night, and rarely even bothered to respond to the challenges made to him.
Like the rest of the commentators here, I am not sure the TV commentators watched the same debate.
… as an odd observation, we are getting Obama advertising here – odd because ‘the polls’ have Obama far ahead.
On the flip side of this all, here in Cal we have been ‘managed’ by democrats for many decades and the budget mess is hitting the wall right now. Maybe, just maybe, many of the democrats in cal could lose.
“Undecideds”…feh.
If one has not figured out yet that the choice is between, on the one hand, a tax & spend, big-government, black-liberation idealogue socialist with an American-hating wife and, on the other hand, a war hero who is a true reformer with a record to prove it and who loves America, then they shouldn’t be voting at all. What more could one possibly need to know among these two choices?
Did I miss something in the original BHO proposal for who would be taxed? I could have sworn it was always those at $250,000 or above… It seemed in the debate that that number now just went down to $200,000. After the election it will drop to $100,000 like a rock.
committed said:
The reason you never see a full shot of Krauthammer is that he is confined to a wheelchair … he has been paralyzed since a diving accident in 1972 … so in answer to your question … yes … there was an accident …
Sen. Obama’s big, goofy grin was a tell. Every time Sen. McCain nailed him on a point, Obama gave a big smile.
On October 15th, 2008 at 11:34 pm, DesertLover said:
committed said:
Did Krauthammer suffer some facial injuries in an accident sometime in his past?
The reason you never see a full shot of Krauthammer is that he is confined to a wheelchair … he has been paralyzed since a diving accident in 1972 … so in answer to your question … yes … there was an accident …
I thought McCain won the debate. I only wish McCain had performed like this during the first two debates.
The best line of the night was when McCain said something to the effect:
“I’m not President Bush. If you wanted to run against President Bush, you should have ran for President 4 years ago.”
Geraldine Farrio “it doesn’t matter what we think.”
As a devoted supporter of McCain-Palin (particularly Palin) I hate to drop in with a negative note. But as a former debater and debate coach at an “ivy league” institution, I was appalled at McCain’s atrocious preparation for this debate, which everyone knew was absolutely critical for him. Debates are won and lost in rebuttal. You present an argument, your opponent, unless he is blind stupid, has anticipated that argument and gives his prepared response, and THEN the debate begins. On issue after issue McCain would make a strong argument, Obama would give his canned response to this long-anticipated argument, AND MCCAIN WOULD PROMPTLY DROP THE POINT. In formal debate, that is called “conceding the argument” and it means that YOU LOSE! Now these debates go on after the fact, and it may well be that the weakness and superficiality of the Obama responses will be made apparent by others in some effective way, BUT WHY THE HELL WASN’T MCCAIN PREPARED TO GIVE THOSE RESPONSES HIMSELF? We all knew what Obama’s rote responses would be. WHY WASN’T MCCAIN PREPARED? What an atrocious staff!!
I wish McCain was like this in the previous debates.
Geraldine Farrio,
Aren’t you and your party banking on the young uninformed vete?
you just said that the poll that Fox News is doing is skewed by the youngsters text messeging in and you acted like those people were a joke.
I appreciate your assessment, materialist. Time restraints were a factor and I was turned off when Obama kept insisting on more time during the last debate.
Here’s the truth as I see it: McCain doesn’t need the independents and the undecideds. McCain needs his party base, the you’s ‘n me’s, as the country (and the Dems!) saw after introducing Sarah Palin. WE’RE the ones he needs to fire up; not those who can’t make up their mind or who have no conviction of heart as to what they want for this country.
If that makes me part of the “mob mentality” some others find so offensive, well I can live with that.
McCain can’t win without us, and it is when WE are enthusiastic that we can rally others to our team.
The Obamatrons cannot out-cheer the patriots on the side of righteousness.
Let’s go, Team!
Justin Timberlake just released a video for Obama. I shudder to watch.
Obama smirked when Senator McCain said to listen to “how eloquent” Obama sounded which meant to me that Obama can “talk his way around any subject without giving a substantially clear answer”! Obama still wants everyone’s money to “spend as he sees fit”!
Obama is lost without his campaign teams’ “instant” over-night speeches flowing over a tele-prompter! When his prompter wasn’t working Mon, he talked about “pie” 19 times in 60 seconds!
Bob Scheiffer rudely interrupted Senator McCain more than once AND by my stop-watch allowed Obama to “meander on and on” ad nauseum (sp!)past the time limit many times!
Just remember if we allow Obama to be elected, he will align with obstructionists/socialists Pelosi, Reid, Frank, and they will have a “stranglehold” on the American citizens – that’s YOU and ME! jk
I’m with you, vickisoup! I’ll talk it up, but I’m afraid my car and house will be destroyed if I use signs. Now that’s what is sad.
McCain had the edge tonight, but it is the next 20 days that matter; The MSM will continue their efforts to derail the McCain/Palin ticket; McCain needs to beat Obama like a drum daily as a tax a spend liberal who has already expressed to us that he will take from Joe the plumber and millions more like him to “spread the wealth”; Joe and other thinking people out there won’t be fooled into voting for Carter redux.
Pundits and pollsters ca d their thing. On November 4 we do ours.
That’s what counts. Until I see the numbers I am not buying the Inevitable from the likes of the media. It’s out vote not theirs.
Can you tell it’s late?
Let’s do the spelling a TAD better
Pundits and pollsters can do their thing. On November 4 we do ours.
That’s what counts. Until I see the numbers I am not buying the Inevitable from the likes of the media. It’s our vote, not theirs.
Don’t be afraid, committed. I live in the People’s Republic of Santa Cruz and have bumper stickers and yard signs galore. Nobody has trashed any of them. I have found that my boldness inspires some other closet conservatives to do the same.
There is something profoundly wrong when a conservative republican has to take his inspiration from Dick Morris.
I wish McCain would have mentioned how this all happened under a Democratic Congress, as the Congress has lower approval ratings than the President. Having said that, McCain put Obama on the defensive, which was good.
I quite agree. Schieffer let Osama Obama off the hook when McCain’s jabs hit home.
At the same time, if McCain had tried to point out all of Obama’s lies tonight (especially re: Ayers, ACORN, abortion and schools) the debate would have run four hours.
The grudging commentary by the MDS crowd — including Ms Malkin — tells me my impression was right: McCain did a superb job tonight. Sadly, he can never do well enough, because he is not the Ronald Reagan conservatives want to remember.
Thanks in large part to them, we will have a lying, inexperienced leftists, who surrounds himself with traitors, felons and race-hustlers. We face four years (at least; probably eight or more) of repression, economic and security suicide, vote fraud and Marxism.
But hey, the “false conservative” will have been defeated, and the hard-core right will be trampled with their so-called philosophy intact.
Hell of a way to lose a war, and a nation.
I was trounced on this blog several months ago after posting my letter to the RNC decrying McCain as the candidate but saying regardless I would vote for him. I did just that today. I would hope after seeing the Marxist that would be king and knowing what his court will hold should he be elected, others will do the same. McCain may not be our candidate of choice, but the alternative is unacceptable and un-American.
ChicagoRobb said:
McCain did (once) point out that the Democrat congress had been in control the last 2 years.
He did put Obama on the defensive, throughout the debate. He obviously got under his skin a few times.
What was McCain talking about, during this debate and first one, when he mentioned training programs for “displaced workers”? In the first debate he said: “For workers in industries that have been hard hit, we’ll help make up part of the difference in wages between their old job and a temporary, lower paid one while they receive retraining that will help them find secure new employment at a decent wage.”
If people get laid off, then they need to find themselves another job. If folks are laid off, that means that the supply of workers in that particular industry is too high. But you know what? Supply in another industry is likely very low, so they can get a job there. Why should I, as a taxpayer, have to pay someone to get more qualifications for another job? And why should I pay the difference, as a taxpayer, in the wages for that person’s old job compared to their new “temp” job?
Not to mention, these artificial changes in the dynamics of the market would have serious impacts on the job market as well. (A) Competition for higher paying jobs would dwindle. Why work harder or smarter to move up or to a “better” job when you can get paid the same wages for doing less? (B) More workers would seek jobs in certain industries than others despite what the market demands dictate, creating an artificial market for workers in certain industries (i.e. too many workers flocking to gov’t-favored industries vs. market favored industries). This is no different than the problems with government subsidies.
Lastly, how is any of this Constitutional? Not that this matters much to most politicians, it does matter to me though.
Krauthammer is not in the tank for Obama. I didn’t see him on Fox tonight, but he has written some articles that absolutely pounded Obama and his lack of experience for the Washington Post.
As for Kristol, he is what he is. I’m a fan of his publication, the Weekly Standard, though it does promote amnesty. But it also provides solid conservative analysis of gay marriage, abortion, education, economics (Kristol’s dad is Irving Kristol, a noted economist from what I can gather), and a whole host of other issues. I get National Review for solid commentary opposing the amnesty.
Actually saw Krauthammer at a Nats game this year. He must have just gotten off the tv, cuz he was still rocking the pancake make-up. lol
Sadly, the Fox News commentators tend to align with liberal Republicans. That is why I no longer trust their commentary.
Fortunately, the Palin pick has done a good job of getting the closet liberals to expose themselves. It is the liberal, Washington establishment Republicans that are killing our party.
matt, if you would have seen Krauthammer tonight on Fox, you’d understand where we’re all coming from. He was extraordinary, if not even somewhat giddy (as much as K could muster, anyway) in his praise for Obama. Succinctly put here, and a near quote: “Even Ronald Reagan couldn’t have outshone Obama”.
WTH??
I turned off FOX about 15 minutes after the debate. I couldn’t stand it.
Vickisoup,
We live in the People’s Republic of Monterey….and I’m feeling pretty upbeat!
Obama and Sam Farr have both started running ads (!), I see lots of McCain/Palin yard signs, *and* McCain now has a “Victory” office in Seaside! Earlier this summer, the closest McCain “victory” office was a couple of hours away!
“Joe Plumber” is asking the questions that nobody has been able to get answers to…..and I think the momentum is in McCain’s direction.
McCain might want to rethink any appearance with Joe the Plumber. Politico is reporting he’s not registered to vote.
Mookie, maybe Acorn woulf go take care of the registration.
I’d like to see that one
Hey YTZGal, that’s excellent news! I almost made it down to Seaside tonight, but didn’t get out of an earlier commitment in time.
I am stoked.
Considering the lack of suitable options, I can understand why he wouldn’t feel the need to waste his time. I don’t agree (I’m writing in my vote), but I understand.
Actually Joe said he wasn’t going to say who he was voting for…ie, keeping the secret ballot a secret:
Even so, Wurzelbacher declined to say which candidate would get his vote on Nov. 4.
“That’s for me and a button to know,” he said.
I’m sorry to say that the knockout punch came a few weeks ago, and it doesn’t really matter what was on TV last night.
McCain has already been held responsible for our economic problems by a significant amount of voters.
Many people consider the Presidential election to be a referendum on how they feel about the quality of life they’ve been left with after the previous administration. Massive amounts of Democrats voted for Reagan in 1980 in reaction to Carter for this reason.
I can’t talk any of them out of voting for BHO – can you?
Of all the states not to be registered in, right?
Yep, Vickysoup….and my 23 yo daughter has been doing a great job explaining to her peers why they don’t want to vote for Obama….she has been answering all of their questions about a cradle-to-grave welfare state, socialized medicine….and explained that even Canada voted for a conservative economist. She has managed to convince several prior Hillary supporters and persuaded some independents to register and vote for the first time.
This isn’t going to be the runaway landslide the pundits want to predict. Obama is going to have to fight for every vote.
Krauthammer worked for Carter, and was a speechwriter for Mondale. He also wrote for the New Republic. He’s extremely liberal on pretty much everything except for supporting Bush’s policy of pre-emptive war on terrorists.
Old Scout,
There is no hope for the hardened partisans. So don’t waste your breath.
However, you can explain that the Democrats have had control of Congress.
I have found that the soft sell approach works best. Usually I start out by asking why they are supporting Obama to gauge the level of their commitment. Then I ask them “which” policy in particular has them fired up, and then begin to deconstruct it.
I have had some successes, but you have to be careful not to get people defensive. People are very worried about Obama but also Bush is very unpopular, so they feel torn.
Victory song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GE4oE-OYNb0&feature=related
(Gretchen Wilson sings Sarah’s theme song better than Heart.)
Maybe he isn’t. Doesn’t make his point any less valid, or the confiscation of his wealth any less painful.
Both of them went on and on about how they would give us better education, health care, retirement, stronger economy, energy, homes without foreclosure, less global warming, and never rain on us if we have a day off. It was just a matter of degree. They could not bring themselves to say “It’s not the government’s job.” on anything. Liberal and liberal-lite.
Thanks for this update Michelle. I did not watch the entire debate, but I’m glad you did. I trust your analysis, thanks.
Obama made a point to explain his opposition to the Columbian free trade agreement. His negative position is based upon his valuing Columbian! pro-union organizers (nb, not necessarily Columbian unions per se) more than the well-being of United States economic partners. If he’s elected, Obama becomes the nominal head guy of the Democratic party.
A couple questions:
1) Is this the first time a Democrat has come out of the closet on this issue? I don’t remember even Pelosi or Reid being this forthright.
2) Could this be the first Obama Doctrine? (ie, Cut off the US farmer’s nose to spite the face of free trade in support of international trade unionism?)
3) Can we expect to see an Obama Administration’s foreign assistance to include defence of union organizers?
I didn’t see any talking head spot this. Am I making a communist mountain of a socialist molehill?
Joe “the plumber” Wurzelbacher chimes in:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdLPWfTczM4
“Obama’s Proposal Scares Me Because It’s Just One More Step Towards Socialism”
…sorta says it all, don’t it…?!!?
If he doesn’t put “Joe the Plumber” in big letters on his trucks he’s makin a huge marketing mistake.
Just goes to show you that a brainless moron would vote Obama. Obama voters are going to be hounded so bad they won’t be able to sleep at night over the next four years.
Wurzelbacher/Palin ‘08!
By the way, Wurzelbacher gave an interview to ABC News today:
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2008/10/joe-the-plumber.html
Cute little catch-phrase, and if he does use it it will work very well for him.
Of course, it’s pot meet kettle yet again.
RWR
http://www.rightwingrocker.com
And people think he’s going to win with these supporters?
RWR
http://www.rightwingrocker.com
Of course McCain’s already in bed with all of the above, so no foul.
RWR
http://www.rightwingrocker.com
Someone I was watching the debate with thought “Joe the Plumber” sounded like the name of a Chicago mobster.
Who are you talking about? Michelle? Us??
The only Republican that’s a part of this topic is John McCain, and he’s the farthest thing from a conservative that party has to offer.
Even Dick Morris is to his right.
RWR
http://www.rightwingrocker.com
Joe the Plumber is obviously a racist.
and by the way, if Joe the Plumber, himself, becomes significant, watch the DESTRUCTION of this man right in front of our eyes.
Mccain need to tell everyone that if he elected that he’ll cut taxes and let people try and be joe the plumber.
Ps we need to win i don’t want borat in office and i want sarah there.
I swear, the last time I sat in front of a TV like that with my jaw hanging open wondering did I fall down a rabbit hole or something, was when Baghdad Bob was telling us that the Americans had been defeated.
I mean I’m going to vote for McCain anyway, regardless of if the polls have him losing every last electoral vote, but I don’t think anything at all break the hold of this weird mass hypnosis. I honestly believe that if Obama told everyone he was going to ask them to get his name tattooed on their forehead, they’d just ask what color of ink he’d prefer.
Hope and Change = Tax and Spend
Tax and Spend liberal. He needs to start using that phrase and drive the point home.
Remember when Clinton’s slogan was “It’s the Economy stupid” This could be the Republican’s slogan “It’s Rezko stupid”
http://ajacksonian.blogspot.com/2008/10/how-to-steal-election.html
Joseph Wurzelbacher set Diane Sawyer straight this morning–not that she noticed. There is not one person in the media who isn’t a narcissistic dumbass.
Joe Bides says: “I don’t have any Joe the Plumbers in my neighborhood who make 250K a year”:
http://de.youtube.com/watch?v=j66LUroXUck
Joe the Pluber – a GOP plant? I can alreary see the narrative building up…
Joe Bides says: “I don’t have any Joe the Plumbers in my neighborhood who make 250K a year”:
http://de.youtube.com/watch?v=j66LUroXUck
Joe the Plumber – a GOP plant? I can alreary see the narrative coming into shape. Probably a good talking point for DailyKos
biden should know about lowly people making big bucks, his family members have sucked a couple of million bucks from being campaign staff to an imbecile. though john mccain will never be my first pick to become the next president, the thought of obama/biden looking at me from the tv for the next four years is more than i can handle. bush proves what compassionate conservatism means, rino, and mccain is very similar. but mccain will be the commander in chief we need, and in the end, the presidency is a bully pulpit job AND the commander in chief. if we just elect mccain, and don’t alter congress, the next two years will be more of the same. let’s investigate every time someone in the white house breaks wind, and impeach someone for something because everybody i know knows those republicans are racist scoundrels who deserve to be burned at the stake. REMEMBER BILL CLINTON!!!
Of course Joe the Plumber is a plant and a nazi and a racist, bigot, homophobe and a Kulak as well!
Anyone and everyone who opposes Obamassiah is evil.
We should all feel sorry for poor BHO who was brutally ambushed by this evil man. It is only a matter of time until some Obama campaign volunteer remembers some threat Joe made against Obambi and calls in the Secret Service.
Joe is going down!!!
Obama would never ask them that…just the NUMBER of his name..
and he’d let them get the mark on their hands or their heads….
Well, that’s because Joe ” Home Depot” Biden does the plumbing in Scranton.
close…Joseph “Joe the Clown” Lombardo…Antonino “Joe Batters” Accardo …all people Obama of course is not friends with…just live (or did) in his neighborhood…. capiche??
Right Wing Nuthouse and Powerline blogs are giving up. They say Obama will be elected.
Those quitters!!!
vickysoup#108, your analysis is spot on. when mccain announced palin and conservativesheard palin and mccain say they would fight corruption and overspending in washington, he won in the polls by several points. now he wants to talk about “my friends have i told you about bill ayers in the last 30 seconds” don’t tell me anymore about bill ayers, tell me about why you support bailing out everyone on the planet, and inviting every juan in latin america to come here and suck up our welfare society.
btw, in st louis yesterday a community organizer, who’s one claim to fame was having a mob stand in a highway to block traffic to pressure politicians into MANDATING 20% minority involvement in the rebuilding of that highway (despite only 14% of the population being black), was sentenced to prison for income tax evasion in failing to declare $450,000. of course community organizers are more important than plumbers or governors.
Obama’s friend Warren Buffet is sure free to spread his wealth around if he wants, but I don’t want him telling me what to do. I hope Warren doesn’r end up with a job in an Obama administration.
When the folks here in Omaha (where Buffet lives and works) want to be nice, we call him eccentric. But we all know he is a goofball weirdo. Some of the things he does at home are downright kooky. Like his odd love life us Omaha cats have had to watch for over 30 years.
Buffet was smart to buy Coca-Cola and Dairy Queen, but since he’s gotten into reinsurance and other areas he doesn’t understand, his shine has begun to fade. His associations with Bill Gates, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Barack Obama are creepy. About the only things Warren has in common with Obama is a bunch of rich, elitist friends and a desire to see ordinary Joes pay more taxes.
It is funny how Buffet and Bill Gates Sr. want everybody to pay more taxes. Yet, I don’t see them offering a bigger share of their vast fortunes to the US government.
Gates, Buffet, Kerry, Clinton, Gore, etc. could all be far more generous to the US Treasury than they are. If it isn’t good for them, why would it be good for Joe the Plumber and me?
“Sanctimonious hypocrites” is a phrase that comes to mind.
Maybe this information will help sway the Obama supporters who think he will improve the economy. Michigan has been living (or actually dying) under the Obama economic plan. It was put in effect by MI’s Dem. Gov. Granholm. If you can get them to read the entire article, it is an eye-opener.
http://mcauleysworld.wordpress.com/2008/09/08/michigans-dem-governor-granholm-appoves-of-obama-tax-policy-matches-her-policies-of-last-6-yrs/