I can’t believe how many people are convinced that Obama won the first presidential debate of 2008. To top that, I’m even more surprised at the number who believe the debate was a draw. I’ll admit, both candidates did a decent job for what is essentially their warm-up debate; however, there are some things which undoubtedly put McCain out on top in my opinion.

First of all, McCain attacked the heck out of Obama. Prior to the debates, I was worried he would miss out on several opportunities to pick apart the Democrat. I too considered Obama to be a more eloquent speaker and thought he would have an inherent advantage to the debating environment. Looking back on the debate, the only thing McCain didn’t do was engage in an all out fist fight with his opponent. Though he started off a bit shaky, the Maverick gradually became more fluent as the night went on and the topics turned in his favor. The foreign policy topics (Russia-Georgia conflict, Iran, Iraq, North Korea, etc.) exhibit what I believe to be McCain’s greatest strengths, and he played his cards well. 

Of course, Obama replied back with something which completely invalidated McCain’s accusations.

“That’s not true.” - Senator Barack Obama

Wow, how original is that rebuttal? Sure, McCain threw in some snide remarks, but Obama repeatedly interrupted McCain’s statements with his ever-so-creative “that’s not true.” Also, how was it advantageous for Obama to admit on several occasions that McCain was right? If he was trying to show some professional courtesy, then start by calling him “Senator McCain” rather than “John.” 

I really hate the post-debate figures by Fox and CNN. It’s a fact that there are more Democrats (by number) in this country than Republicans. Mathematically, that translates to “more Democrats watching the debates.” And go figure, that means more Democrats texting/calling in their votes in support of their Democratic candidate. Sadly, few people are going to truly assess the quality of a debate by the actual debate. If you’re Democrat, you’ll dislike McCain. I’m a Republican, and I dislike Obama. Either way, the figures regarding the “winner” of the first debate are ridiculously biased. They almost have no statistical relevance given the reason for people’s votes.

By the way, if you’re wondering why I’m a hardcore Republican, feel free to ask me before you criticize my conservative ideology. I enjoy debating, but if you start crying, it’s not my fault.