Third Debate as it takes place

I'll post to this periodically as the debate goes on. I'm watching and writing so some may be less-than-coherent, but it's mainly to record my impressions.

Will our children live in a world as safe and secure as we do?
-thanks to the hosts

• looks like we're going to get the Smiley Bush. They've upped his meds. He's smiling at everything.
  
• Bush had to say he's got a comprehensive strategy. Afghan elections. First voter was a 19-year-old woman. How does he know it?
  
• Nusence. That POV is dangerous. Comprehensive view. Signed Homeland Security Bill, opponent opposed it.
  
• I don't think about Osama quote
  
• I don't think I ever said. FIRST BLOOD!

Jobs

• Kerry wanted to talk. but not allowed.
• Bush's answer. I'll let you get into community college, and I'll make you take more tests in elementary school. (how school testing will help someone who's job has been sent overseas, I don't know)
• Is that spittle in the corner of his mouth?
• Kerry, Bush moved
• Kerry compared Bush to Tony Soprano!!
• This time he didn't let Bush reply.

Second job question

Bush grinned and looked at Bob like "Good one Bob!"

"Whew!" Kerry covered too many points for Bush to handle. Didn't look good for Bush.

Kerry slammed Bush on the number of people who qualify for Pell Grants

Bush interrupting again!!

You sit on the far left bank! (bad French jab Is Homosexuality a choice?

• Bush: While we protect people's rights, we need to make sure we deny them rights.
• Kerry: (a la John Stewart) CHENEY HAS A GAY DAUGHTER!!! (hee, hee, hee!)
• framed it as a rights question

Catholic Bishop saying voting for him is a sin

• Kerry brings up his good argument against legislating his beliefs on others
• I'm not running to be a Catholic president
• Faith without works is dead, you must show the deeds and not just declair your faith!!! (slam on Bush!)
• Bush: Every being counts, every life matters. What about the death penelty!!
• Maternity group homes??

Health Insurance costs

• Softball question about why health care costs have risen. Then the weird laugh and "I sure hope it wasn't the administration." heh, heh, heh. Oh, man, what an opening!!
• Here come the lawsuits causing costs. "Defensive Practice of Medicine??"
• Use of technology? Electronic medical records (oh, man I could tell you about this, I work in the field. We're not ready for this!!)
• Kerry: This administration has stood in the way of common sense measures: Canadian Drugs, Medicare negotiating with drug companies.
• The president made it ILLEGAL, ILLEGAL to negotiate. You go, John.
• Bush: Kerry has no record in 20 years of medical reform.
• I've passed 56 bills I've personally written. (i.e. LIAR!!!)

Kerry, you've proposed a massive plan to extend coverage to children, ... How will you fund this?

• Two leading networks has called Bush's characterization of Kerry's plan "fiction" "untrue"
• "your health care is as important as any politician in Washington DC"
• Bush questions whether you should believe networks. Not a good strategy.
• He quotes the Luen report? (sp?)
• Once a health care program ends up in a line-item it adds complexity, and has poor quality
• Kerry Whomped him on the VA!!

Social Security running out of money, privatization. The cost of this "reform"

• Bush: We have a problem, if we don't fix it, it will cost trillions.
• Moynehan commission?
• Bush promises that he'll do this in his second term.
• Kerry: An invitation to disaster. Quotes CBO, two trillion dollar hole in social security. There would have to be a cut in benefits by 25%.
• Quotes WP's figure of 3 trillion from promises from Bush's convention.

Does this mean you're just going to let the problem continue? (to Kerry)

• Why doesn't Bob question Bush's promises?
• Kerry gets to hammer Bush on jobs again. Brings up the first president since Hoover...
• Bush: Forgot to tell you he voted to tax social security benefits 29 times.
• Now Bush talking about middle-income tax cuts. Tax relief important to get out of the recession.

Immigration

• Bush sees it as security, human rights, etc. issue.
• He just justified why people come here. "If you're worth your salt" you'd come here rather than stay in Mexico because you can make $5 here for what you get 50-cents in Mexico.
• He just said he was for having Mexicans come up here and work so employers can have labor
• Kerry: went back to point out take-home pay for middle class is lowest since 1929, for upper income it's highest since 1928.
• our borders are leakier. We need more than a guest worker program, we need to crack down on illegal hiring. And bring people who have been here, payed taxes, kids are citizens, we need to fast-track them to citizenship.

Minimum wage (to Kerry)

• Kerry: long-overdue. (softball question for Kerry)
• Kerry makes it a woman's issue. Mentions how many women would be affected.
• "Tired of politicians who talk about family values but don't value families!"
• Bush: Mitch McConnal has a minimum wage plan that I supported. Then he goes off on education. No Child left behind as a jobs plan. Huh??
• Doesn't answer the question about minimum wage! Doesn't say what he thinks the minimum wage should be!

Roe v Wade. Will you oppose it?

• I won't appoint a judge who will undo a constitutional right, including different amendments. (reference to Patriot Act?)
• Now slams Bush on No Child Left Behind under support
• Bush did use "Liberal" and Massachusets
• Kerry: You measure by whether you get the job done, not by increase. Kids lost after-school programs.

For Kerry: Last debate said no draft. But National Guard is in trouble, what about back door draft?

• The fact we have this policy is a reflection of bad decisions.
• Bush denies there's a back door draft
• Bush pulls out the global test

Why didn't you encourage the Congress to extend the assault weapons ban

• I was told the bill wouldn't move because Democrats and Republicans didn't support assault weapons. (Did I hear this right??)
• Kerry slammed him. Pointed out law enforcement supported the ban. Failure of Presidential Leadership

For Kerry: Affirmative Action

• Not something that just applies to people of color, but also applied to women
• This is the first president ever to not meet with the NAACP, with the Black Cacus, with Civil Rights leadership in the country.
• Bush says he met with the Black Congressional Caucus. Agrees we shouldn't have quotas.
• Then goes and talks about education again.
• more minorities own a home than ever before.

For Bush: What part does your faith play in your policy decisions?

• He prays a lot. People can worship as they want to or not
• Right to worship as you see fit
• I receive calmness in the storms of the presidency. I feel it when people pray for me around the country
• I believe God wants everybody to be free
• I believe the freedom in Afghanistan is a gift from the Almighty
• Kerry: We have a lot more loving of our neighbor in our country and in the world. He seemed comfortable quoting the bible. Good!

For Kerry: Country came together after 9/11, but now we're polarized. Will bringing the nation back together be a priority?

• Kerry: complimented the president for the days after 9/11. We're not there anymore today.
• We're now the most divided country.
• NOt secret meetings in the White House
• Work with John McCain to further campaign finance reform
• Bush: I had a record in Texas of working together. Blames it on special interests. (huh!)
• Bush says, it was pretty divided in the 2000 election. John McCain is for me for president.

Last question: All three of us are married to strong women, all have two daughters. What have you learned from them?

Bush: "To listen to them. To stand up straight and not scowl."
• She speaks English a lot better than I do. They understand what she's saying.
• Kerry: We are three exampels of people who are luck, who married up, me perhaps more so than others.
• Kerry talks about his Mom. Integrity, integrity, integrity.
• Gets a "thank you" from Bush. Excellent. That little gesture went a huge way to defusing the character attacks they've made against Kerry. He can't be such a monster.

Closing: Bush wants to stress where we're going, not where we've been. (let's not talk about my record) Thoughts: Bush seems to have finally gotten his meds correct and the pundits will crow about it. But I think the lack of anger also, in a way, helps to validate Kerry as a viable candidate. If he was such a danger to the US, then Bush wouldn't be so cordial. This may be a subtle point and only partially understood by watchers. The closing handshakes looked almost like the end of a sports contest where each team lines up and goes down the line of the other team and shakes their hands. Again, I tried to be as neutral in my thoughts as I could, but Kerry just had more vision, more compassion, more substance than Bush. Bush really only talked about two things: education and taxes. He did mention the social security privitization, but not much else stuck. Kerry came across as having solid values, principles (and think that's a key word here, one that seemed very important when I just wrote it) and a plan. He was master of more facts and addressed the issues while Bush only danced around them. I'll write more later after I digest. Plane Crazy