Debate Deblogging: Morning After

CNN is saying Obama won the debate, most folks are of the mindset that it was a draw among male viewers, but Obama won handily among female ones.

Fifty-one percent of those polled thought Obama did the better job in Friday night's debate, while 38 percent said John McCain did better.

Men were nearly evenly split between the two candidates, with 46 percent giving the win to McCain and 43 percent to Obama. But women voters tended to give Obama higher marks, with 59 percent calling him the night's winner, while just 31 percent said McCain won.

"It can be reasonably concluded, especially after accounting for the slight Democratic bias in the survey, that we witnessed a tie in Mississippi tonight," CNN Senior Political Researcher Alan Silverleib said. "But given the direction of the campaign over the last couple of weeks, a tie translates to a win for Obama."

CBS had similar numbers as well.

Uncommitted voters said Obama won the debate against Republican John McCain, and more of those voters improved their opinion of the Democrat. But while 66 percent think Obama would make the right decisions about the economy, 56 percent think McCain would do so about Iraq.

Immediately after the debate, CBS News interviewed a nationally representative sample of nearly 500 debate watchers assembled by Knowledge Networks who were "uncommitted voters" - voters who are either undecided about who to vote for or who say they could still change their minds. Thirty-nine percent of these uncommitted debate watchers said Obama won the debate. Twenty-four percent said McCain won, and another 37 percent thought it was a tie.

This is where John McSame should have won hands down, Foreign Policy. He didn't. He didn't come close to delivering the knockout blow he had to have. Obama got some excellent counterattacks in and held his own. McSame came across as Cranky Old Man, not Elder Statesman.

Obama got the tie/slight win he needed here, which is far better than I thought was going to happen, I figured it would be "McSame won, Obama didn't knock him out, he has the momentum now." He doesn't. McCain had to have a KO here to get back in this. Instead I'm betting he lost ground here.

Now everyone is waiting for the bloodbath that will be Thursday nigh's debate between Joltin' Joey and Sister Sarah. I still say this one gets canceled. There is no way Palin can be allowed on live national television against Biden.

All Joey has to do is show up.