That's an unfair assessment of the debate. Obama didn't even know who Medvedev was. He needed Hillary to tell him, and then he goes, ah yes, I think what Hillary has said about him is true. Let me switch to talking about something I actually know about now. That was a good moment for her. As for the Farrakhan exchange, Obama refused to reject his support; even after doing a 360, he still would only reject his positions. Do you think McCain could get away with, say, denouncing David Duke's positions but refusing to reject a David Duke endorsement? If McCain said something like "I reject Duke's racist positions, but I can't tell David to stop saying I'm a good guy - he sees a white guy bringing the nation together," his whole career would come to a screeching halt. Yet Obama says he's only willing to reject Farrakhan's positions, can't turn away his support, and offers the explanation that, you know, Farrakhan, racial supremacist that he is, sees a black guy bringing the nation together and thinks it's a good thing - and that's okay. The notion that Obama made Hillary look picky or lawyerly just comes from an insensitivity to how repugnant Farrakhan is to some people.

Wow, Mike, do you think you can kick her around some more!

I gotta say, both Obama and Clinton have earned my respect. I don't know why I am turning into such a sap, but both of them make me almost choke up with admiration.

Hillary Clinton avoided trying for any "You're no Jack Kennedy" style lines (or "Change you can Xerox"), and that attack style was not missed. The debate format, which was more stately, with the candidates sitting at a big desk and with the audience nearly silent instead of whooping and applauding, would not have served such quips well. Also, I think Clinton has learned that such attempts don't work, and she concentrated on being sincere and substantial. Which was great! That's what I wanted to see more of from Clinton throughout the campaign!

I gotta say, as much as I've argued with Clinton supporters here in Salon, I really do love her a little bit. (For one, she reminds me of my mom, who is a whip-smart, successful woman, but that's sort just a personal note.) I think Hillary was her "most real" in this debate, not trying to play games, totally putting her "Shame on you!" weekend persona aside, and digging into the issues with a ferocity and sincerity. Hillary had a few missteps here and there, but she looked good to me. If Obama were not such a good candidate, I could totally see backing Clinton, perhaps with some standard reservations. Clinton attempted to appeal to women voters with her "sea change" comment at the end, but she didn't push it too hard. Though she has some rough times in the ruthless world of top-tier political fighting, Hillary is an awesome person, and whatever happens I hope she continues to be a force on the world stage.

I also gotta say: What the hell was Tim Russert's problem? He kept interrupting her! What the fuck? Hillary should have smacked that bloated-face donkey dick. Seriously -- why interrupt her like that? I was half-hoping that Obama would interject with, "Let the woman talk!" If I had been in that audience I would have shouted, "STOP INTERRUPTING HER!" It was grotesquely inappropriate, nevermind Russert's other attempts to inject himself into the debate. Russert asked some well-researched questions, too, but he really shat on the decorum of the proceedings and gave Clinton an unfair shake. At one point, Clinton really wanted to respond to a back-and-forth over an issue, and they had to go to a commercial, and Clinton was supposed to get a chance to follow-up afterward, and they completely dropped it when they came back. What the hell? I notice one of the War Room blog posts is about Clinton complaining about the debate, and I don't blame her. (Though Clinton mis-handled her reference to the SNL sketch, it turns out the sketch itself tapped into an unfortunate truth.)

As for Obama, he was fully "on" and I was glad to see it. I thought Obama was seriously off his game in last Thursday's debate, which I understand was partially due to his suffering from a bad cold that's been going around (I got a cold last week too). This week, Obama was in full swing, nailing his presidential messsage and philosophy again and again. I don't want to say he triumphed over Clinton, because it really wasn't about besting her. In fact, I felt that he was very gracious toward her and took no more swipes toward her than necessary. It was more about Obama showing his strength, and demonstrating what kind of president he aspires to be. That is all. And dammit, Obama looked great! I remember watching the early seasons of "24" a few years ago and thinking that Dennis Haysbert's portrayal of a black president seemed like something that would be a long way off for America. Now here we are, just a few years later, and I think we're going to have a really excellent black (or "half black" if you want to quibble) president! Or scratch that -- just an excellent president, period!

Obama was totally on his game. He is going to be a fantastic president. As for Clinton, I think she'd be a great president too, in spite of her shortcomings (Iraq war vote, etc.). I feel nothing but sympathy for her supporters -- with the exception of a few nasty ones (you know who you are). But I can see what they love in Clinton. She's got a really cool combination of elements: a sweetness, a ferocity, a formidable intelligence, and dare I say it, she's attractive. She has a twinkle in her eye, a funky full laugh, a great smile, and....well you get the idea. I think the problem with Hillary Clinton is similar to the problem of Bill Clinton -- sometimes they can't control their worst impulses. Sometimes they're a little too ordinarily human, giving in to the foibles that the rest of us do. That includes Hillary resorting to kitchen-sink attacks because advisors recommend it instead of realizing her own strengths and having the confidence to focus on them. (One anecode I always appreciated about Hillary: I read an article once where it was reported she liked to say "Okey dokey, artichokey" to Chelsea as she was growing up.)

Anyway, it was a very entertaining debate, considering it was the 20th one. Hillary and Barack have tremendous endurance to have made it this far. I think if it were possible to have the executive branch split up into co-presidents, I would want to see them become Wonder Twins and work together. But since it doesn't work that way, I think Obama has proven himself the stronger candidate and should be elected president.