Debate scorecard

I watched the second presidential debate last night at the local health club. Coming in with a bias for McCain, I looked for points in the debate that favored him on my personal "scorecard" and it went about I as expected.

Coincidentally, the debate was held at Belmont University's Curb Center in Nashville, the very facility where my son works as a graduate assistant at the university. He was working off site the last couple of days as preparations for the debate moved into high gear.

I thought John McCain moved around in the format with ease, striding over close to Obama's personal space and then walking right up to the participants in the town hall meeting. Obama's hand gestures seemed more appropriate for a lectern than the cozy town hall meeting.

McCain emphasized that he has a record of bipartisanship, while he punched away with the message that Obama has never taken on leaders of his own party on any major issue.

"I have a clear record of bipartisanship. The situation today cries out for bipartisanship. Sen. Obama has never taken on his leaders of his party on a single issue. And we need to reform."

McCain's "new idea" - a "hail mary" gambit to attract undecided voters? - unveiled at the debate would have the Secretary of the Treasury buy up bad home loan mortgages and renegotiate the paper with the new and reduced value of those homes.

As to the question of whether the economy gets worse before it gets better, neither relished predicting doom and gloom.

Obama:
No, I am confident about the American economy. But we are going to have to have some leadership from Washington that not only sets out much better regulations for the financial system.

The problem is we still have a archaic, 20th-century regulatory system for 21st-century financial markets. We're going to have to coordinate with other countries to make sure that whatever actions we take work.

But most importantly, we're going to have to help ordinary families be able to stay in their homes, make sure that they can pay their bills, deal with critical issues like health care and energy, and we're going to have to change the culture in Washington so that lobbyists and special interests aren't driving the process and your voices aren't being drowned out.

McCain:
I think it depends on what we do. I think if we act effectively, if we stabilize the housing market -- which I believe we can, if we go out and buy up these bad loans, so that people can have a new mortgage at the new value of their home -- I think if we get rid of the cronyism and special interest influence in Washington so we can act more effectively.

My friend, I'd like you to see the letter that a group of senators and I wrote warning exactly of this crisis. Sen. Obama's name was not on that letter.

The point is -- the point is that we can fix our economy. Americans' workers are the best in the world. They're the fundamental aspect of America's economy.

They're the most innovative. They're the best -- they're most -- have best -- we're the best exporters. We're the best importers. They're most effective. They are the best workers in the world.

And we've got to give them a chance. They've got -- we've got to give them a chance to do their best again. And they are the innocent bystanders here in what is the biggest financial crisis and challenge of our time. We can do it.

There were more tussles over competing economic plans, the use of force in parts of the world to quell civil unrest and prevent genocide where America has little or no strategic interest, energy policy and entitlement reform. Here is the transcript of the second presidential debate. No matter who wins the election, it seems extremely likely the next president and the next Congress will face the winter of our discontent. America needs you, Ronald Reagan.