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Obama vs. McCain debate? Bob Schieffer won; McCain on Letterman tonight
Who won the last presidential debate? Bob Schieffer.
Yep, the veteran CBS News anchor/reporter from Texas nailed it.
PBS’s Jim Lehrer, who anchored the first encounter between Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama, looked like a deer in the headlights. He kept trying to get the two candidates to look and talk to each other, but that never happened. Frustration reigned.
Gwen Ifill, also of PBS, seemed to be over-run by vice presidential contenders Sarah Palin and Joe Biden. Republican Palin made it clear from the get-go that she would say what she wanted to say, regardless of the question, and Ifill never found a way to keep her on point.
At the helm of the second presidential debate, NBC’s Tom Brokaw did the best he could with audience questions, but he was better when he asked his own questions — which wasn’t the format of the town-hall debate.
But last night’s third and final presidential smackdown sailed along as it was supposed to, thanks to the steady hand and determined questioning of Schieffer. When Obama or McCain veered off topic, Schieffer ordered them back. And when time was up, he politely but firmly cut them off.
Controlling the direction and format of a debate is the moderator’s function, and no-nonsense Schieffer did a spectacular job. Cheers to you, Deputy Dog.
All’s forgiven on Letterman? Maybe not.
John McCain hits the hot seat on “The Late Show With David Letterman” tonight (10:30 p.m. on CBS) after stiffing the show at the last minute for a scheduled appearance on Sept. 24.
Letterman has been slamming McCain ever since — not because the Arizona senator bailed but because he fudged about it at the time. McCain, who has been a frequent guest over the years and informally announced his candidacy on the show, told the host he had to “rush back to Washington” to take care of the economic crisis.
But while Letterman was taping his show, he learned that McCain had not gone back to D.C. but, in fact, was a few blocks away doing a live interview with CBS News anchor Katie Couric. McCain remained in New York the following day for a United Nations event.
“This doesn’t smell right,” Letterman said on air. “This is not the way a tested hero behaves. I think someone’s put something in his Metamucil.”
Letterman has been steaming for weeks now, so it will be amusing to see if McCain grovels, if Letterman forgives … or if sparks will fly between the two hot-heads.
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