I predict both candidates will contradict each other on various issues even though they themselves flip flop. At least it will get palin off the pages for a few days.
Palin scares me. Enough said bout her. I predict Obama to be polished and clear. His appearance on the O'Reilly Factor against the notorious Bill showed his metal when it comes to robust debating.
Obama is the much more accomplished and assured speaker. I have a feeling he will come off best. Mc Cain, to me, will appear old and ragged in comparrission to a young and vibrant alternative. I am an Obama fan i have to say, and hopefully he does come off best.
The problem is Obama is know for giving great teleprompter assisted speaches and his ability to discuss issues off the cuff is very unknown however both candidates are told the questions that will be asked in advance so it the person who can retain their pre-prepared answer the best that will win which you can assume will be Obama. When I was in Florida last month there was a lot made of the fact that Obama is doing these pre-prepared speaches on his whistle stop tours through the states but McCain is having open forum town hall meetings in a lot of the places he goes where he lets the public ask him anything on his policies or their issues and he answers them on the spot. This is something McCain has asked Obama to do with him many times but Obama isnt interested in doing it which has lead most political commentators to conclude that this is because he would probably crack and would prove the McCain camps assertian that he is inexperiences and would falter under pressure. If you watched Obamas speach at the Democratic Convention he outlined lots of things he is going to change and introduce which he said would cost 100's of billions but side stepped how any of it was going to be paid for which is one thing McCain should try and get an answer on.
Sky news or Fox channel will have it or more than likely it will be streamed online by someone via Justin.tv for example.
I watched that, what really annoyed me was O'Reilly banging on about the "surge" and how that is the only reason for the apparent calm in Iraq, it isn't. I love the way he didn't mention the fact the US payed the surrounding tribes millions or that al queda has turned its attentions to the Persians for supporting American issues. Of course Obama was against the "surge" but yet conceded the point to Bill that it did work and that was the primary reason for Iraqs new found "stability". Clearly neither of them new what they were talking about, one of whom is a national political tv host and the other looking to become the president of the US.
The surge has worked...... only because of the tactics used by the Americans. Theyve basically created a city of walls keeping rival factions from each other.....the walls are as high as those in the green zone! I'm surprised Obama did not use this! Baghdad was an inferno the Americans couldn't handle.......their solution - create ghettos! Remind you of anythin?
It did work but not for the reasons everyone has stated and the fact that other issues played a crucial factor. http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/JD10Ak04.html