Presidential Debate #1, Live Blogging

I’m writing these notes as I watch. This is the only bipartisan account you will ever see! Oh, whom am I kidding? Of course, I root for the cute guy to win.

Obama wastes time on marriage anniversary greetings and so does Romney. Welcome to Hollywood! Who cares about the country’s politics when there are people who have private occasions to celebrate.

Romney threatens to mess with Latin America and kind of suggests that small business owners are starting their businesses not here but overseas. Romney tries to humanize his image by smiling in a weird way.

Obama steals the “close loopholes” line from Romney. People tend to become emotionally attached to this meaningless “close the loopholes” shtick, so good move for him.

Romney says that when your income goes down due to poor economy, that is a tax, too. Jeez, we are only 5 minutes in and I have to hear stupid things right there. How am I expected to go into a classroom and explain what a tax actually is after this?

Obama is using strings of boring enumerations which makes an impression that he doesn’t have much to say.

Romney continues to smile goofily.

Obama keeps saying the word “loopholes.” Probably the goal is to make people so sick and tired of it that they will run away from anybody who mentions it. I have to say, the strategy is working on me.

Obama makes fun of Donald Trump who “doesn’t like to think of himself as small anything.” I have no idea how it is justified to waste time on taking pot shots at Trump at this point. Just for comedic effect?

Romney makes it clear that the tax code is so messed up that even the two presidential candidates really know what it’s all about and how it works.

Obama mentions Romney’s desire to give the military a huge sum of money that it isn’t even asking for. Burn! Mentions Bush’s failed policies but doesn’t mention Bush. A big mistake.

Romney engages in “no, it’s my turn, no it’s my turn” round of whining which makes him look weak. “People are suffffering,” he says, trying to look compassionate.

Romney says that not balancing the budget is immoral. I hate hearing religious terminology in political debates. What next? “Jesus wouldn’t like it”?

To save the budget, Romney proposes to stop funding the PBS. No, Jesus would definitely not approve. I cannot believe how shallow this economic discourse is. Fucking PBS is what is keeping the country in debt. Romney keeps trying to scare people by repeating the word “China.”

Obama also disappoints. He says he will be asking “those of us who have done well to contribute a little bit more.” Thank you for being so damn specific, Mr. President. We have no interest in knowing who you consider to have done well and how little this little more actually is, so keep being vague.

Romney can bat his eye-lashes better than I can. I’m not sexist, so I think it’s perfectly fine. Romney proceeds to bash Spain. OK, now he has made me very angry. Such an egregious and insulting simplification of a very complex issue in a country that has done him personally no ill is unforgivable.

Both candidates keep repeating “this is not what works, this is not how America is.”

Romney is upset that green energy gets more tax cuts than oil companies. He actually said this. How does he get anybody to vote for him at all if he makes this kind of statements? Have you ever heard anything less intelligent?

“Don’t add the federal government,” says Romney who hopes to become the leader of the federal government. Makes a ton of sense.

Romney changes Obama’s statement “We will not overpay insurance companies” into “The President says he will stop overpaying hospitals.” What a clumsy manipulation. If you can’t even argue with what was actually said, then what are you doing on the podium.

Obama fails to make me understand why the voucher system will not work. And if I don’t get it, chances are many other people don’t either.

Romney avoids answering the direct question as to whether he supports the voucher system. This tells me there must be something wrong with the voucher system that nobody is mentioning directly. “I prefer to have a private healthcare insurance plan,” says Romney. Good job trying not to look like an over-entitled spoiled billionaire. You are such a man of the people, Governor Romney!

Romney interrupts both the opponent and the show host and acts very condescending and rude.

“You have to have regulations to make economy work,” says Romney. I couldn’t agree more.

Wow, Romney cannot stop interrupting and being obnoxious. The host looks much older and interrupting him repeatedly is extremely rude. Is he doing this on purpose? To look tough, or something? Also, if you support regulation, as you say, let the host regulate the debate, for Pete’s sake.

“Banks are reluctant to give mortgages,” Romney says. From where I’m sitting (in a rented apartment, actually), I think this is fantastic news.

Romney’s argument to repeal Obamacare is that this should be decided on a state level. Yeah, because we will all live forever, so we can just sit here and wait through this plan being repealed and state plans being crafted.

Obama defends Obamacare very well. He also interrupts the host but in a very charming and elegant way. I’m sorry, folks, but people skills are crucial for this particular job.

Romney tries to explain how his MA healthcare plan is better than Obamacare. And he is failing to do so. Mumbles.

“This is why American people don’t like Medicare. . . Obamacare,” Romney says. An important slip of the tongue if I ever saw one.

Obama reproaches the Republicans for not being cooperative in the Congress.

Seriously, Obama is managing to convince me that there is something to Obamacare. I’ve been very anti, if you remember.

Romney, “Children are already covered by parents’ plans in the private marketplace, so you don’t need the government to regulate this.” Is he trying to alienate people who happen to be parents right now?

“The government shouldn’t mandate to the doctor and the patient what treatment can be offered.” You go, Governor Romney! I support your pro-abortion rights position completely. It’s fantastic news that Romney has now turned pro-choice.

Obama berates Romney for being too vague. “Is Romney keeping his plans from the people because they are too good?” he quips.

Romney promises to cooperate with the Democrats if he is elected. We are supposed to believe this because. . . Reagan. This is the best joke of the year.

Obama squanders a great opportunity to mention Osama. Fail!

“Every school district should make the decision on teachers on its own,” Romney says. I’m getting the impression he is arguing that a president’s position can be abolished altogether.

“We are a nation that believes we are all children of the same God,” says Romney, a presidential hopeful in the US, of all places!!! This is beyond outrageous. He just attributed his own religious views to everybody in the country. That is disgusting!

Obama reminds Romney how he told students to borrow money from parents if they want to go to college. Good hit!

Romney says that Obama put 90 billion dollars into green jobs. Now he is trying to get everybody to like Obama, or what? I never knew that, and now I have a newfound respect for Obama for doing that. As a teacher, I believe that it is, indeed, a lot more important to invest money in green energy today than into teaching.

Obama keeps mentioning Ryan because Ryan has become a huge liability to Romney.

Both candidates insist that the only group they support is the middle class. I’m all for the middle class, but is anybody going to confess to give a hoot for the poor people, the people who live under the poverty line, the unemployed, the indigent, the homeless? I don’t mean the “OMG, I have lost the 5-bedroom house I could never afford and now have to rent, what a total disaster” kind of homeless but the actual people living in the streets.

Have you watched the debate? What do you think? Who won?