John vs Barrack: Throwing Punches Out of Sync

Not a traditional debate--although there hasn't been a traditional debate on the presidential trail in many, many years--last night's Service event featuring the two candidates was still measured in boxing terms. McCain was going to have to predict where Obama was going to be on the theme of service and land some jabs. While Obama was going to have to hope that he could pull a Marty McFly and go Back to the Future on the warrior.

I personally didn't see it in these terms. By having these two candidates separate and on their own terms, was probably a lot more enlightening than listening to them debate. Which would have inevitably disentegrated into the typical, let me use the first 60 seconds of my 90 seconds to get in a jab, then let me use the next 60 of my remaining 30 seconds to actually answer. Why the answer can't be the jab has always baffled me. Until you look at the responses by the audience and you realize how fickle the audience can be when their candidate isn't "sticking it" to their opponent.

On the whole, Obama I thought was more substantive in his answers, and that his body language was compelling. He exuded leadership. Best subtle moment for Obama: When he looked out into the crowd as if he was actually envisioning the future. It's a moment I think will resonate with millions of viewers.

McCain on the other hand, was just as comfortable as Obama. I'm not sure how well he communicated the idea of service to the American public though. He certainly touched on quite a few elements, but never pinpointed anything concrete. And while he didn't stick to military service too much, he probably didn't give non-military service as much weight as he should have. According to estimates, about 3 million people serve in the military as active or reserve members. That's only about 1 percent of the United States population. For most people, they will never serve in the military. Although, that small number, does drive home the need for ROTC on college campuses.

Another great moment was Obama not shying away from government service. The anti-government mantra of the last 30 years has done great damage. Government is not going away, so being ambivilent and cynical about it is counterproductive. Obama gets busted everyday for having 300 foreign policy advisors, but doesn't Bush rely on the work of thousands to form his opinions and policies on foreign issues every day? Knowing that, we should be encouraging the best and the brightest to become civil servants.

At the end of the day, I'd say that speaking to the base, both shored up some votes. On reaching independents and undecideds, Obama probably opened some doors. McCain was able to show himself as affable and likeable. He didn't look anywhere as Presidential as Obama, but he has helped further inocculate himelf when it comes to the question of his temper.