All right, I'm back off the road, infused with caffeine jitters and ready to try and blog the d-bate as it comes across my TV, I'll be switching to C-SPAN in 24 minutes.

Nice to see Laura Bush be true to her word and wore blue as promised.

Everyone in the audience might be THE one, or one of several actually, who gets to ask a question, so Gibson sets them up like Oprah jingling car keys to practice.  The anticipation can be cut with a forged memo. . .

"Cuticle" Carl Cameron from FOX has a memo from ABC saying that (basically) since Bush is a serial liar, his spin will be given greater scrutiny.  Brit Hume wonders if it's forged, there will be much more on this crap.  (Good for ABC if it's true, FOX has no shame, why should ABC.

This has got to be an attempt to deflect the anticipated disaster Bush will present after such an unimaginably bad week for his administration, by impuning ABC's Charles Gibson's credibility.  Already before the lights go on, the GOP is calling foul.

Wishy washy question for Kerry:  Kerry's downright charming, smiles like an expert assassin sticking the knife in the "weapons of mass distraction."
Bush's rebuttle,   Usual meme but decently delivered.

WMD justification for Bush's Iraq invasion and how does it play with N. Korea.  Bush seems at ease, and that each situation is different, calling for inconsistency?  He just went on and on about how Preznitin' is tough and you need to be consistent.  WTF?  He is comfortable and smooth. 
Kerry rebutts, Kery getting steamed early, or is that just forceful?
Bush just frickin LIED dammit.  Saddam had no weapons to give to the terrorists he wasn't talking to.  And Kerry called him on it.

Bugging out question for Kerry.
Bush is Sneering.  There's just no other way to describe it.  Kerry has new quotes, good info and logic, Bush counters with more of the same talking points.  This song and dance is lame.

They've almost reached the point of shouting at each other, and it's real early.

Good question for Bush, how are you going to fix our broken alliances.  He compared himself with Reagan, I hope Kerry reminds him what a diplomat his father was.  Bush doesn't answer the question but only justifies why he screwed things up, not how he'll fix it.
Kerry calmed down,   Broken promises in a rush to war.  Bush is rightfully indignant but not over the top.


Kerry question on Iran nukes.  Nice start, the UN isn't the only thing to rely on, nice.  The rest is a repeat of the last debate meme's on N. Korea.
Lame scowel joke from Bush.  "I get it."  Bush saying Kerry is "Naive and dangerous" "making progress," blah blah blah...

Bush:  Draft rumors on Internet-S??  Dufass.  A real promise of no draft from Bush.  That's new.
Kerry and the "backdoor draft," and adding 40K soldiers and not go alone.
Bush is just interrupting, he's losing it.
Kerry strides "presidentially" and getting even more secure, he knows Bush just lost this thing.

Kerry security question: Getting the terrorists "over there" means the best intelligence, which means cooperation, ties in homeland security and Bush's ponzie scheme tax plan, all in one.  Well done.  Who cares what happened in 1993.

DOMESTIC
Canada Drugs.  Aren't Safe?  So much for not denigrating allies.  OO, but wait til December, he might let them in.  Riight.  Was that an anticipatory flip/flop?
Kerry calls Bush a liar again.  The President DID block it according to Kerry.  Kerry makes the nice point of Bush being the champion of corporate welfare.  Bush blames Clinton, bahahaha.

Trial Lawyers question for Kerry who points to a real web site to see his tort reform plan.  Lawyers fixing lawyers problems.  It really does work, just nobody will trust it.
Bush jumps on Kerry's liberalism.  Tax and spend meme from the spend and spend Preznit.
Kerry is amused, not grimacing. Taking a Dispassionate Liberal stance against the "compassionate conservative." 
Bush take another swing at the trial lawyer on the ticket and swaggars off like a gorrilla.  "Top that ya whimp." He's repugnant.

NO VETO question for Bush.  Preznitin' cost a lot.........especially when you cut taxes.
Kerry clarrifies his "liberal" health care plan.  Bush opened the door on jobs, silly boy.  Kerry doesn't hesitate to pounce.  Bush is struggling to remember not to roll his eyes or grit his teeth, and failing. . . . ENROOOOOooonnnn.  It echos.

No tax raise question.  Kerry was just given a gift of a question, "straight into the camera."  Where is the fact checking on Kerry breaking the balance budget 200 times, and more checking needs done on the "green eye shades???"  We're down to only 98 votes against fiscal responsibility, isn't that down from 350?
Kerry:  Fuzzy math, I remember that.  Didn't work last time either.

Environment question for Bush. Hmmm, Kerry should eat this one for dinner.  Bush does sound credible, but . . .
Kerry on Bush's Orwellian fantasy.  Blinded Bush with science, but  Kyoto plays to Bush.  But Kerry rebounds  nicely.

Competitive Manufacturing question for Kerry.   Lou Dobbs parroting outsourcing answer, but it has appeal.  Other than closing the loophole on outsourcing companies, I don't think he answers the question.
Bush follows the thread and never gets back to fixing the PROBLEM IN OHIO and elsewhere OF THE LOSS OF MANUFACTURING JOBS. 
Bush back on fricking tax cuts,  Please someone hit the buzzer....
Gibson calls Kerry on his non-response.  Kerry merely says he can't fis it all but wants to level the playing field, which seems at least honest.
Fact-check the little tyrant on his timber company he doesn't even know he owns (nice joke about it though).  Kerry could not have just pulled that out of the ether.

Patriot Act Question for Bush.  He defends the act well, but doesn't relieve any worries by the guy who asked the quesiton judging by his reaction.
Kerry loves to hate Ashcroft.  Tin hats with facts.

Stem Cell next for Kerry, Nap time.  Oops, name dropping Superman will wake anybody up. 
Bush handles this question better than anything I've seen, but Kerry steps on the waffle line and rubs it away.

FINALLY someone brings up the Supreme Court in this Campaign.  I hate Strick Constructionists and Bush wants them on the bench.  Esototeric I know but Bush is way out of his league in this, citing Dred Scott?  Wrong case at the wrong time for the wrong reasons -- overturned by an "activist" court.  Read a damn book once in a while George.  Any 1st year law student could rip that argument apart.
Kerry (wisely probably) doesn't argue just how idiotic Bush sounds talking about case law.  He quotes Bush wanting more conservative judges and scores with this former law student.  Opinions should be politics neutral, something lacking in since Renquist took over.

And Kerry gets a chance to "explain" his abortion position.  Always a thicket for us liberals.  He does alright but changes no minds on this.  Not because his answer didn't grok, it did and was excellent, but becasue those that care about this issue made up their minds whether they would vote "D" or "R" years ago.
It figures that Bush doesn't get it.  And touting his record doesn't do anything but really get the hackles up of anyone tired of Government legislating culture.  That would be me.
Kerry lectures Bush so the Idjit understands. Bush only gets things if they are black or white

FINAL QUESITON IS A WHOPPER.  Name not just one, but THREE mistakes, hehehe he can't come up with anything wrong, only that Iraq was right (dag gonnit!)

Appointment mistakes?? No names?  Um, O'Neil comes to (his?) mind, Bremmer maybe, personally I would say RUMSFELD

Can Kerry keep it down to three.  Gut check?  Was this war a last resort? 
$87 Million again, what a jerk, the question was about YOUR mistakes Mr, President.
Kerry repeats defense from last debate (mistake in talking about the war, versus a mistake going to war) and gets the last word by (finally) mentioining CheneyBurton!  Yeah!!

Summations:   Kery on the stump, live.  Bush on the stump, likable.


Bush will be the toast of St, Louis because his head didn't explode.  But Kerry certainly looks more "presidential."

LET THE SPIN BEGIN (I'm reserving the right to fix my typos, but otherwise it was fun)