Well, the third and final Presidential Debate is done and dusted. And the life of Joe the Plumber will not be the same again..! Senator McCain referred to Joe constantly throughout the debate, in explaining why Senator Obama’s tax plans would be bad for the average American – shooting into the limelight this aspiring small business owner from Ohio who had been caught on camera questioning Obama earlier in the week on what his tax policy would mean for people like him.
Now without doubt the most famous plumber in America, it will be telling to hear which way Joe swings in his state of Ohio, a key battleground in the election. The comedy programmes will likely pluck (and plumb) some perfect material from it all.
So who won? Overall, Obama came off worse in the first-half - battered and bruised by McCain who really went on the offensive tonight – possibly sensing an urgent need to change the game. But Obama came back strong in the second half. On healthcare, education and even abortion Obama responded “eloquently,” McCain commented witheringly.
At times, McCain honestly looked like he was going to spontaneously combust, he seemed so pent up with rage; Paul Begala on CNN believing him to look like Grumpy McNasty.
With regard to a Jewish angle, then little further to report following tonight’s debate. There was no mention of the Middle East or Israel, as the focus was on domestic affairs. However, watching proceedings with a number of “Jewglish” (Jewish-English) ex-pats I was able to take the pulse of more familiar Jews. All were unanimously in favour of Obama. Fortunately two are dual citizens, and will be casting their vote on November 4th, so maybe it will be the English which wins it!
Finally, further comment on the potential Jewish ballot. Howard Fineman, on Newsweek.com believes Jews are going to vote big for Obama..! One can only hope..!
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