George, in your interview with Greg Sargent, you said:

"We decided to focus at the top on the issues that had been at the
center of the debate since the last debate. Everything we brought up in
that front section had not come up since the last debate. And they all
focused on the same theme -- which candidate would be a stronger
Democratic candidate in November."

This argument is intellectually dishonest, and it is sad to me that you don't understand why this comment, and the heart of your entire argument, is fundamentally flawed and fatal to the prospect of intelligent political discourse in this country.  You see, George, you have a television show.  Every Sunday.  I usually watch it.  So don't give me this bullshit line about how you had to cover the recent topics of discussion in the last few weeks - you are one of the people that peddles this senseless nonsense in the first place!  You are one of the people who picks and chooses what gets discussed in the weeks leading up to a debate.  Then you act like you have no choice but to discuss this nonsense in a debate because, well, hey, the people are interested in it!  I wonder why!

Garbage in, garbage out.  Of course the American people want to know whether or not Obama hates his country because he doesn't wear a flag pin.  This is the tripe that counts as "news" nowadays.  And for you to put on your pundit hat on Sunday mornings and dissect every misstatement or wrong look between Clinton and Obama, which in turn further propels a certain storyline and narrative about competing personalities, while neglecting discussing other issues, only to step to the plate on debate night and act as though the people have demanded to know whether or not Obama shook Ayers' hand twice or three times and are they or are they not Freemasons who want to blow up the Capitol building?

You had a choice, George.  You could have left your Sunday morning horse-race, focus-on-the-minutia hat at home, but you didn't.  You were a moderator, you got to define the debate.  And you chose to define it in as small a way as possible.  Don't blame the "American people" for your pettiness.  You could have made it bigger last night.  You could have asked about food shortages, China, Afghanistan, the energy crisis.  You chose instead to inquire as to whether Obama was more patriotic than his minister.  Or why Clinton lied about Bosnia, as though that hadn't gone through the ringer already either.

Own up to it, man.  Just own up to it and say that you messed up.  You blew it.  You're better than the stunt you pulled last night.